To conclude “Leipzig Week in Boston,” an intermixed orchestra of BSO and Gewandhausorchester members plays three concerts under Andris Nelsons’ direction. Haydn’s 1792 Sinfonia concertante—here featuring soloists from both the BSO and the GHO—was written during the first of the composer’s wildly successful visits to England, for which he also wrote the twelve “London” symphonies. Richard Strauss’ Festive Prelude for organ and orchestra, featuring French organist Olivier Latry as soloist, was written for the opening of Vienna’s Konzerthaus in 1913; its only BSO performances were later that same year. The organ also has a major role in the Russian composer and mystic Alexander Scriabin’s lushly exotic Poem of Ecstasy (1908), which features kaleidoscopic orchestral effects and rich, post-Romantic harmonies. Completing the program is Schoenberg’s intoxicating Verklärte Nacht (“Transfigured Night”) for strings, an 1899 tone poem considered to be the composer’s first masterpiece.(Some emphasis added.)
Maestro Nelsons has the clout to bring this collaboration about since he is Kapellmeister of the GHO as well as Music Director of the BSO.
The Thursday concert wasn't part of my subscription, so I'm looking forward to hearing it for the first time this evening. I have heard the Scriabin and Schoenberg pieces before and I'd say they're okay. The first half of the concert will be new to me, and I expect it to be good.
The review in the Globe is definitely mixed. The reviewer finds combining the two orchestras less than a complete success (not saying anything was actually bad), although he found the Haydn good. The Boston Musical Intelligencer hasn't yet posted a review of this concert.
You can check out the links on the performance detail page as well as on WCRB's website.
And as always, you can hear it on air or over the web via WCRB tonight or November 11 at 8:00 p.m.
Enjoy!
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