A programme of Borodin, Wagner, and Brahms/Schönberg in the Thailand Cultural Centre on Sept 2 afforded the Royal Bangkok Symphony Orchestra the opportunity to demonstrate their ability to perform at both the quietest and loudest of dynamics. Experienced Greek conductor Myron Michailidis and Italian mezzo-soprano Lucrezia Venturiello made their Thailand debuts, and certainly both made a very positive impression on the audience. The concert began with Alexander Borodin's Polovtsian Dances from Prince Igor, continuing with Richard Wagner's Wesendonck Lieder, and finishing with Schönberg's imaginative arrangement for orchestra of Brahms' Piano Quartet In G Minor.
The Polovtsian Dances themselves span the entire gamut of dynamic range, opening here with silky smooth flute and oboe introductions played beautifully by Teerat Ketmee and Nuttha Kuankajorn respectively, followed by delicate harp and string pizzicato arpeggiations which were nicely paced. Principal clarinetist Yos Vaneesorn then executed perfectly the angular and menacing arabesque-style theme, which depicts the Dance Of The Savage Men, but still within a controlled context. However, in a sudden and dramatic gear change of orchestration the full mighty forte force of the RBSO's combined first and second violin sections in unison was unleashed into the auditorium. The same scurrying, frenzied semiquaver theme in common time was characterised by angular accents.
Forte then progressed to fortissimo with a thunderous bass drum as an even more brutal section in three-time featured more harsh off-beat accents and terrifying chromatic descents. The effect was certainly quite startling. When this high drama had subsided, an almost imperceptible pitter-patter of saltando strings evoked a magical hushed texture, then suddenly erupting into a riotous burlesque, swirling and twirling towards a frenzied end.
Wagner's five Wesendonck Lieder, as orchestrated by Felix Mottl, are on the whole a far quieter experience. The composer's original was in any case for piano and mezzo-soprano, in the tradition of Romantic-period song writing. The poems themselves are highly reflective, with the emphasis on introspection rather than the wild outburst of emotion. Lucrezia Venturiello was singing this work for the very first time here, but seemed to be in complete command of the score and her interpretation. Her extremely tall, imposing stature itself was genuinely Wagnerian, while her natural beauty and flowing blonde hair itself reminded the audience of this work's subject matter -- an intense love affair between Wagner and Mathilde Wesendonck, who wrote the poems herself.
In the first song, Der Engel (The Angel), a blissfully undulating bed of soft string sound was the perfect platform for Venturiello's velvety voice to project her tone effortlessly into the auditorium. Even though she was low in dynamic, it was quite obvious that this singer's voice has the ability to reach immense power in tone, but that aspect is never actually required in this work. Stehe Still (Stand Still) began with well executed, turbulent semiquaver figurations in the string sections which duly whipped up the dramatic level, and it did rise to fortissimo at the central climax.
Im Treibhaus (In The Greenhouse) and Träume (Dreams) truly tear at the heartstrings, and are a reminder that these short pieces also served as preparatory studies for the opera Tristan Und Isolde itself. Indeed, this is a musical universe so very intimate that it often seems to close in on itself, getting quieter and ever quieter just as the intensity of emotion increases unbearably.
After the interval we were treated to a somewhat unique work from the repertoire -- the Piano Quartet In G Minor No.1 Op.25 by Brahms, but in a mildly eccentric arrangement by the modern composer Arnold Schönberg. The legendary conductor Otto Klemperer commissioned this for performance with the Los Angeles Philharmonic in 1937, and was particularly delighted with the results. The 45-minute work is a huge challenge for any orchestra, and has often been half-jokingly referred to as Brahms' Symphony No.5. Of course it really isn't, and this imaginative orchestration is a standalone work, which endures according to its own laudable merits. However, the four-movement composition does somehow feel like a symphony, and requires a conductor who really knows the complex score inside out.
Thankfully, from the outset it was clearly evident that Myron Michailidis is a highly competent and experienced conductor. Although this was his first collaboration with the RBSO, one could sense an excellent working relationship developing already, and he steered all sections through the multiple tempo changes with great clarity and skill. Not least in the Hungarian flavoured Rondo ala Zingarese finale, where concertmaster Bing Han once again played her solos brilliantly, just as the huge percussion section increased the dynamic level to the highest of the whole evening for an exhilarating conclusion. An audience member duly awarded this with a single ecstatic roar of approval, immediately followed by the remainder of the patrons.
