RCS Concerto Soloists
Rodrigo : Concierto de Aranjuez (Sasha Savaloni, guitar)
Villa-Lobos : Ciranda das sete notas (Ryan Sullivan, bassoon)
Ravel : Piano Concerto for the Left Hand (Donata Vaitkute, piano)
Ravel : Boléro
Royal Scottish National Orchestra
Jean-Claude Picard
This was a very promising programme, with three young artists at varying stages of their studies with the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland being given the opportunity to shine with the support of the RSNO.
It began rather shakily. I don't know if it was nerves, but the first movement of the Rodrigo was not at all satisfactory, and Sasha Savaloni came across as stiff and ill-prepared, upper notes not sounding properly, and his whole approach more than a little tentative. The famous second movement, however, was much better, Savaloni's sound stabilised and his playing was much more fluid, while the last movement was discreetly playful.
The Villa-Lobos piece, a concertino for bassoon and strings, was new to me. Written in 1933, the Ciranda of the title refers to a sort of singing game (in more recent times, it is, or was, a Brazilian TV show for children), and the piece explores traditional Brazilian melodies in varying forms, with the plangent tones of the bassoon standing out from the string accompaniment. There were a few uncertainties in pitch right at the start from Ryan Sullivan, but that quickly passed, and he proved a persuasive advocate for this piece, particularly in a central section, over see-sawing basses.
Of Ravel's two piano concertos, written more or less concurrently, the G major is distinctly the more popular, and usually better considered than the more eccentric D major, a commission from the Austrian pianist Paul Wittgenstein, who had lost his right arm during World War I. Speaking personally, however, I've always had a greater fondness for the brooding power of the D major, and it was a pleasure to get the chance to hear it in concert. Donata Vaitkute was sometimes just a little overpowered by the orchestral sound, and I thought the whole thing was a bit on the sedate side, but she performed with conviction, and a real lyrical feel when required.
To close proceedings, the orchestra as a whole got to show off, as only Ravel can make the orchestra show off, in his Boléro. The RSNO's forces included quite a few students, in all sections, including, I think, one of the two snare-drummers, who frankly deserve medals for endurance, since they're required to sustain around 15 minutes' worth of unwavering, metronomic precision. Stevenson Hall at the RCS is small, and I was seated near the front, and that meant that the orchestra was extremely exposed, but for every slight glitch (the trombone solo on the 10th iteration), there were dozens of opportunities to hear and notice details that sometimes escape one at a greater distance. And Ravel is always fascinating to watch in the orchestra, as layer upon layer builds up with such extraordinary subtlety, an endlessly varying millefeuille being constituted right there in front of you, colour by colour, flavour by flavour. The saxophones (both students), the tenor in particular, were an especially sultry element, just the right side of sleazy. Jean-Claude Picard kept a steady hand on the reins, enjoying, and allowing us to enjoy the steady wind-up to its convulsive climax.
[Next : 17th April]
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