BBC PROMS: 31 JULY 2025
Elsa Barraine: Symphony no. 2
Aaron Copland: Clarinet concerto
Artie Shaw: Clarinet concerto
Rachmaninov: Symphonic Dances (op. 45)
BBC Philharmonic Orchestra
Martin Fröst (Clarinet)
Joshua Weilerstein (Conductor)
Tonight’s Prom has perhaps the fullest programme I’ve ever seen: two concertos and two
symphonies (Rachmaninov’s Symphonic Dances being a symphony in all but name and a movement short of the usual four).
French composer Elsa Barriaine’s second symphony (1938) combines a pleasing playfulness with the overshadowing of war in Europe. In the first movement the teasing interplay of the rhythmic figures leads to tension through rising scalic passages interspersed with more lyrical material, whilst the second movement – almost entirely in dotted rhythm – evokes the funeral march of the movement’s title. After the unease of the first two movements, the third uses cheeky dance rhythms to lead up to the statement chords at the end.
Aaron Copland’s Clarinet Concerto, originally written for Benny Goodman straddles the classical-jazz boundary with aplomb. Using and accompaniment of only strings, Copland weaves his trademark American sound (lush soundscapes in the first movement, hoedown nods in the second) with some gymnastic clarinet work, here superbly performed (in every sense of the word: never standing still, feet-tapping, engaging with the orchestra and audience alike) by Martin Fröst.
Effectively an encore, Artie Shaw’s 8-minute Clarinet Concerto is pure jazz: a vehicle for the composer’s extraordinary talent and now allowing the BBC Philharmonic’s brass and percussion sections to spread their Big Band wings: a thoroughly enjoyable romp, ending on an incredible top Bb from the soloist. As a wind-down, Martin Fröst gave us the Bach C major prelude – apparently in one breath – and invited the audience to sing along to Gounod’s Ave Maria over the top: a lovely touch.
The second half was Rachmaninov’s last work, the Symphonic Dances. Perhaps in acknowledgment of the concert’s first half, conductor Joshua Weilerstein seemed to concentrate more on the ‘Dance’ than the ‘Symphonic’, leading to some material I’d not heard before: some particularly jaunty bass clarinet work, for example, and later muted trumpets punctuating the texture. The second movement, a waltz in G minor opens with, and is interspersed throughout, by cheeky brass fanfares, here given the proper forte piano crescendo treatment. Quite rightly, Rachmaninov’s waltz was never allowed to settle fully – tempo changes and dynamic markings were particularly wellobserved.The third movement, incorporating themes from the composer’s own All night vigil in juxtaposition with his much-favoured Dies irae theme zipped along with continually forward-moving tempi without ever falling into the trap of running away with itself. I particularly enjoyed the decision to let the last gong strike ring out, bringing to an end a thoroughly enjoyable performance.
