![]() Mr Märkl maintained a thoughtful balance between the slow and oppressive “Prélude à la nuit” first movement and the festive furore in the “Feria” finale, carrying off some toe-tapping dance episodes in between with panache and gusto galore. Rapsodie Espagnole, completed only two years after Alborada, encapsulates two contrasting Spanish themes – vigorous dance rhythms and drowsy lethargy. ![]() Under Jun Märkl’s firm direction, the orchestra kept up a steady pace in buoyant mood. Following further rhythmic meandering with a tragic undertone, a flourish of brass glissando brings matters to a close in a fit of deflation, like an out-of-steam engine grinding to a halt. The addition of castanets puts paid to any doubt about the Spanish origin of the musical idea. After an introduction on pizzicato strings and woodwinds with an energetic beat, the bassoon leads the way with a languid and wistful tune. In keeping with the character of the jester in the comedies of Calderón and Vega, Alborada is full of life, humour and variety. The rest of the evening after the intermission was devoted to Ravel, who originally composed Alborada del gracioso (“The Jester’s Morning Song”) for the piano as part of the Miroirs suite. After delivering the most hummable melody in the entire concerto, the piano then joins the orchestra in a spectacular and triumphant finish. The final movement, Molto allegro, begins with a pulsating rhythm that mimics the engine of a steam boat. I could almost swear that I heard a snippet from Albénez’s Suite Española, and was surprised how much more lyrical the orchestra was than the soloist in the so-called “Nubian love song”. The second movement sounded mildly faster than its Andante marking, but the soloist was very effective in bringing out the mosaic of cultural influences – traces of Spanish flamenco, Indonesian gamelan and Arabic zither were clearly discernible. His even pacing blended perfectly with the orchestra, although his delightfully delicate touch was at times drowned by it. There is no question that Jean-Yves Thibaudet is a superb virtuoso. After a few perfunctory woodwind chords, the piano enters quietly and soon joins the orchestra in a soaring surge that comes back time and again throughout the Allegro animato first movement. The fifth piano concerto wastes no time with an orchestral introduction. In the century since his death, we seem to have forgotten that Saint-Saëns was a child prodigy and virtuoso concert pianist who could play any of Beethoven’s sonatas on demand as an encore, in addition to being a composer of over 300 works, including five symphonies and ten concertos. 5, “Egyptian” for a long time, but Saturday was the first time I had heard it live in the concert hall. I have been a fan of Saint-Saëns’ Piano Concerto no. Under the crisp and clear direction of Jun Märkl, the orchestra injected dynamism and drama into a work which I imagine can be quite mundane and colourless under less steadfast leadership. Purring tremolando on low strings augmented by mystical woodwinds with an Eastern flavour supplied most of the initial atmosphere of an eerie ritual. Khamma, the opening work of the concert, is dark and sombre, evoking fearful foreboding even in its most lyrical parts. Composer Charles Koechlin orchestrated the rest under Debussy’s supervision and the final result seems to have won Debussy’s explicit approval. Soon after accepting ballerina Maud Allan’s commission to write a ballet based on an Egyptian legend of a dancing girl, Debussy tired of her persistent interference, and gave up orchestrating the original piano work after only a few pages. On Saturday, the Hong Kong Philharmonic Orchestra provided a living example of how the city relishes a mixture of cultural influences in a programme of works by French composers incorporating clear foreign influences, predominantly from Spain. “Cultural melting-pot” is a term so often used to describe Hong Kong that it has become a cliché.
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