Singapore Symphony principals helm a memorable Strauss Don Quixote

If one wondered how an evening of Richard Strauss without opera would sound like in concert, trust the Singapore Symphony Orchestra and Hans Graf to show the way. In a short preamble, Graf spoke about Strauss’ obsession with heroes in tone poems, and their deaths expressed musically. 

The concert opened with the Serenade in E flat major, Op.7, composed for 13 wind intruments by the 17-year-old Strauss. The unseen hero here was his father Franz, principal horn of the Munich Court opera orchestra and incorruptible virtuoso, which would explain the teenager’s obvious flair with wind instruments. Two each of flutes, oboes, clarinets and bassoons, four French horns and one contrabassoon accounted for this brief and mellow Andante, a far cry from trailblazing tone poems to come. If the Singapore Symphony is famed for its strings, then its winds also deserve a shout-out in this lyrical showing that displayed both innate virtuosity and immaculate deportment. 

Of Strauss’ earlier tone poems, Till Eulenspiegels lustige Streiche (Till Eulenspiegel’s Merry Pranks) saw the greatest characterisations in orchestral detail, more so even than the swashbuckling Don Juan. Its “once upon a time” opening and introduction of the ribald French horn, played with confidence by principal Austin Larson, immediately set the tone. All dressed in indelible orchestral colour, the eternal jokester of German folklore goes to town, overturns the applecart and upsets the townspeople in a trail of mischief. But the law catches up, with ominous drumrolls heralding Till’s hanging, marvellously captured by solo clarinet. The epilogue reprises the opening, but Till returns to have the last laugh... it’s just a story, after all. 

If Till’s 15-minutes of fame was a model of conciseness, Don Quixote – almost three times as long – took matters to the other extreme. Detractors called it rambling, as Cervantes’ far more complex hero (or more accurately anti-hero) had a characterisation that was more diffuse. The work is not strictly a cello concerto, but a tone poem with a major cello obbligato part, the role helmed with much sympathy by SSO principal Ng Pei-Sian. Introduced alongside him was principal violist Zhang Manchin who performed within the rank and file besides playing the Don's squire, Sancho Panza. 

As with Till, the SSO and Graf’s attention to detail was exemplary, this despite a profusion of ideas and events and, appropriately for the subject, frequent flights of fancy. After a lengthy introduction, Ng’s entry was nuanced rather than outrightly heroic, the cantankerous subject having to traverse ten “fantastic variations on a theme of knightly character”. His tone was warm and commanding, well complemented by Zhang’s viola, sufficiently garrulous. The duo’s chemistry in closely intertwined adventures made the work’s longueurs all the more worthwhile. Adding a further layer to the scenario, the vision of Dulcinea (the Don’s delusion of the idealised woman) found fruition in concertmaster Markus Tomasi’s violin. 

The battle with the sheep (Variation 2) exploited woodwind and brass dissonances and textures to startling effect, while the imagined flight in the air (Variation 7), with wind machine while firmly pegged on a pedal point in D, was pure fantasy. Best of all was the Epilogue, with the cello’s voice unencumbered by further distractions as the Don breathed his last, expiring with a glissando. There have not been many Don Quixotes performed in Singapore, but this one garnered the most cheers.