Review: PROM 17: VIKINGUR ÓLAFSSON, Royal Albert Hall

Snowstorms seemed to sweep the Philharmonia Orchestra's tenacious tempi in a blustery offering of works by Mozart, Bach, Prokofiev and Shostakovich under Paavo Järvi's baton at the 17th Prom. This smorgasbord of classical and neoclassical music was often rousing, but, crucially, lacked variation and sensitivity.

Pianist Vikingur Ólafsson lent Bach's Keyboard Concerto in F Minor a virtuosic veneer, adding carefully considered rhythms and pauses to the piece's unsplittable segments. That austere preparation worked well on the whole, but most exciting was the moments when he abandoned this regimented approach and played with an unrestrained intensity.

Likewise, his performance of Mozart's Piano Concerto No. 24 featured nimble notes, but, seemingly intent on slowing down the storming orchestra, Ólafsson laboured over sections in the second movement - his pace-setting testing our patience. It was a meticulous, error-free rendering, but without truly engaging musicality.

Only when he returned for an encore - Bach's "Andante" from his Fourth Organ Sonata - did Ólafsson really come to life. This passionate account evoked solitude and vulnerability, fear and suffering. No longer forced to either race against or supersede the overeager Philharmonia, the pianist revealed an impressive melodious maturity.

Järvi's presentation often masked mistakes with a guise of authority, although the relationship between soloist and ensemble remained uneasy throughout. Additionally, the strings were often brash and bullish, and Prokofiev's First Symphony was pushed to its extremes, with squawking brass and a third movement (the theme eventually used in the composer's Romeo and Juliet) that was stately to the point of pomp.

Shostakovich's Ninth Symphony, purportedly a patriotic work celebrating the greatness of the Soviet Union, was zealously performed, but lacked nuance. The final movement, instead of fizzing, sounded like Champagne gone flat.

Alternately diffident and debonair, this Prom ultimately felt too timid in approach. It was a night with some convincing moments, but an overall lack of musical contrast.

Photo credit: BBC Proms/Mark Allan

To post a comment, you must register and login.