Symphoniker Hamburg / Finnegan Downie Dear
Haydn / Elgar / Britten
Undulating delights
A pleasant trip to England: Joseph Haydn’s symphony »The Clock« was written for London in 1794 – and is one of the highly original, masterful »London Symphonies«, which are neither overly intellectual nor do they pander excessively to the audience through the choice of theme or the progression of the melodies. Haydn was paid an incredible amount of money for these symphonies, resulting in music that lies somewhere between entertainment and sophistication, with a real playfulness and humour in the instrumental and motivic play.
Edward Elgar’s legendary Cello Concerto, in contrast, exudes a sorrowful quality. Evoking a bracing walk over the gently rolling hills of England, the work is full of melancholy while remaining inviting and musically accessible. Unfortunately, the 1919 premiere of this plaintive, idyllic and subtly dramatic piece was something of a debacle, but it eventually became a firm favourite.
The 1945 premiere of Benjamin Britten’s opera »Peter Grimes«, on the other hand, went very well, as testified by an avalanche of positive reviews. Britten extracted orchestral passages from the opera and put them together under the title »Four Sea Interludes«, which is still frequently performed today.
Performers
Symphoniker Hamburg
Anastasia Kobekina violoncello
conductor Finnegan Downie Dear
Programme
Joseph Haydn
Sinfonie D-Dur Hob. I:101 »Die Uhr«
Edward Elgar
Konzert für Violoncello und Orchester e-Moll op. 85
Benjamin Britten
Four Sea Interludes op. 33a / aus der Oper »Peter Grimes«
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