Relay-Version: version B 2.10 5/3/83; site utzoo.UUCP Posting-Version: version B 2.10.1 6/24/83; site hcrvx1.UUCP Path: utzoo!hcrvax!hcrvx1!don From: don@hcrvx1.UUCP (Don McKillican) Newsgroups: net.music.classical Subject: Concertgebouw Tour Message-ID: <1255@hcrvx1.UUCP> Date: Mon, 30-Sep-85 12:58:54 EDT Article-I.D.: hcrvx1.1255 Posted: Mon Sep 30 12:58:54 1985 Date-Received: Tue, 1-Oct-85 00:52:28 EDT Organization: Human Computing Resources, Toronto Lines: 40 I had the considerable pleasure last night of hearing a concert from Bernard Haitink and the Concertgebouw Orchestra of Amsterdam, who are presently on tour on this continent. The program states that the tour also includes Ann Arbour, Boston, Pasadena, Washington D.C. and New York, but does not state whether these cities are/were before or after this concert in Toronto. Nonetheless, if anyone still has the chance to hear this group, GRAB IT! I was not encouraged by the program, which featured Mussorgski's "Khovan- shchina" prelude, Shoskakovich's 6th Symphony and Schumann's 2nd, none of them works with which I was or ever desired to be terribly familiar. But Haitink is a persuasive advocat of all of them, and we managed by dint of industrious applauding to squeeze two Slavonic Dances out of them as an encore, and I much enjoyed myself. I was probably most surprised by the Khovanshchina. The basic "throaty" tone of the Concertgebouw I have known and admired for years, but they displayed here a shimmering string tone which was positively ravishing! Very nice. The Shostakovich was very well done. It's a pity the work isn't better known: it lives in a very similar world emotionally to the much more popular 5th. The initial slow movement was somber and meditative without letting the line sag, which is a substantial tribute to Haitink's feel for the architecture. The other two movements were vigorous, energetic, exciting, and all those sorts of adjectives, and the orchestra really "came on" for the ending. Great fun! (even if a bit hokey.) The Schumann I was less happy with, granted I'm not the world's most devoted Schumann fan anyway. The corner movements were okay, but I thought Haitink got a bit lost in the cross-rhythms of the scherzo, and the slow movement dragged some. All told, an enjoyable evening. The orchestra is simply wonderful: a warm, rich, full tone, great projection, and a solid command of their program. Recommended. Don McKillican Human Computing Resources Corporation Toronto, Ontario, Canada {ihnp4,decvax,utzoo,watmath}!hcr!hcrvx1!don