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Pomp and circumstances adverse for classical music in the UK despite coronation pageantry

2023-05-07T10:36:02.979Z


The presence of artists such as John Eliot Gardiner, Antonio Pappano and Bryn Terfel at the ceremony contrasts with the severe cuts announced by the Arts Council of England and the BBC


On April 23, Simon Rattle interrupted his concert with the London Symphony to address the audience.

The 68-year-old Liverpool bandleader, who is Britain's most international classical music personality, had invited the BBC Singers to sing an off-schedule composition: Francis Poulenc's cantata Figure

humaine

.

An a cappella

composition

written during the Nazi occupation of France and premiered in March 1945 by this prestigious professional choir.

But this choral formation, which is about to celebrate its centenary, has only a few months left to live.

The cuts announced by the Arts Council of England and the BBC not only establish its dissolution at the end of the year, but also the suppression of 20% of the musicians of the five symphony orchestras that the station has.

Some measures that contrast with the musical pageantry exhibited during the coronation of Carlos III, with 12 musical premieres and the presence of artists such as John Eliot Gardiner, Bryn Terfel and Antonio Pappano.

More information

The United Kingdom crowns Carlos and Camila before the eyes of half the world

Before conducting the BBC Singers at their April concert, Rattle stated that classical music in the UK is waging "a long-term fight for survival".

He credited George Orwell's 1984

Newspeak

with expressions used by the British government to “refresh Administration” and “reimagine artistic expression”.

And he underlined the serious consequences of dissolving a choir and drastically reducing the staff of radio orchestras: “These are not things that can be reversed later, or bought at Ikea”, he affirmed with bitter irony.

The musical pomp heard at the coronation of Carlos III contrasts with these adverse circumstances that the classical sector is experiencing.

And especially since the British king, who played cello in the Trinity College Orchestra in Cambridge in his youth, is an active patron and patron of various orchestras, such as the Royal Philharmonic and the Philharmonia, and specialized ensembles, such as the Monteverdi Choir. .

Between 2019 and 2020, the then Prince of Wales confessed his taste in classical music in various interviews, both on BBC Radio 3 and on Classic FM.

He spoke with admiration of the

Saint Matthew Passion

, of Bach, of the piano concertos, of Chopin;

from the

Idyll of Siegfried

, by Wagner, and from the

Four Last Lieder

, by Richard Strauss.

But he also singled out little-known 19th-century British composers such as Julius Benedict and Hubert Parry.

Carlos III and Queen Camilla, after the coronation ceremony. Associated Press / LaPresse

Carlos III himself starred 12 years ago, on BBC Four, in an extensive documentary about Parry, entitled

The Prince and the Composer

.

His music has been the first thing he has heard on entering Westminster Abbey (the coronation motet

I was glad

) and the last on leaving (his march from him to the incidental music to

The Birds

of Aristophanes).

In fact, the monarch has personally chosen the musical program for the entire ceremony.

A much shorter and less interesting selection than that of his mother, Elizabeth II, in 1953.

It should be clarified that what was seen on the RTVE broadcast did not include the musical concert prior to the monarch's arrival at Westminster Abbey.

A broadcast that showed a very serious ignorance of the sound and musical dimension of a ceremony of these characteristics.

That concert could be seen on the BBC News channel.

It began with John Eliot Gardiner conducting three excellent Bach pieces, along with Bruckner's

Ecce Sacerdos

motet , the Monteverdi Choir and the English Baroque Soloists.

Prince William touches the crown of his father, King Charles III, during the ceremony. Associated Press/LaPresse

It continued with Antonio Pappano leading an orchestra created for the occasion with members of various British ensembles.

He opened with the premiere of a bland overture by Judith Weir, master of the King's Music, and followed with excellent performances of Gustav Holst's

Jupiter

and William Walton's

Crown Imperial

march .

Other less attractive premieres followed: a composition for harp and orchestra by Karl Jenkins (featuring Alis Huws, the monarch's official harpist),

Sacred and Fire

, by film and television composer Sarah Class (featuring the South African soprano Pretty Yende) and the march written for the occasion by the well-known film composer Patrick Doyle.

The start of the ceremony was greatly improved musically by the addition of the strong Westminster Abbey Choir.

A group directed by Andrew Nethsingha that had luxurious reinforcements from other formations, such as the Monteverdi Choir.

They stood out at various times, such as the beautiful motet

Prevent us, O Lord

, by the late Renaissance composer William Byrd, which the RTVE presenters covered up with their comments.

Fortunately, they respected the

Glory

of their

Mass at 4

.

Later on, a motet by Thomas Weelkes, commemorating his 400th birthday, and an

Amen

by Orlando Gibbons were also heard from the same period.

Fanfares, composed by Christopher Robinson, and performed by the Royal Air Force trumpeters, were also incorporated into the ceremony.

But the greatest musical role was played by more premieres.

This was the case of Paul Mealor's

Kyrie

in Welsh, sung by a solemn and emotional bass-baritone Bryn Terfel.

Two versions of

Hallelujah

, by Debbie Wiseman, for choir and gospel.

A bombastic motet for the enthronement of the queen, by Andrew Lloyd-Webber.

And an attractive

Sanctus

, by Roxanna Panufnik, who tried to put a more modern touch, although Tarik O'Regan returned to a more evocative tone in

Agnus Dei

.

We listen to curiosities, like a Greek choir singing a psalm, in homage to Duke Philip of Edinburgh.

And very iconic pieces of music played at this ceremony, such as Handel and his coronation motet

Zadok the Priest

.

Confortare

, by Walford Davies, featured the brilliant solo intervention of the baritone Roderick Williams, although he could not be heard by RTVE commentators either.

And, in addition, the Fanfare of the Vienna Philharmonic

, by Richard Strauss,

was used to accompany the salutes of honor to the king.

But the two best musical moments of the ceremony came at the end and under the intense direction of Antonio Pappano.

First, the motet

The King Shall Rejoice

, by eighteenth-century composer William Boyce.

And, especially, William Walton's

Te Deum

, which was also heard in 1953, as was Pomp

and Circumstance no.

4

, by Edward Elgar.

Let's hope that having a music lover king helps the British, despite their eclectic tastes, not to lose their admirable musical fabric.

And let's hope Brexit doesn't end up making the malicious title of the 1914 German essay

A Country Without Music

by Oscar AH Schmitz a reality.

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Source: elparis

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