We are a timorous nation when presented with “new” music. Fear of the unknown meant the Royal Albert Hall was barely half full when Per Nørgård’s third symphony received its radiant UK premiere last week (Prom 51). Shame on those who stayed away; they missed a journey into an entirely original musical landscape, full of intelligent wonder and ethereal enchantment. And, for heaven’s sake, it’s not even new – it was first heard 42 years ago.
It’s frankly baffling that this meticulously constructed, largely tonal work has been neglected in Britain for so long. Nørgård is regarded as a giant of Danish music, with eight symphonies to his credit, yet until now only two have ever been heard at the Proms. Let’s hope that last week’s superb performance will place his name more firmly in future programmes.
Nørgård, now 86 and in the audience to receive warm acclaim, uses a formula he calls an “infinity series” to produce showers of notes that spiral into great galaxies of sound. It’s far from random, being held together with mathematical precision, and attractive polyphony emerges as layers of material are placed one on top of another. Subtle use of the harmonic series enables lyrical solo lines to glint through the texture, while several different rhythms move independently underneath. It sounds difficult, but if you surrender to its stately logic its profound beauty is overwhelming.
Giving this epic two-movement piece the recognition it deserves were the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra under the inspirational Thomas Dausgaard. The combined forces of London Voices and the National Youth Chamber Choir crept into the largely choral second movement as though calling to Earth from another planet, singing across space in rich, bejewelled tonal clusters. Nørgård’s symphony was a revelation, and surely one of this season’s highlights. More please.
First we had the West-Eastern Divan Orchestra at the Proms illustrating how music can cross divides in the Middle East. Then, last week, the European Union Youth Orchestra arrived (Prom 49) and showed us how all 28 nations in the bloc can work together in gracious harmony. How tragic that after 40 years of opportunity, Britain’s young can now only audition for next year’s intake. Beyond that will depend on the outcome of the stumbling Brexit negotiations in Brussels.
That realisation added a certain piquancy to the orchestra’s appearance, its first since it moved headquarters from London to Italy. Despite the bright-eyed enthusiasm of these hugely talented young musicians, a sadness hung in the air, even as they dazzled us with the UK premiere of Agata Zubel’s Fireworks, a sky rocket of a concert opener, with an exhilarating display of percussion’s possibilities and sparks flying from all sections of the orchestra.
The South Korean pianist Seong-Jin Cho, making his Proms debut, proved a soloist of real poise and refinement in Chopin’s Piano Concerto No 2, never lapsing into sentimentality, even when the gracious slow movement felt like the autumn-tinged elegy that the occasion required.
Conductor Gianandrea Noseda coaxed some spine-tingling pianissimos from the strings in the first movement of Tchaikovsky’s fifth symphony before unleashing almost unbearable passions in the second movement, this time with the strings burning through the big tune. There was a glorious lilt to the valse of the third movement, with many of the young players unable to resist smiling at the music and, no doubt, at their good fortune to be playing in such a fine ensemble. The riotous finale brought huge applause from the Prommers – a salute to both the high standard of playing and to the European ethos the orchestra represents; not that Brexiters would care.
There was more young talent on display last week at the London Bel Canto festival, a concert series designed to show off the fruits of intensive training for young singers by, among others, the festival’s founder, tenor Ken Querns Langley, and his US compatriot Bruce Ford. They believe that teaching young singers bel canto technique will set them up not only for Donizetti and Rossini, but make them better performers in all sorts of repertoire – musical theatre as much as opera.
Inevitably, not all the voices were professional material, but across the two concerts I heard at the festival, one singer stood out: the Danish soprano Simone Victor. Whether in Mozart or Massenet, Bellini or Verdi, her liquid upper register, outstanding breath control and sheer musicality consistently impressed and promise an exciting career ahead. And she proved equally assured in new repertoire, giving the premiere of Stardust, a strikingly original work for soprano, trumpet, horn and piano by Clara Fiedler – so there’s a new young composer to watch too.
Star ratings (out of 5)
Prom 51 ★★★★★
Prom 49 ★★★★
London Bel Canto festival ★★★
