Culture Vulture Strikes!

Halifax has come up trumps and we now have two (count them) two viewings on Saturday. So, perhaps it’s not surprising that the downstairs loo broke this morning. However, with the domestic acumen which has become so much a part of my general behaviour these days, I repaired it. Only £4 for parts and a chunk of my immortal soul (because of the swearing) and the job was done.

One of the many reasons for being retired in Cardiff is that I can go to afternoon concerts given by the BBC National Orchestra of Wales at St David’s Hall. This afternoon was the first: ‘Arcade’ by Tristan Keuris; ‘In time of daffodils’ by John Metcalf (Baritone Jeremy Huw Williams) and Nielsen’s Second symphony ‘The Four Temperaments’; the whole lot conducted by Jac van Steen.

Keuris (of whom I have never heard) is probably a Dutch import from the Dutch conductor and, if this is the quality of the stuff which he is going to introduce to a Welsh audience, I say good luck to him and excellent luck for us! The music was instantly engaging and utilized the virtuosic exuberance of the Orchestra to great effect. The piece, ‘Arcade’ was divided into six small sections which were given generally architectural titles and which presented themselves as forceful vignettes. It is perhaps a strength of the music that I would have like these pieces to have been developed at much greater length: a brilliant start to the concert.

The Metcalf was instantly forgettable. The soloist looked very ill at ease and his nervous, flickering tongue did not inspire confidence in the audience. His voice was pleasant enough but it lacked depth and either he or the music (or both) lacked a sense of progression. It is always a danger when setting such famous verse as Metcalf chose for the six songs, that they unbalance by their very fame any musical setting. This was the case here where Wordsworth’s ‘Daffodils’ was fighting against the lacklustre setting provided by Metcalf.

None of the songs stood out. The music seemed to me to be very English, harking back to Vaughan Williams and Holst, but without their skill. This was modern music which didn’t sound modern; it asked little of the audience and was generally vapid.

The orchestra played with enthusiasm, sometimes leaving the soloist struggling to project beyond, but its termination was a relief.

After the interval my expectations from the Nielsen were high. Nielsen is a famous composer who suffers from benign neglect; perhaps other orchestra assume that his music is being taken care of by others, but it is a rare treat to get a whole symphony from one of our foremost bands.

The first movement was taken at a cracking pace, too fast for my taste, more reminiscent of the late, lamented (by me, if not the orchestra) Mark Wigglesworth. The speed gave excitement but the music lacked precise detail, too often we were presented with slabs of sound in which the music structure was lost. The effect was obvious, though, by the end of the movement the audience was visibly stunned.

The opening of the second movement was languorous, sensual and wonderfully indulgent, and by the middle of this movement van Steen had won me over. The crescendos that were drawn out of the orchestra by a visibly sweating conductor were electrifying. The brass excelled themselves and responded with gusto to the encouragement of van Steen.

van Steen’s reading of this symphony was individualistic, but valid; his authority and collaboration with the orchestra built up to a breathtaking climax, indeed in some parts of this wonderful symphony I actually found myself having to remember to breathe.

This was a glorious experience for the select crowd that was in St David’s Hall and has charged my batteries for the emotional draining which will be the performance of ‘La Boheme’ this evening.

Let’s see how good I am. Will I continue this post with my review of the performance tonight? Wait and see!

The Brazz in the Millennium centre is vastly overpriced: £25 for a two course meal. Mine: mozzarella and Welsh crab with leaves and reduced balsamic vinegar; followed by shank of lamb on mash with chopped veg. Nice, but not nice enough to justify the price.

The opera was good, but it just didn't 'do it' for me. The singers, with the signal exception of Rebecca Evans, seemed underpowered and failed to fill the hall in the way that I was anticipating. The only real excitement for me in the first act was when the pair of lovers sang together just before they left the stage at the end of the act.

The staging was a re-staging of the original production by Goran Jarvefelt by Caroline Chaney. It seemed to me to be a very clear and precise production with clearly delineated sets and intelligent lighting. there didn't seem to be much invention, it was conventional, but satisfying.

The ending produced the desired results: the use of spoken dialogue just before the surge of the orchestra after Rodolfo has discovered that Mimi is dead is something which guarantees tears. If you don't cry in Puccini, you're not fully human in any sense that I understand!