Wigglesworth's magnificent Mahler 9

As far as the mind can remember, we have had three previous performances of Mahler's Ninth Symphony at DFP since 1998. Benjamin Zander initially led a heart-wrenching interpretation of this valedictory opus in 2002. In 2011, Claus Peter Flor led a swiftly paced performance which lacked repose, whilst Yoel Gamzou in 2016 did significantly better than Claus Peter Flor.

Mark Wigglesworth's concert of the Ninth had no companion piece like Zander's and Flor's concerts. Often, conductors try to give the audiences more time value for the money by inserting a short companion piece before the Ninth. On this occasion, the superlative quality of the MPO playing and Wigglesworth's vividly characterised interpretation shone through and the shortened time value of the concert was entirely superfluous.

The opening theme in the first Andante comodo movement was taken more languidly than usual in a gorgeously autumnal tone colour, so that when the three massive climaxes appeared later, they felt properly earned. In the slow unfolding and eventual derangement-to-reconciliation of the first movement’s journey, Wigglesworth’s allowance for extreme mood changes might seem unrestrained to some listeners. It felt right, however, the only honest way to reflect the piece’s terrifying revelations of death’s inevitability.

The swiftly paced dance-led second movement, opened with a Ländler with rugged coarseness which embraced its bucolic country roots before transitioning to a wild Scherzo. The third movement, Rondo Burlesque set at a cracking pace was almost carnival-like in its boisterous energies amidst its biting satire.

The final Adagio combined supreme serenity, utmost calm and Zen-like concentration to almost unbearably moving effect. The MPO string sound, alternately whispered and thrillingly saturated, wrung every last drop of emotion from Mahler’s lines, while the solo work from across the orchestra’s sections was superb – guest principal flute Dora Seres' soli deserve a very special mention.

After the last great climax of shattering intensity, string playing of such intense beauty, longing and poignancy faded away and a long silence ensued, which Wigglesworth held for as long as possible. Then the tumultuous applause inevitably broke, as the audience sensed that Wigglesworth and the MPO gave us a most magnificent and monumental account of Mahler’s Ninth.

This was the most peerless concert that I have heard the MPO give in the 2019 season, supplanting the impressive Akiko Suwanai and Alexander Briger concert from this February. On this showing, my guest from USA opined that the MPO and Wigglesworth far outshone the regular orchestra she hears, the San Francisco Symphony under Michael Tilson Thomas.

A colourful Ryu Goto and Roberto Abbado concert

One of my favourite conductors who comes regularly to conduct the MPO at the DFP in recent seasons is the distinguished Italian, Roberto Abbado. On previous visits, he had shown his mettle in the central core German, Italian and French repertoire. On this occasion, his concert with the MPO comprised youthful Russian works and Korngold's Violin Concerto.

Abbado opened the concert with a sprightly and transparent reading of Prokofiev’s sunny Classical Symphony in D major Op 25. Adopting a felicitous tempo, the opening Allegro achieved a light and airy texture which bristled with good humour and wit, whilst the central development section was suitably grand. Abbado encouraged real grace in the phrasing of the wonderful lyrical passages in the dreamy second movement (Larghetto) from the MPO violins, whose precision and golden timbre was remarkable.

There were minute ensemble imprecisions in the strings for the third movement Gavotte when Abbado chose to apply some slight touches of rubato at the onset. However, the flute solo from guest principal Dora Seres was stunning in beauty and delivery. Abbado led an excellent performance of the scampering Finale which was full of vibrant energy and good humour.

Korngold’s Violin Concerto in D major Op 35 followed the Prokofiev. Making his debut at the DFP, Ryu Goto chose to present Korngold's ultra-Romantic opus which was based on themes from four Hollywood hit movies and premiered in 1947 by Jascha Heifetz. It is natural to be reminded of Heifetz whenever encountering this concerto.

Goto brought his own special measure of artistry to the Korngold Violin Concerto. His was a lyrical performance that was also highly expressive in its own way. Adopting slightly slower tempi than usual, Goto coaxed sweet tones from his 1722 "Jupiter" Stradivarius to evoke the golden era of Hollywood film making during Korngold's time there from 1935 to 1956.

The opening theme of the concerto comes from the Evening Scene from the 1937 film Another Dawn. Goto played this soulfully and sang through Korngold's angular melodies. Abbado and Goto preferred to eschew the myriad changes of speed in this first movement with a slew of ritardandi and accelerandi not broadly heeded, particularly the latter. This resulted in a more somnolent account, with the faster passagework in the movement sounding a touch ponderous.

