May 29 2022 11am Konzerthaus Berlin
Christoph Eschenbach / Konzerthausorchester Berlin
Mozart: Horn Concerto No.4 (Bertrand Chatenet), Symphony No.41
(scroll down for English review)
周日上午到柏林音樂廳聽一場「莫扎特早場」，艾森巴哈指揮柏林音樂廳樂團。他們本周末的節目原是莫扎特最後三首交響曲，這個早場形式則只取最後一首，加上《第四圓號協奏曲》開場，由樂團的圓號首席擔任獨奏。兩首樂曲之前都有主持稍作介紹，《第四圓號協奏曲》他談的是樂隊怎樣調音，《第41交響曲》則談終曲的賦格,莫扎特如何把主題在樂器間拋來拋去。每段介紹都控制在十分鐘以內，連同這兩首作品一共的時間是80分鐘，不設中場休息。
主持其實是樂師之一，他說完後回位，和其他同樂器的樂師舉起樂器，才知道他是中提琴樂手，而且艾森巴哈也加入了「中提琴放左邊」的行列，小提琴分置左右。交響曲他用了40人弦樂（協奏曲少十人），速度不會像他近年的布拉姆斯那麼怪，輕快而穩步前進，不過我覺得有點悶。不過弦樂整體而言也和我聽慣的有出入，低音人數不多但頗為結實，小提琴頗為敏捷，但我覺得重量不夠，不過特別在頗重視音符的後半，要不比一般樂隊更能持音，要不會在音尾加力，取代較常見的音頭大力，所以在靈敏之餘還有多少結實感。
Christoph Eschenbach programmed the final symphonies of Mozart this weekend with his Konzerthausorchester Berlin. This Mozart-Martinee format took the last one then added the Fourth Horn Concerto played by their principal horn. Before each piece a violist gave 10-minute well-timed introductions. The first one didn’t have anything to the horn but about the orchestra’s tuning up. The second speech took apart a section of the symphony’s fugal finale and examined how Mozart tossed his theme around.
Not until the violist-presenter returned to his seat that I realized Eschenbach has also adopted the string seating of antiphonal violins but with the violists behind he first violins. He played the symphony with 40 strings which were quite agile but somehow lacking in mass. It’s not really a flaw but I wished the music could have a more solid sound. Eschenbach went through the piece steadily, without the awkward tempi and phrasing he sometimes took in later repertoire. I admired the string ensemble of this orchestra in taking the effort to ensure a smooth attack and a fully-articulated note, at times the end of note was stressed to give extra effect, something not commonly heard from orchestras throughout the world.