Photo, BBC/Chris Christodoulou
REVIEWED FROM LIVE RELAY ON BBC RADIO 3
Monday, September 7, 2026
Royal Albert Hall, London
Schumann’s Second Symphony has long been in Simon Rattle’s repertoire, including performances with the Berlin Philharmonic and LSO, and he recently toured it with the Bavarian Radio SO coupled to the complete Firebird; also on tour was this Schumann programme with the Freiburg Baroque Orchestra, this Proms appearance being the final date.
With the ‘period’ instruments and instincts of the Freiburgers bedded-in to Rattle’s conducting, this great piece opened with immediate gravitas, the first movement of emotional urgency, the music leaping off the page seemingly spontaneously with increasing intensity and thrilling exchanges, the succeeding Scherzo craftily combining momentum and poise, although Trio II became a bit of a meal and the subito accelerando into the coda rather exaggerated. Meanwhile Schumann’s much-maligned orchestration was falling naturally into place, although it is perfectly possible to play his music with a full-strength ‘modern’ orchestra for pristine results as the LPO and Christoph Eschenbach proved some years ago in the Overture, Scherzo and Finale. Back in the Albert Hall Rattle and FBO were ensuring that the wonderful slow movement came from the heart and went to one, too, then the Finale bounded like a free spirit to timpani-tattooed triumph.
Truth to tell, although this rendition compelled during its rendition, just several hours later it has faded somewhat, so too the lovely Overture to Genoveva, Schumann only opera, which found the FBO a little unsettled and Rattle rather choppy. However, of lasting value, was the Violin Concerto, a posthumous work initially suppressed by Joachim, Brahms and Clara (Schumann’s widow), music of strong ideas, a hauntingly beautiful slow movement and a polonaise Finale that really benefitted from the spacious tempo afforded it here. Isabelle Faust was superb, bursting with musicianship and commitment spinning a continuous line of significant expression, a stream of consciousness, encoring with an Adagio in D-minor by Carl Friedrich Abel (1723–1787) that more than suggested a composer that if he isn’t being investigated already then he certainly should be.
‘Unsettled and choppy’, Colin?
I was there and thought it was perfect.
Each to their own. Those words clearly refer only to Genoveva.
Sadly, Isabelle Faust’s performance was largely inaudible in the RAH.