Nihilism and vitriol
Glasgow Royal Concert Hall JJJJ
This latest RSNO programme move d s e a ml e s s l y o n f r o m l a s t we e k e n d ’s , w i t h m o r e Stravinsky as the op ener. It began with a game of cards – or at least, Stravinsky’s tricksy musical representation of a poker match, Jeu de cartes, conceived in 1937 as a ballet score for the choreographer George Balanchine. It seemed appropriate, then, for music director Thomas Søndergård to interpret the fanfare -like o p e n i n g i n s l y p o ke r - f a c e d fashion, by keeping his cards close to his chest.
If that initial sense of co ol containment was i n t e n d e d to tease, the effectiveness of the strategy soon revealed its true intentions. S øndergård made the most of the music’s i c y n e o c l a s s i c i s m, d u c k i n g and diving through its colourful diversions with gleeful mischief. It was a sharp, crisp performance.
S o was the UK premiere of Po u l R u d e r s’ C o n c e r t o f o r Harpsichord, a work written
in 2020 for the fearless Iranian harpsichordist Mahan Esfahani. The joy of Ruders’ writing is that it seeks to release the instrument from its Baroque straitjacket, give it a contemporar y voice, and overcome its volume limitations through subtle amplification.
Esfahani’s performance captured the infectious volatility of the music, from its pulverising wildness to chiming sensitivity, its pervading obsession with repeated notes to copious liberating flights of free - flowing vir tuosit y. Rich and sensitive colourings from the ← Scottish stand-up comedian and magician Jerry Sadowitz’s vitriol has twisted internal logic, but when he veers into ranting for ranting’s sake, he lurches into self-parody ↑ Mahan Esfahani in rehearsals with the RSNO
RSNO enhanced its charming freshness.
Freshness was also the watchword in Saint-saëns’ O rg a n Sy mp h o ny, t h o r - oughly rejuvenated here by Søndergård’s insistence on purity of texture and naturally-inspired momentum. Organist Michael Bawtree achieved the near-impossible, finding delicate hues that made Glasgow’s digital organ sound close to real. R arely have I heard this symphony sound so incisive.