Play some BPO

[slofstra]

The BPO is sharing a series of recent performances conducted by Kirill Petrenko at no cost.

Here is the link.

https://www.digitalconcerthall.com/playlist/10

[Rach3]

Thanks for this.Of interest to me the Beethoven and Elgar ( ! who knew ! ).

[barney]

Yes, thanks for this. I certainly want to listen to some of it.

[Rach3]

The 4 free ones were apparently guest appearances 2006 -2019, the Elgar ( I heard , but date I could not find ) reportedly the first time the BPO had played the work " in decades " , a gutsy choice for a guest conductor.

[maestrob]

That's a real treat! Thanks, slofstra! Am listening now to Beethoven VII. After signing up, the website directed me to other free concerts by other interesting conductors and artists, a real treasure-trove!

The NY Philharmonic has been doing something similar for some time, and I'm posting a link in a new thread.

[maestrob]

I have now listened to Beethoven VII, Tchaikovsky VI, Scriabin's Poem of Ecstasy, and Elgar II.

Kirill Petrenko is the Real Deal. His phrasing, shaping, nuance and attention to detail, coupled with fine judgment of tempo, works for me in spades. I love his technique on the podium: never an extra movement or nervous tick, his gestures are crystal-clear.

He is a great conductor in everything I've heard, including a Beethoven IX that was posted earlier.

Thanks, Henry, for giving us the chance to hear this magnificent musician!

[slofstra]

You're very welcome!! I've been a paid digital subscriber of the BPO web site for almost a decade now. Every once in a while they offer free teasers like this one, but note that their artist interviews are always free.

[barney]

Finally got round to registering, very much enjoying the Beethoven 7.
Struck by the organisation of the orchestra, very unusual today - first and second violins either side (that's not so unusual), cellos central, and double basses back on the left (never seen that before).
Anyone aware of the reasoning there? Not that it matters - the sound, so far as I can tell via the medium, is perfectly balanced and good.

[slofstra]

Finally got round to registering, very much enjoying the Beethoven 7.
Struck by the organisation of the orchestra, very unusual today - first and second violins either side (that's not so unusual), cellos central, and double basses back on the left (never seen that before).
Anyone aware of the reasoning there? Not that it matters - the sound, so far as I can tell via the medium, is perfectly balanced and good.

You're used to the double basses back on the right, behind the cellos and second violin? Over the years I've seen many arrangements with our local K-W Symphony. For about 2 decades, the maestro Raffi Armenian preferred the first and second violins on the left with violas and cellos on the right. So clockwise, first violin, second violin, viola and cello. Bass violins at the rear on the right. I didn't even know this was unconventional.
The BPO stage is somewhat of a thrust stage and often has audience seated behind the orchestra. It probably makes more sense to have the bass at the rear in order to balance the sound, especially for the right orchestra audience section.

[Ricordanza]

Finally got round to registering, very much enjoying the Beethoven 7.
Struck by the organisation of the orchestra, very unusual today - first and second violins either side (that's not so unusual), cellos central, and double basses back on the left (never seen that before).
Anyone aware of the reasoning there? Not that it matters - the sound, so far as I can tell via the medium, is perfectly balanced and good.

In another thread, I wrote about a Philadelphia Orchestra open rehearsal led by Herbert Blomstedt. He had a similar arrangement, with the violins split and the double basses back on the left. Honestly, I can't say that I noticed any difference in the sound.