Indeed, the definition in the woodwind was one of the highlights of the performance, the interplay between the instruments clearly defined and outstandingly highlighted, with some beautifully clear playing from the flutes.
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... if Rattle can fill existing venues to capacity for music that rarely gets a shout in seasons biased towards established “classical” box office names long dead, his will prove to be a very significant return indeed.
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Throughout, Ax played with true musical distinction, full of deep concentration and vitality, the artistry of this pianist fully matched by that of conductor and orchestra. A memorable concert indeed, of great integrity and depth throughout: no other music was necessary.
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And there was a sense of real joy in the LSO’s playing of the opening of the Fourth Tableau, with everybody celebrating the special occasion of the Shrovetide Fair in the highest of spirits.
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From the susurrations of timpani and cymbals, and the nocturnal sigh of glissandi strings, to the bare-faced cheek of the bassoon figures, the crowing clarinet and the boyish spiccato of the solo part, this was an immaculately disciplined, brilliantly animated reading.
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The last thing you want with this revolutionary piece is to feel it as something normal. In this concert that was impossible. It sprang like a tiger, claws extended, though between the rampaging rhythms Rattle also achieved aching beauty and exceptionally miniaturised quiet.
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Bychkov whipped up the remarkable LSO – especially the horns – to a resounding and affirmative conclusion. For a fleeting moment, I wondered if they would all finish together: I should never have doubted that they would and conductor and orchestra thoroughly deserved the audience’s acclaim.
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Karen Cargill was sublime as Marguerite, her burnished mezzo bringing out the emotional depths of the role. In the ballad of the King of Thule every word was imbued with feeling. Wonderful harmony too in the fusion of voice with the playing of viola soloist Alexander Zemtsov.
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The skill with which Bychkov turned the second movement into a spectral wake made the opening diptych especially resonant.
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Suddenly the familiar work, played exquisitely by the LSO, was new and exciting, especially so in the breathless hush at the beginning of the Nimrod adagio.
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[Bychkov's] approach to the finale, as Mahler moves from tragedy to triumph, was one of fierce industry, leading to a jubilant conclusion to a terrific concert.
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The rafters were truly — sorry — Rattled.
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