In just a handful of concerts since becoming the Chief Conductor of the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Mark Wigglesworth has made a considerable impression on both performances and programming. This concert at The Anvil, Basingstoke, brought together Viennese charm and the spirit of the waltz, correspondences none more obvious than in The Blue Danube with which proceedings began.
It made a pleasing, if not startling, curtain raiser, but from the shimmering strings and eloquent horn solo through to the distinctive flute and trumpet exchanges near the close, Wigglesworth shaped its changing vistas with attention to detail and well-judged tempi. If at times the swish of ballgowns was a fraction too respectable, its traversal was variously dignified, grandiose and tender.
And it was tenderness that characterised the performance of Alban Berg’s Violin Concerto, a work seldom given by the BSO, but here presented with much sympathetic consideration to the Kyrgyzstan-born soloist Alena Baeva, the orchestra’s current Artist-in-Residence. She may not yet be a household name in the UK, but in this captivating account Baeva showcased technical prowess and expressive phrasing, whilst also projecting a sweetness of tone that soared over the formidably complex orchestral writing.
Berg never heard a performance of his concerto, having died four months before its Barcelona premiere in April 1936. He may, however, have listened in wonder to Baeva’s serene view of this iconic work, written “To the memory of an angel” and inspired by the tragic death of 18-year-old Manon Gropius, the daughter of Alma Mahler and Walter Gropius.
From Berg’s rising triads through to the meditation on Bach’s chorale Es ist genug, Baeva was in total command, bringing refinement to the score’s jagged edges and playing with poise and heartfelt expression. There was bravura and mystery too, with an alertness to the composer’s waltz-like gestures. In a superbly supportive collaboration Wigglesworth and Baeva reminded us that this is a concerto for violin and orchestra, yet the wealth of instrumental detail (with its fastidious Hauptstimme and Nebenstimme markings) was clearly differentiated with an ideal transparency, the players ensuring Baeva was ‘a first among equals’. Following a transcendent Adagio, with ravishing contributions from clarinets and trombones, the paradise-gained closing bars were as ethereal as one could wish for, the long silence before applause magical.
It’s not unusual to couple the concerto with a Brahms symphony, and the first UK concert performance of the Berg in December 1936 also featured Brahms’ Second. The work is often regarded as his “Pastoral”, others referring to it as his “Viennese” symphony, and this account underlined its sweeping lyricism supported by wonderfully lissom string playing. A purposeful opening movement, with wood fires and rustic panoramas conjured, led to a flowing Adagio non troppo where burnished cellos caught the ear. The mercurial third movement was imbued with elfin gaiety with neatly integrated tempo changes. Then onto a tension-filled Finale, its momentum unfolding superbly, the first forte almost brutal in its power, culminating in an ecstatic release. In no small measure the whole was aided and abetted by the outstanding partnership between orchestra and conductor.
