Prom 72: OAE/Antonella Manacorda – Eroica Symphony

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart
Symphony No. 1 in E flat major, K16

Louise Farrenc
Symphony No. 3 in G minor

Ludwig van Beethoven
Symphony No. 3 in E flat major, ‘Eroica’

Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Antonello Manacorda
conductor

Mozart’s First Symphony was composed in London in 1764 during a 16-month European tour with his father and sister. As the work of an eight-year-old it’s astonishingly mature, its three-movement scheme bearing the influence of J. C. Bach. The OAE (strings with pairs of oboes and horns) gave a zesty account of the opening movement, with Antonello Manacorda underlining all its dynamic and timbral variety. Warmth of tone, horns especially mellow here, coloured the slow movement, its remarkable pathos drawing out refinement and sensitivity, before earlier joie de vivre concluded the work.

The coupling of Mozart with the Third Symphony (1847) of Parisian-born child prodigy Louise Farrenc made for an interesting juxtaposition. Known for being the only woman to hold a teaching chair at the Paris Conservatoire during the nineteenth-century, her three symphonies are steadily gaining recognition which some believe deserve a place alongside those of Schumann. The Third inhabits a romantic sensibility within a classical mould, its restlessness owing much to Mendelssohn and Beethoven. Certainly, Manacorda stressed the first movement’s rhythmic impetus, its string-led nervous energy countered by relaxed woodwind contributions, bringing bonhomie within nicely shaped phrases. The Mozartian elegance of the Adagio, periodically gave way to darker episodes (timpani not holding back), with Farrenc’s individuality explicit. Thereafter a playful Scherzo showcased infectious string playing, gambolling flutes and a central Trio spotlighting horns, woodwind and pizzicatos – all stylishly rendered, as was the unrest turbulence of the finale.

But the unrest of Farrenc was nothing to that of the Beethoven. This was an ‘Eroica’ with bells on, not least for its super charged timpani-playing and much hyper direction from the podium. Manacorda seemed determined to fill the space around him and lived every phrase, every dynamic, every detail was there in his adrenaline-filled gestures. Whether conductor, gymnast or entertainer, his energy and inspiration could not be denied, and the players responded to this force of nature with a sustained vigour that ensured the first movement enjoyed a breathless and overriding sweep. Gravitas and subtlety of expression dominated the ‘Funeral March’ where cumulative tensions, within a broadly conceived tempo, were ideally shaped, its dignity and drama uppermost. A nimble Scherzo, with capering horns impressing in the Trio, led straight into a characterful Finale and propelled with crispness of articulation, vivid colouration (rasping horns) and well-judged tempos. Altogether, a life-enhancing close to the penultimate concert of the season.