Prom: Mozart’s “Haffner Symphony
23 August 2026, Royal Albert Hall
Academy of St Martin in the Fields
Director: Benjamin Marquise Gilmore
Horn: Feliz Klieser
Bassoon: Amy Harman
Perhaps they programmed this concert especially for me? I have been trying to see Felix Klieser live for several years so I pounced on this opportunity. I’ve been in love with the sound of the bassoon since my teens (I’m planning to be a bassoonist in my next life) so it was a treat to hear two short works for bassoon and orchestra. The “Haffner” was the first full length symphony I ever played in an orchestra – never mind how many decades ago – so it has a special place in my heart. And to crown it all we also got Britten’s Simple Symphony, a favourite of string groups everywhere so I’ve done that in various places too.
Felix Klieser in extraordinary because he is a first-class musician who makes his horn sing, purr, glide and bounce. The fact that he is disabled is really just an irrelevant parenthesis. Nonetheless the way he manages his performance logistically is fascinating. Klieser was born without arms so the horn is on a stand, carried in for him. Slipping off his shoes he sits, twists up his left foot and we’re off into Mozart’s Horn Concerto No 3 in E Flat Major. Having no hand in the bell, the player’s control is entirely in the mouth. The measured, elegant first movement was as fine as I’ve ever heard it. There was a delightful melodious balance in the Romance born of a palpable rapport between soloist and Benjamin Marquise Gilmore, directing the orchestra from the leader’s seat. The creamy minims and placed quavers were pleasing. The final Allegro then danced happily to its conclusion.
Klieser (and Gilmore) coaxed plenty of witty charm out of an arranagement of O Sole Mio which was Klieser’s encore and a complete change of mood.
The concert had begun with the orchestra making a formal entry – unusual these days for a British group but rather nice – to play the Britten. It came with vibrant energy, especially in the Playful Pizzicato which is quite hard work but Gilmore stressed the dynamic contrasts and found plenty of lyrical tenderness in the Sarabande.
Theo Musgrave’s Bassoon Concerto “Out of Darkness” (literally at the start, thanks to Royal Albert Hall lighting technology) is a 2026 BBC commission and this was the world premiere. Clad in bright white. Soloist Amy Harman started at the top of the tiers beside the xylophone, illuminated, and responding to a motif played by the orchestra leader. Gradually she tacked her way round the orchestra, playing a few notes with various section eventually to arrive at the front of the stage in triumph. the choreography is quite complex. It’s a piece about hope in which the bassoon’s plaintive tone duets with the solo violin and the orchestra supports.
Elgar’s gently moving Romance for Bassoon and Orchestra is familiar from recordings although I’ve never heard it live before and, 116 years after it was written, this was its first performance at the Proms. Harman dug out plenty of wistfulness and her sound is richly chocolatey at every point in the instrument’s range.
And so, finally, to Mozart’s attractive 35th symphony which gave this concert its title. Of course Academy of St Martin in the Fields delivered it with freshness and joyful energy. The incisiveness of the opening movement provided an appropriate spark. Other highlights included the filigree string playing and nice bassoon work in the Andante, the gentle colour in the trio and the lively speed in the Allegro, punctuated by excellent hard stick timp work. It was a performance which had me smiling almost continuously.
Yes, this very pleasant matinee (11.00am) definitely had my name on it.
