Mahler 3 premiere at DFP

I was looking forward to the Mahler 3 in the DFP on 17 July 2010, but the programmed conductor and MD of the MPO, Claus Peter Flor fell ill and had to be replaced with Jahja Ling. Now Ling had conducted the MPO before with some measure of success, but I believe that Ling and the MPO had less practice time that what MD Flor would have enjoyed with the MPO.

The first movement (of about 35 minutes duration) was obviously the best prepared among the six movements. Here, we saw concentration and fine ensemble playing. In the later parts of the symphony, there were certainly niggles and tiredness creeping into the MPO's playing.

The CBSO and KL Children's chorus groups certainly acquitted themselves in the fun "Bimm Bamm" movement after the mezzo soprano Yvonne Naef sung the previous "O Mensch" very well.

The last movement (What Love Tells Me) was played slowly - perhaps far slower than the tempo I am used to. Therefore, it was difficult for the MPO (who were coming to this massive and long score first time) to sustain a performance with a slowish tempo. Nevertheless, it was great to hear Mahler 3 in the DFP hall. Perhaps MD Flor could re-program the piece and conduct himself with the long and arduous hours of rehearsal that would eventually make the performance wholly worthwhile attending.

Maestro Ling did quite well given the circumstances in a very difficult piece - which not many guest conductors filling-in in the last instance can do absolute justice to. One exception to the rule of doing well is Esa-Pekka Salonen's debut in 1983 in the Mahler 3 with the Philharmonia in London. This concert really enhanced Salonen's reputation and set him up for life as a conductor.