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Mozart: Stephanie Gonley (violin/director), Lawrence Power (viola), Igor Levit (piano), English Chamber Orchestra, Cadogan Hall, London, 1.10.2008 (BBr)

Mozart: Symphony No.35 in D, Haffner, K385 (1782)
Sinfonia Concertante in Eb, K364 (1777)
Concertante from the Posthorn Serenade in D, K320 (1779)
Piano Concerto No.18 in Bb, K456 (1784)


A cheery, bright and most enjoyable show from one of the best bands to play the music of this period. Over however many years, it’s always been a pleasure to hear the ECO in Mozart and Haydn, for the orchestra has a way of bringing this music to life without fuss or the need to resort to the original instrument movement.

So starting with a chirpy Haffner Symphony the show got off in a most exciting manner. The playing was spot on, the strings alert and full bloodied the wind and brass chortling along whether as accompaniment or in solo work. I was particularly struck by the timpani (no pun intended) which didn’t have the rather plummy sound one often gets in this music, but were very crisp and precise – I had the feeling that David Corkhill might be using hard sticks so as to be more in period than most timpanists might try to be. The music romped along – shorn of repeats except in the minuet – and the final Presto was full of those typical twists Mozart had an habit of putting in his finales, you never quite knew what was coming next.

The Sinfonia Concertante is one of Mozart’s undisputed masterpieces. Tonight, Gonley and Power played it with an eye on keeping things chamber–like, keeping the big gestures to a minimum and making a fabulous ensemble with the band. A special moment was the first entry of the soloists, their music coming as if from nowhere, you’re just suddenly aware of their presence emerging from the orchestral texture. Gonley and Power made a superb pair of soloists, working well together, but never dominating one another. The orchestra was really part of the performance and not just an accompanying band. There was a real feeling of chamber music at times, where the musicians became more intimate when the music allowed. The slow movement was like an operatic duet and the finale returned to the romp. This was a fine performance indeed.

In the Concertante the wind band took centre stage as the strings accompanied some fine writing for flutes, oboes, bassoons and horns; there were even cadenzas for the department.  This proved a good foil to what we had just heard and was a very sensible addition to the programme.

To end, a Piano Concerto. Levit, only 20 years old, treated the solo part as if he were playing chamber music – there I go again, this feeling of the evening being a show of chamber music – and this suited the music very well. The very good programme notes, by Jonathan Burton, suggested that there is a feminine quality about this music – reticence, wistfulness, introspection – and he reminds us that Arthur Hutchings wrote that “all the elements on this concerto are on a smaller scale” and the themes “seem to be miniatures of those heard somewhere else in Mozart, so crisp and childlike are they.” Certainly Levit’s understated interpretation, keeping his playing discreet and gentle, never allowed the piano to dominate the orchestra. Even the boisterous finale was slightly held back.

As an encore Levit gave us a short piece by the man Mozart possibly turned down as a pupil – the Bagatelle in A minor, better known as Für Elise by Beethoven. Conductors? What are they good for? On the strength of Gonley’s superb direction from the first desk, the answer might be: absolutely nothing! It was a sad reflection on concert going that the Cadogan Hall wasn’t fuller than it was, for this was a very enjoyable show and deserved a better house.

Bob Briggs 


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