This quiescent approach from Goto and Abbado conjured up a wistful and mesmerizing atmosphere in the entrancing second movement (Romance), which is based on a theme from the 1936 Oscar-winning film score for Anthony Adverse. The third movement (Finale) based on a theme from the main motif from the 1937 film The Prince and the Pauper was particularly successful as Goto dived into the virtuosic perpetual motion passages with vigour and aplomb.

The second half of the concert combined fun and seriousness. The fun came via Kabalevsky's rarely-played Suite from The Comedians Op 27. I was glad that maestro Abbado introduced this modern tuneful trifle which was written specially for children to the Kuala Lumpur audience who have been generally nurtured with standard orchestral repertoire over the last 21 years.

Abbado adopted sprightly tempi for the opening two movements, the Prologue and Galop, whilst the slower movements like the Waltz and Gavotte were soulfully played. A heavy tread and ominous tone enveloped the Pantomime, whilst Abbado imparted the final Epilogue with an exuberant joyfulness.

Abbado's inspired choice of programming saw the early Shostakovich First Symphony Op 10 close this extremely colourful concert. Abbado drew out the frenetic and sardonic nature of the opening Allegretto - Allegro non troppo movement which had lots of impish contributions from the principal trumpet, bassoon and clarinet. In the second movement (Allegro), he encouraged the pianist Akiko Danis to draw out the comic capers and the forceful interjections, which was a reminder of the composer's earlier days of accompanying silent cinematic films.

Ample sweetly dissonant sounds in the oboe were heard in the slow movement (Lento), augmented by wistfully played violin, cello and oboe solos. The fourth movement finale, with its fanfare-like figures for brass, was technically strong, bringing Abbado and the MPO's performance to a very impressive conclusion.

Tianwa Yang shines in Bruch's Scottish Fantasy

The return visit of the stellar Chinese violinist Tianwa Yang to DFP saw her offering us Bruch's lovely Scottish Fantasy. Previously, the Scottish Fantasy was the poorer musical cousin to the evergreen Bruch Violin Concerto No 1 in concert appearances and on recordings. It was good to see the Scottish Fantasy make a popular return to the concert hall in the modern era, thanks to the persuasive advocacy of celebrated players like Leonidas Kavakos, Joshua Bell, Akiko Suwanai, Ning Feng, Nicola Benedetti, Rachel Barton-Pine and of course, Tianwa Yang.

The 47-year old conductor Olari Elts was at the helm of the MPO for the evening. The opening of the Scottish Fantasy is in the very distant key of E flat minor, marked pianissimo. Elts has a penchant for compressing the extensive dynamic ranges of the score. Instead of the entrance being veiled, sombre and mysterious as per Sir Walter Scott's description of an old bard contemplating a ruined castle and lamenting the glorious times of old, it appeared bright and exposed. This was all corrected when the superb Yang made her subtle entrance, high up the A-string on the superb 1730 Guarneri del Gesu violin which was on loan from The Rin Collection, Singapore. After a magically hushed and swift modulation to B major, Yang truly sang the spirit of the song Auld Rob Morris in the Adagio cantabile section on the warm toned Guarneri, which I had the great privilege of playing at Mr Rin's house in Singapore in December 2011.

In the following Allegro written after the song The Dusty Miller, Yang evoked a spirited and playful fiddler as the MPO provided her with the accompaniment of an open fifth pedal, bringing out the wonderful effect of Scottish bagpipes. The emotional heart of the piece is the third movement, where Yang intoned a prayerful hymn-like and doleful song I’m Down for Lack of Johnny, with a contrasting passionate central section that faded into a very tender conclusion.

The rousing finale, with the familiar ‘Scots Wha Hae’, finished the piece with Yang on electrifying form, with superb multiple stopping, scalic runs of pearly clarity and a soulfully played hymn-like central section. In certain brilliant double-stopped variations, Yang pushed the tempo and caught Elts napping entirely with a substantial resultant time-lag behind the soloist.

Yang duly rewarded the audience for their warm applause with two contrasting encores of Bach's serene Andante from the Solo Sonata No 2 in A minor BWV 1003 and Ysaye's tranquil Malinconia, the second movement from his Solo Sonata Op 27 No 2, which has veiled musical references to the Dies Irae chant.

Before the Bruch, the concert began with a very lame and swift account of the Brahms Academic Festival Overture from Elts. Elts adopted a similar musical modus operandi to the one he had adopted for the Bruch of a constricted dynamic range with little variation of tonal colouring whilst eschewing a potentially vast orchestral palette of colours to choose from. Adopting a hasty tempo, articulation was garbled, distant modulations and transitions were glossed over and the Gaudeamus igitur finale was bereft of its inherent grandeur.

