The title alone was enough to bring crowds flocking to the Melbourne Symphony Orchestras concert, such is the enduring drawing power of Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony, known better as the Pathetique. The audience would not be disappointed as the MSO under conductor Paul Daniels delivered a performance that sat well in the Master series. First, however, there was the excitement of having a contemporary composer on stage to introduce the world premiere of her work. Elena Kats-Chernin explained the slightly odd title, Re-Collecting Astoroids, as a tribute to the music of Argentinean composer Astor Piazzolla hence the odd spelling. (However, while it was instructive to hear the composers introduction, in my view using an interview with violinist Sarah Curro was not the best way to achieve this). There were no such reservations about the music, though. Re-Collecting Astoroids was commissioned by Symphony Australia for the MSO, with the brief to Kats-Chernin: Be inspired by Astor Piazzolla. And she was, writing five distinct movements, three of which were played on the night. First came the Prologue, with sliding chords in a minor key and a mood between brooding and elegiac. It was not long, however, before Piazzollas signature tango emerged, inspiring the conductor to (almost) dance off the podium. The entry of a trumpet added to the jazz club sound. The next, a fast tango, had a twist: the Piazzolla tango inspired Kats-Chernin to draw on her own piece, Peggys Rag, written in 1995. The result was a happy marriage of the two composers styles, with an augmented brass suggesting a pop sound and castanets a reminder of Piazzolla. Yet there was an artistic integrity about the music, especially when played with the MSOs attention to detail. Finally, the Epilogue was for strings alone, Kats-Chernins ascending scales mirroring Piazzollas descending ones, tinged with melancholy and ending with a questioning chord. The spare opening movement of Bartoks Music for Strings, Percussion and Celeste seemed a natural progression from the previous work, even though the stage had filled almost to capacity, including a piano, harp and amplified percussion. There was much to admire in the performance as the MSO musicians kept a consistent pitch and dynamics through a gradual crescendo and the entrance of the percussion. As you might expect the percussion section had an infinite variety of sounds to contribute (including what sounded to an Australian audience like aboriginal clapping sticks). But equally remarkable was the extended syncopated passage which all strings played pizzicato. The influence of folk music was evident, although its melodies were only explicit near the end of the work, with Daniels carrying the work through to a triumphant ending. It may seem disrespectful to leave little space in this review for the MSOs performance of Tchaikovskys Symphony No.6 in B minor, Op.74 (Pathetique), regarded as his finest symphonic achievement and with its premiere just days before his death added to its mystique. But this is the kind of great orchestral work at which the MSO excels and did so on this occasion. Nevertheless it should be noted that such was the virtuosity and power of this performance that the audience broke with tradition and applauded loudly before the work had ended with the unconventional adagio lamentoso that inspired its title, Pathetique. MSO Tchaikovsky’s Pathetique Hamer Hall, October 1 (until October 3)
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