London Symphony Orchestra live in Kuala Lumpur

3rd May 2007

Berg: Violin Concerto
Berlioz: Symphony Fantastique

violinist: Franz Peter Zimmerman
conductor: Daniel Harding (principal guest conductor)

I had knew when it was announced that the LSO was coming to town a year ago it would be quite an event, despite a bit of disappointment on the conductor's choice. The Dewan Filharmonik and it's audiences are aching for a Sir Simon Rattle, Bernard Haitink, Pierre Boulez, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Claudio Abbado and instead of either seasoned conductors well-tuned with the LSO including new music director Valery Gergiev or Sir Colin Davis or Bernard Haitink (who recorded the well-raved Beethoven cycles with the orchestra) we got "unknown" Daniel Harding, despite the fact he recently debuted with Vienna Philharmonic and have conducted all major orchestras in Europe including Berlin Phil and Concertgebouw Orchestra. Mr Harding received mixed responses from critics and general consensus were he was exposed to big orchestras too early without experience of conducting or handling provincial orchestras. The great maestros of the past; Karajan, Reiner, Bohm started from scratch conducted in opera houses. Gustav Mahler being the most perfect example worked his way from a bath-house orchestra to being the first Jew leading the viciously anti-Semitic Vienna Philharmonic.

But even with a metronome giving beats on stage, the LSO proved why they're one formidable orchestral machine, with the same league and respect given to New York Phil, Berlin Philharmonic and Royal Concertgebouw. Their string section has no odd-ones out (unlike Malaysian Phil which the violas consistently outshine the first violins, pffft!), their basses growl with gothic German sound, their winds one of the finest in Europe and the brass section has the mean badassness associated with their American counterparts (notably Chicago Symphony). I mourn the fact I missed their Mahler Fifth and just imagining principal trumpetist Maurice Murphy playing the solo in Trauermarsch gives me the goosebumps. It wasn't totally in vain I managed to catch the second night which they played Berg's Violin Concerto and Berlioz' Symphonie Fantastique.

I have never heard Alban Berg's Concerto dedicated to "memory of an Angel" - the daughter of Alma Schindler, Manon Gropius who died tragically of polio. Nevertheless impressed by violin soloist Franz Peter Zimmerman's mastery command of the instrument and the quality of LSO's accompaniment I craved to purchase a CD of the work. In loud passages, noticably the violent beginning in the second movement the orchestral accompaniment did not overwhelm the violinist. The final chord almost "collapsed" due to shaky flute intonation but it worked out fine. Great first impression of the Berg concerto.

The LSO would have it's mettle worked in the Fantastique symphony. Harding directed the strings in the opening bars of Reveries, Passions to play as little vibrato or even sans as possible, giving a sort of HIP (historically informed practice) feel compared with vibrato-laden opening of most recordings. It's amusing to note at one point the first violins continued sans vibrato while the second violins on Harding's right played otherwise (the orchestra employed antiphonal violins which probably begin in tradition of performing Bruckner symphonies). I don't know if it was me or the whole movement felt like a rip-off of Charles Munch's direction with Boston Symphony, with it's flexible tempos employed throughout the movement. In Un Bal, the waltz is infectious and managed to get some audiences grooving and in Scene aus champs, Christine Pendrill gave an exquisitely beautiful solo

It's time for the LSO brasses to kick some balls for the remaining two movements. Harding employed a little bit slower tempos but it gave time for the brasses to knock our socks off, notably the growl of the trombones never sound that menacing in recordings. The songs d'une nuit de sabbat or Dreams of Witches Sabbath rarely sound phantasmagorically nightmarish as it was performed that night. Mr Harding mentioned about conducting Mahler that he laments today's generation of interpreters who "smoothened" out the crass textures and ugly sounds in his symphonies and here he drew a contemporary view of the work, while taking great effort exposing the audiences to various instrumental effects that would've sounded very alien in Berlioz' time.

But the very last was saved in the encore surprisingly. The LSO would've thumbed their noses at the thought of playing a Harry Potter theme or Superman. Mr Harding introduced the encore as "not a famous piece" in celebration of a 30th anniversary of a LSO veteran. Whom is he trying to kid? Maurice Murphy was employed in LSO thirty years ago and that year too, he recorded Star Wars with the orchestra. The whole hall was shook to it's core when the very first notes of the piece was blared and we're already imaging the credits ascending from out heads; "A long time ago in a galaxy far, far away....I was in that same hall when LSO blared FUCKING STAR WARS!!!". Not even the best sound system in the world can reproduce the sound of LSO blaring the theme...live. They blared the same encore the night before and I only had myself to blame. To the LSO members and maestro Harding...thank you for the experience.

P/S: I heard from a friend who attended a masterclass with (if not mistaken) John Lawley that Maurice Murphy was unwell and almost could not make it to the first night's performance and had to be attended by a physician before Dvorak's work. His will be the last tour with the LSO. All the very best and take care Mr Murphy.