Orchestra of the ROH/Pappano, Royal Opera House, classical review: Displaying the kind of versatility we usually take for granted
The original version of Musorgsky’s Night on a Bare Mountain exploded like a succession of fireworks
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.It’s been widely pointed out, in the ongoing debate over whether London ‘needs’ a Rattle Auditorium, that the capital already has two very decent symphonic halls, and we forget that there’s a third. The Royal Opera House may not often be available for symphony concerts, but it has an excellent acoustic and 2,250 seats.
This wasn’t Antonio Pappano’s theme when he introduced this concert of Russia’s Mighty Handful – Borodin, Rimsky-Korsakov, Musorgsky, Balakirev, and Cui. As he rightly observed, the music of this tight-knit group – Musorgsky and Rimsky shared both a flat and a piano as they toiled on different operas – deserves to be better known, and this concert by his personal ‘army’ would showcase something unexpected from each of them.
The Prelude and Battle Scene from Rimsky’s Kitezh transported us to the steppes where clarinet and flute evoked cuckoo and lark, then Borodin’s Symphony No 2 brought pre-echoes of Prince Igor. The original version of Musorgsky’s Night on a Bare Mountain exploded like a succession of fireworks; Cui’s little-known Prelude to Act III of William Ratcliff unfurled with slow elegance; Casella’s arrangement of Balakirev’s turbulent Islamey played us out. Briefly in the spotlight, Pappano’s army displayed the versatility and virtuosity we usually take for granted.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments