Sydney Symphony Orchestra | Simone Young Conducts Mahler Symphony No 3
19 February, 2025, Sydney Opera House, NSW
GUSTAV MAHLER (1860–1911) – Symphony No.3 in D minor (1896)
SIMONE YOUNG conductor
NOA BEINART contralto
SYDNEY PHILHARMONIA CHOIRS – ELIZABETH SCOTT chorus master
SYDNEY CHILDREN’S CHOIR – LYN WILLIAMS chorus master
Works like Mahler’s Symphony No.3 go beyond the mere idea of music, of entertainment, a religious experience or any philosophical idea you may wish to toy with and take on features that are more in keeping with a view of how the universe, or at least that conjured up in the minds of romantic visioned Germans in the very late 1800’s was created or how it thrives. This is music that even though embedded in the sounds of his time sees Mahler take on a grandeur that was unprecedented in symphonic works written up to that date. Mahler understood logic and structure in music as well as anyone and he deliberatively introduced chaos and sounds from the everyday world to create an aural landscape that would suit his view of the world and its ever-changing nature. A soft passage here is immediately overtaken by a raucous town band pastiche and then a bugler sounds before another sweet section unfolds. It keeps the listener on their toes and the full house in the season opener lapped it all up.
Chief conductor Simone Young is at home in late romantic German music and her exuberance led to a dramatic reading where many of the orchestra principal players were given scope to shine. Trombonist Scott Kinmont was heavenly in the sustained solos and he was matched in the brass section by horn soloist Samuel Jacobs and trumpeter David Elton. Indeed, the entire brass section deserves the highest praise for their splendid playing with trumpeter Brent Grapes shining with the offstage posthorn solo. Indeed, the whole orchestra was in great form with superb contributions from the entire percussion section, woodwind and string sections. Numerous solos from concertmaster Andrew Haveron charmed the audience with silky perfection. A special moment of extreme serenity was when Emma Sholl (flute), Shefali Pryor (oboe) and Frank Celata (clarinet) play a most ethereal high unison melody floating over the string section. Pure magic! It will live in the memory for a long time.
The young contralto Noa Beinart has a voice that projects effortlessly and is full of warmth and compassion. Already with an impressive list of performances behind her she will return in November this year to sing in the SSO Siegfried. Save that date for sure.
Both the women’s voices of the Sydney Philharmonia Choir and the Sydney Children’s Choir were perfectly prepared by their chorus masters and they added the tone colour, gloriously of another world, that Mahler intended to balance the many moments of growling brass and primal energy drums.
_____________________________
GUSTAV MAHLER (1860–1911)
- Kräftig. Entschieden [Vigorous, decisive]
- Tempo di menuetto. Sehr mässig [Very moderately]
iii. Comodo. Scherzando. Ohne Hast [Without haste]
- Sehr langsam. Misterioso [Very slowly, mysteriously] –
- Lustig im tempo und keck im Ausdruck [Lively in tempo and jaunty in expression] –
- Langsam. Ruhevoll. Empfunden [Slowly, with serenity, expressively]
________________________________
