Haydn’s operas rarely make it onto the stage, however the BBC Philharmonic and conductor Eva Ollikainen opened their Bridgewater Hall concert with the overture to L’isola disabitata (The Deserted Island), dramatic in nature with its use of Sturm und Drang, and played with panache and grace. The strings played impressively and lightly with minimal-to-no vibrato. The different sections of the overture had varying colours and textures making this feel like a symphony in miniature. Ollikainen relished the individual characters of each section, but at times the dynamics were a little to bland to fully convince.
Continuing in the Classical vein, celebrated pianist Richard Goode joined the orchestra for a performance of Mozart’s Piano Concerto no. 18 in B flat major. Like the Haydn before it, the orchestration has one flute and no trumpets or timpani, so drama needs to be created in different ways. Goode has such an affinity with this work, emphasising the bolder episodes with dotted rhythms to the gentler lyrical moments with their cantabile melodies.
Throughout all three movements, Goode slid in and out of the textures, at times being the sympathetic accompanist, allowing the orchestra to have their moment, others coming to the fore as the rightful soloist. This was endearing and brought gentility to the performance. Goode reeled off the first and third movement cadenzas effortlessly and modestly, without any extravagant gestures, letting the music speak for itself. Ollikainen found much more detail and subtlety than in the Haydn, bringing more variety to the orchestral palette, often imitating Goode, but not always the same details.
The interval brought a complete change of mood and sound world. Gone was the delicacy of the 18th century, replaced with the might of the modern symphony orchestra. Ollikainen is a big champion of Anna Thorvaldsdottir’s Archora, having given the premiere with this orchestra in 2022, and she has played the piece with several other orchestras since.
Cast in a single movement of nearly 20 minutes, Archora is a slowly unfolding, dark and atmospheric composition. Thorvaldsdottir takes us to a desolate place – in a very different way to the opening Haydn. The playing from the BBC Philharmonic making this technically difficult score come to life was truly remarkable, played with precision and skill. Together with Ollikainen they made this cinematic soundscape completely engaging, taking the audience to some very sinister and emotionally powerful places. Silence fell as the spell broke at the end of this intense journey.
From one vivid musical panorama to a highly evocative seascape, the evening concluded with a majestic performance of Debussy’s La Mer. Programming these two pieces together gave significant contrast, showcasing the orchestra in different ways. Ollikainen paced De l’aube à midi sur la mer to an evocative climax, while in the playful Jeux de vauges she balanced the sound delicately. The Dialogue du vent et de le mer was full of storytelling in this majestically executed rendition.
