SEEN AND HEARD INTERNATIONAL

SEEN AND HEARD UK  CONCERT REVIEW
 

RSNO Naked Classics – Beethoven 7: Paul Rissmann (presenter), Royal Scottish National Orchestra, Andrew Grams (conductor), Usher Hall, Edinburgh, 9.01.2010 (SRT)
 

Beethoven: Symphony No. 7

Naked Classics? Don’t be alarmed! This concert was part of a regular venture by the RSNO which attempts to demystify and explain some of the great works in the repertoire. The first half of the evening was a highly engaging presentation by music educationalist Paul Rissmann, while the second was an uninterrupted performance of the work in question. Think of Radio 3’s Discovering Music, only more fun! This is the first one I had been to (Holst’s Planets was the dealt with in October) and I wasn’t entirely sure what to expect, but I must say that I enjoyed Rissmann’s presentation hugely. It’s always difficult to know where to aim an event like this: the audience will always contain some people who know the work well and some who are coming to it completely new so it’s hard to know exactly how to pitch it. Rissmann’s manner and technique seemed just right to me. He was aided by a screen projection which unpacked elements of the music in a highly engaging way, including some extracts from the score and symbols which traced the key building blocks of the piece through each movement. It was colourful, effective and highly polished, clearly the product of a huge amount of work. Other strategies included interviews with both conductor and principal horn, and illustrating the workings of the Allegretto’s Fugato by having each section stand as they give the subject. I especially liked the way he explained sonata form by comparing it to a sitcom (Fawlty Towers, in fact, though the 7^th is more like The Office!).

As for the performance itself, the orchestra was in the hands of young American conductor Andrew Grams who, among other posts, has recently served as assistant conductor of the Cleveland Orchestra. His reading was straightforward and clear, with a few unusual approaches to tempo which didn’t always convince me: the cheeky rit at the outset of the first movement’s Vivace was a lovely touch but the start of the same movement’s coda didn’t work as well. The pacing of the scherzo and finale felt right, though on the whole the performance was distinguished more by the colour of the playing than the unifying energy of the conductor. The string tone at the opening of the Allegretto, for example, was truly chilling, while the counter-melody in the violas and cellos surged along with passion. Likewise the finest aspect of the Scherzo was the Trio where the winds truly glowed against a radiant violin background. Incidentally, the antiphonally placed violins made it a lot easier to make out the surging accompanying figures that Beethoven gives to the seconds and violas, something illustrated with distinction in the first half. Still, there was a genuine kick to the finale which stormed across the finishing line with flair. A fine performance, then, but this is an evening I’ll remember more for the opening presentation, which is perhaps a little ironic!

Shostakovich’s Fifth Symphony will get the Naked Classics treatment in April. For full details go to www.nakedclassics.org.uk. The RSNO’s regular season continues this weekend.

Simon Thompson