Klaus Tennstedt 1926-1998
Last night BBC Radio 3 broadcast its penultimate Prom to nearly complete the reconstituted 2020 season. It was a terrific account of Beethoven’s ‘Choral’ Symphony – Klaus Tennstedt conducting (31 August 1991), the full-strength London Philharmonic Choir & Orchestra in exalted form joined by Brighton Festival Chorus and stellar vocal soloists led-off by John Tomlinson. Tennstedt’s reading was expansive, thrilling (superb hard-hitting timpani-playing), poetic and – in the Finale, dramatically introduced – swaggering.
Beforehand, we were transported to Proms 1968 for a Schubert 5 with Barbirolli & the Hallé – suggesting that R3 could indeed have gone further back in Proms history than its much-trumpeted four decades: okay, this Schubert is ‘rescued’ on a BBC Legends CD. Tantalisingly we were told that the rest of the concert included music by Bax and Sibelius’s Fifth Symphony. Maybe another time for the whole thing – and even earlier decades?
Heaven knows what it would cost the BBC in royalties (if anything) but to mine the proms archives would be a service of great charity – starting with that Sibelius 5 for example. This could go on for years and not be restricted to the ‘proms’ season.
It has been curious and frustrating to experience the date line set this year. Was it Lennie’s milestone premiere that caught the eye of the planner(s) to set the start date for rebroadcasting. If so it was a mistake.
This year would have been better served if the season had allowed younger listeners (than me!) to hear some of Sargent’s excellent work in proper gating music from many backgrounds, Basil Cameron’s sterling service for the benefit of then young Prommers, Norman del Mar’s contributions to modern music or, indeed, the almost forgotten Constant Lambert whose bright star shone briefly in Proms history.
Saw JB rehearse that very same S5 in the hall! Great to watch.
Basil Cameron, Del Mar – oh how the past is so much better ….
Just playing the new Eloquence releases. Dorati’s Haydn is fabulous.