CityLife

BBC Philharmonic: Gregson, Mahler

BBC Philharmonic / Halle
Bridgewater Hall
March 27 and 28, 2010

Edward Gregson's response to the challenge of writing a work to sit alongside Mahler’s symphony no. 6 – his piece had its world premiere at the Bridgewater Hall on Saturday – was unashamed homage.

He called it Dream Song: as it unfolded in the hands of Gianandrea Noseda and the BBC Philharmonic, the phrase ‘symphonic metamorphosis on themes by …’ came to mind, as he’s used many features of the symphony both as inspiration and material for quotation.

It’s not deconstruction, really – he loves Mahler’s music too much to do anything so negative – but reconstruction, in a world which may be dreamlike but which owes a lot to Mahler’s own. In one way, he’s even out-Mahlered Mahler, by combining his own big melodic inspiration (based on the ‘Alma’ theme from the sixth symphony) with that of the ‘Death In Venice’ Adagietto from the fifth – also inspired by the composer’s beloved.

He calls that passage Liebeslied (love song) and, if you look at the score, it says ‘Apologies, Gustav! at the point where direct quotation – even in the original key – comes in. But it’s a mark of admiration, if not infatuation, and for Eddie Gregson there’s a moving personal message in there, too.

His mastery of orchestral scoring, and brass sound in particular, is apparent throughout this work. And although he’s the only one, it seems, of the composers asked to write for this series who’s taken the idea of partnering Mahler entirely seriously, I hope Dream Song will find a life of its own, even without Mahler on the same bill. It deserves to.

Noseda’s reading of the sixth symphony was everything we would have expected – and more. Taut, skilfully paced, projected with immense energy and glistening beauty in the slow movement, it had the BBC Philharmonic playing like heroes.

The complex tempo changes of the Scherzo were controlled with superb efficiency, and there were one or two Noseda inserted of his own – a reflection of his reverential desire always to expound music as a sacred text. It was a masterly achievement.

At the Hallé, Carl Davis gave an enjoyable concert of Oscar-winning tunes , with Mary Carewe his vocalist, to chime in with the awards season, proving incidentally that Gershwin’s An American In Paris, in its full version, is a remarkably satisfying piece.

And the Hallé’s recent Opus One concerts have marked the UK conducting début of Nikolaj Znaider, better known here hitherto as virtuoso violinist.

But his skills with the baton are considerable, and he brought a freshness of approach to familar scores. In the Prelude to Act One of Wagner’s Lohengrin, he held its spell and obtained a real frisson of concentrated sound at the climax. String intonation at the end left something to be desired, but there was an energetic rendering of the Act Three Prelude.

In Tchaikovsky’s fourth symphony he gave us something rare indeed: thoughtful Tchaikovsky. Sometimes so thoughtful it nearly stopped – but at least it was different from a routine dash. Brass playing was heavyweight, and the finale’s tempo a furious one, but the accelerating passage in the first movement was striking and memorable.

Between these, the Hallé’s own principal, Stéphane Rancourt, was soloist in Mozart’s oboe concerto. His excellent breath control was clear from the very start, and the cadenzas were virtuoso demonstrations.

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