Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Beethoven Symphony No 7 with Lorenza Borrani
Queen’s Hall - 29/02/24
Scottish Chamber Orchestra | Lorenza Borrani, director/violin
Lorenza Borrani has performed throughout the world as a soloist, chamber musician, and especially director of chamber orchestras. When she was 25 she was appointed Leader of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe, and now in her early forties, she makes her debut with the Scottish Chamber Orchestra, directing a programme which includes two works by Beethoven and a rarity by 20th century composer, Maderna. In her introduction, SCO first violin, Siún Milne says that the orchestra have appreciated how Lorenza has made them see the works in a fresh way.
She’s already broken SCO practice by leading the players out onto the stage, in what I think of as the European tradition, and taking a couple of bows. She directs from the leader’s seat, on a dais. So while there are promising signs from the beginning that she wants to place her own stamp on the orchestra, I confess to being disappointed in the first half of the programme. Bruno Maderna, 1920-1973, although associated with avant-garde music, appreciated the music of the past, and discovered a book of published music from 1501 which he reworked into two suites for modern instruments. The large string section and some woodwind players play a selection, taken from both suites, of seven short pieces, which prove to be tuneful, providing opportunities for beautiful string and woodwind playing. But as one piece runs into the next with little differentiation, it remains merely pleasant music which might act as a soundtrack to a medieval drama.
Mahler’s 1898 arrangement for string orchestra of Beethoven’s ‘String Quartet no 11 in F minor Serioso’ begins with the players demonstrating precise timing and enjoyment of the sometimes dissonant effects in the explosive opening movement. Lorenza directs the orchestra clearly through eye contact and the example of her own playing, and the sudden violent chords in the Larghetto work perfectly, as does the very fast conclusion. However the slower sections in the second movement and some of the ‘serious’ passages in the third seem to stall and lack momentum. Perhaps I’m comparing the Beethoven unfairly with last week’s arrangement for string orchestra of the Shostakovich quartet, another work reflecting the composer’s inner turmoil, which had the audience on the edge of their seats throughout.
But as they say, a concert of two halves! After the interval thirty-nine musicians take the stage. There are two horns, both modern instruments (good to see Máté Börzsönyi, the guest horn-player in Sunday’s matinee concert again) three trumpets, all, I think , period instruments, two flutes, three oboes, two clarinets, two bassoons and timpani. The musicians play their hearts out in a thrilling reading of Beethoven’s Seventh Symphony. From the beginning Lorenza emphasises the dynamics of the sounds. Some conductors begin a bit cautiously in the poco sostenuto, but this opening pauses on the first loud chord, and as the note dies away, the quiet woodwind lingers. So the first, and slowest section of the work, draws us in straight away with some vivid contrasts. And after four minutes, once the bouncy vivace get underway, the shape of the work and its inexorable movement forward never gets forgotten, so that the dramatic pauses, and the interventions of woodwind and horn details are all seen as part of the whole. Louise Lewis Goodwin’s timpani work is outstanding in a symphony which focuses on rhythm.
The second movement, which was enjoyed so much by its first audience in 1813 that they demanded an instant encore, takes the basic beat of a minim followed by two crotchets and builds it up to a sometimes exotic, sometimes pensive, but eventually relentless heroic march. The final two movements are among the most frequently played excerpts from Beethoven’s symphonies, but they are also delivered with the freshness which Siún Milne admired. The Scherzo hammers out a triple beat in quick outbursts which are all controlled immaculately by the director, and the slower second theme builds up to a shattering climax. The allegro con brio finale is Beethoven telling us that we ain’t heard nothing yet. Its stop/start propulsion features lots of brass, Euan Scott joining Peter Franks and Shaun Harrold on trumpet and, as we get nearer the end, some powerful work in the lower strings, Nikita Naumov and Jamie Kenny on double bass.
Spontaneous cheers, and prolonged applause for the orchestra and Lorenza Borrani, greet the end of the performance, certainly an outstanding account of the symphony.
Pekka Kuusisto returns for two concerts, his take on Vivaldi’s ‘The Four Seasons’ in the Usher Hall on 7th March, and a programme of contemporary music including premieres by Anna Clyne and Helen Grimes in the Queen’s Hall on 14th March. Both programmes also feature folk fiddlers, so some improvisation is on the cards.
