There’s no ‘correct’ way to present the Bach Passions: sombre or majestic, intimate or theatrical, as long as context and intent are consistent then an interpretation will compel and persuade. To Cohen’s left, in the Stalls, were the young trebles of St Paul’s.Ĭhoristers of St Paul’s Cathedral (c) BBC/Chris Christodoulou Cohen’s harpsichord was framed by the two orchestras of seventeen players, led by Sophie Gent and Matthew Truscott behind Tom Foster’s organ, centre-rear, the two choirs (also seventeen-strong) fanned upwards. This year, the extended RAH platform did bring the performers closer to the audience. Words such as ‘tasteful’ and ‘polite’ seemed apt in 2018, and they were relevant once again with respect to this performance of Bach’s St Matthew Passion in which Cohen and Arcangelo returned to the RAH with a stellar team of soloists and the choristers of St Paul’s Cathedral. On that occasion, I commented that Jonathan Cohen drew from his musicians ‘music-making of exquisitely beautiful poise and sensitivity, and directed his singers and musicians in a performance of utmost care and conviction’, but that while the prevailing serenity was expressive and touching, there were few peaks of dramatic intensity. When Arcangelo performed Handel’s Theodora on the penultimate evening of the 2018 Proms season, I wondered whether a small period-instrument ensemble and singers could surmount the challenges posed by the size and dimensions of the Royal Albert Hall and communicate, not just with emotional intensity, but with truly dramatic impact too.
0 kommentar(er)
