HONG KONG PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA
Esplanade Concert Hall
Monday (1 May 2017)
The
Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra's third visit to Singapore (the previous
occasions were in 1983 and 1999) was part of its tour to mark the 20th
anniversary of the former Crown Colony's return to China, where it retains a
Special Administrative Region status. The orchestra turned professional in
1973-74, and thus has a five year head start over the Singapore Symphony
Orchestra.
We Singaporeans have a sort of unspoken rivalry with Hongkongers
over such things as economy, standard of living, food and shopping, and whether
we have a world-class transport system (they do, we don't) et cetera. In a way, this rivalry even extends to our
orchestras, and here was a chance for Hong Kong to parade its musical crown
jewel for the first time at the Esplanade.
By
the way, Hong Kong's own Cultural Centre in Tsim Sha Tsui, home of the HKPO,
came up during the early 1980s, thus establishing yet another head start (this
time of some 20 years) over Singapore. Let's not even discuss about
international piano competitions, of which HK has held four editions since
2005, to our big fat zero (OK, we do have one really good international violin
competition, but just one edition so far). One thing which Singapore does not
have, and which the City of New York would soon gain, in 2018 is the HKPO Music
Director Jaap van Zweden. He was what made the difference between the HKPO of
today and the orchestra that was last heard at Victoria Concert Hall in 1999.
The
Esplanade Concert Hall has flattering acoustics but that was not what that made
the first work of the HKPO's concert resound with a glittering sheen and glow.
Hong Kong composer Fung Lam's Quintessence, composed in 2014 for the
orchestra's 40th anniversary, was not one of those atonal nightmares
which modern orchestras trot out on occasion and pretend to delight in.
A
10-minute single-movement concerto for orchestra, it provided a display of what
each section could achieve – seperately and together - in the most virtuosic
manner possible. There were extremes in dynamics, such as high-pitched strings
and tingling percussion pitted against growling basses, answered with brassy
interjections and chorales. Cor anglais, flute and muted trumpets all had their
moments. Never static and always eventful, it kept the ears (and the
performers) fully engaged through the mounting tension to its abrupt close.
That
was a palate cleanser that led uncharacteristically to Mozart's Violin Concerto
No.4, not a typical concert showpiece, which saw a welcome return
of Sichuan violinist Ning Feng, former winner of the Paganini International
Violin Competition in Genoa. The pared-down forces provided exquisitely
sensitive accompaniment to Feng, who wisely chose not to flex his Paganinian
prowess, but played along like a consummate chamber musician. He joined the
orchestra's strings in the tuttis, and soon beautifully carved a path in his
solo role, which was tasteful and fully in the spirit of the music.
His
tone was sweet, but never cloying or overpowering. Only in the solo cadenzas
did a sense of romanticism come into the picture, but that was never overdone.
The slow movement was a delight, the restraint coming naturally rather than
forced, and the Rondo finale another show of grace and courtliness, with no
little prettiness in the execution. The fire-breathing aspect of Feng's
musicianship came in the encore, where he obliged in Paganini's Caprice No.7
in A minor, which was simply dazzling. There seemed to be a palpable sense of
relief that his natural instinct of showmanship had not gone unexploited.
The
main work was Mahler's First Symphony, just performed by the
Singapore Symphony Orchestra (conducted by Robert Spano) at the same venue just
less than two weeks ago. Unfortunately, I was not present and thus no basis of
comparison could be made. While the SSO's show was said to be attended by a
small house, it was filled to the rafters (including gallery seats sold) for
the Hongkongers. They could not possibly disappoint.
Conductor
Jaap van Zweden is not a big man by physical stature, and he has an
Alberich-like stoop that appears ungainly at first, but in everything else he
bestrode the podium like the titan of the symphony's title. The orchestra
responded magnificently, with the softest hush in the symphony's opening, a
rapt depiction of dawn which gradually unfurled with the nascent sun's rays
beaming in. Offstage trumpets were excellent, and so it gradually led to the
wayfarer's song of the movement proper. It is the attention to detail, rather
than the volume of sound expended, which made this performance something
touching and memorable.
The
striding Ländler of the second movement was taken at a good lick, and here
there was no fear of sounding rustic. All too often, the need to come across as
immaculate and polished gets in the way of the heart of the music, but there
was no fear of this here. Similarly, in the third movement's Funeral March,
the klezmer-like episodes were more unbuttoned, preferable to the spick and
span of Rattle's Berlin forces in their view of the same symphony here in 2010.
If
one wanted to be swept away by the finale's fury, then consider wish granted.
Two taps of the drum led directly into the tumultuous “cry of the wounded
heart”, which was as passionate as one could have hoped for. The brass was on
top form, not least the 8 French horns and associates who raised their bells at
the final stand for a grandstanding finish. That was not all in this 20-minute
long movement which had its share of reflective moments, and it were in these
that Zweden brought out playing of the greatest definition. When themes for
earlier movements were relived, the palpable sense of nostalgia was all
pervasive, making the symphony's final triumph all the more poignant.
The
standing ovation was overwhelming and spontaneous on the first curtain call,
with individuals and sections of the orchestra taking their bows. And the
encore, the Ride of the Valkyries from Wagner's Die Walküre, brilliantly
delivered, was yet another subtle (or maybe not too subtle) reminder of
something that Singapore has yet to accomplish – to mount its own Ring Cycle.
The
Hong Kong Philharmonic is a class act, and a repeat visit with Jaap van Zweden
is imperative.
All photographs courtesy of
Esplanade - Theatres on the Bay.