After the interval, Elts contrived to subject Mendelssohn's greatest and most poetic Symphony No 3 (The Scottish) to further musical mutilation. An evocative masterpiece like Mendelssohn's Scottish Symphony needs a master conductor who is superb at musical tonal colouring and shading. The opening movement, Andante con moto was way too fast and was closer to Moderato. It was just impossible to imagine the ruins at Holyrood Castle as Mendelssohn's inspiration behind the symphony in Elts' belligerent interpretation.

The next lively movement, Vivace non troppo felt like Prestissimo to me. It was as if Elts was rushing to catch the midnight flight out of KL International Airport. On the third restatement of the famous tune (which was made popular to Malaysian TV audiences as the Dunhill advertisement), the horns and timpani had difficulty coordinating the notes at his frantic tempo and this resulted in utter musical gibberish. The following Adagio was again swiftly played and had neither calmness to its placid opening nor gravitas to its more militant section. The final movement was pretty much the same as what transpired before with a frenzied and cacophonous scramble towards the end. The final coda which Mendelssohn magically transforms to triumph by means of a tierce di picardie had no majesty whatsoever in the closing Allegro maestoso assai section.

At the end of Elts' concert, I had a splitting musical headache from his bludgeoning interpretations. I resolved never to attend another concert by him. However, Tianwa Yang will always be on my to-watch list in Kuala Lumpur especially if she offers us some rarely-played violin concertos like the Wieniawski First or Second or the Vieuxtemps Fourth or Fifth.

Stunning Suwanai and brilliant Briger

The most eagerly awaited concert in 2019 at DFP was that of Akiko Suwanai playing the Brahms Violin Concerto under Alexander Briger. It was held under the auspices of the Japanese Embassy, and Tun Mahathir Mohamad and Tun Siti Hasmah Mohamad Ali were among the honoured guests present at the sold-out concert.

After a brief speech by the Japanese ambassador to Malaysia Dr Makio Miyagawa, maestro Alexander Briger launched the concert with Mozart's Così fan tutte Overture. Opening with a grand and resplendent C major chord, Briger gave a sparkling account of the overture which had fine contrasts between the sinuous and reedy oboe solo by guest principal Bernice Lee and the syncopated and the lyrical sections which followed.

Briger then gave a magnificent account of Haydn's Symphony No 104 for the classically conceived first half of the concert. The opening Adagio was imposing, whilst the following Allegro was suitably commanding and symphonic. The elegant Andante second movement was ideally paced to allow its theme and variations to unfold gracefully and naturally.

The Minuet, taken at dignified pace for the lopsided third beat accent to register, contrasted well with the exquisitely played Trio by the MPO woodwind players. Briger's presentation of the playful folk-like main theme of the Finale contrasted well with the darker moments of the extended development section.

This was big-band Haydn with a very full sound and Briger and the MPO showed it is possible to play Haydn in this grand manner. I was reminded of a similarly sumptuous performance of this symphony which I heard at the Salzburg Whitsun Festival by the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra and Herbert von Karajan in June 1981.

In the Romantic half of the concert post-interval, we heard a stunning account of the Brahms Violin Concerto from Akiko Suwanai and Briger. Unlike the previous swift and soloist-led account of the Brahms by Kolja Blacher at DFP, this interpretation was fully grandiose and symphonic. Conducting the concerto (and the whole concert) from memory, Briger led the MPO on a magnificently played tutti before Suwanai made her powerful entrance, bringing an impressive fervour to the dramatic opening statement.

Briger and Suwanai handled the frequent Brahmsian mood changes and transitions very deftly, slipping inexorably from raw power in the solo line and driving passion from the orchestra into moments of intimacy and lyricism. Suwanai's interpretation of Joachim's mercurial cadenza towards the end of first movement was truly breathtaking, filling the entire concert hall with her unmatched sonority and virtuosity on the iconic 1714 ex-Dolphin Stradivarius violin that once belonged to Jascha Heifetz.

The second movement's opening oboe solo was lovingly-shaped by principal oboist Simon Emes with his typical elegant tone, before Suwanai and the orchestra expounded on the more impassioned central section material. The reprise of the opening oboe at the recapitulation with the high-lying interweaving descant lines from Suwanai was just heavenly.

Taking a tempo that was a touch nimbler than usual, Suwanai imbued the bucolic Hungarian dance infused-finale with high spirits, verve and joy. Briger, working hand in hand with Suwanai, relished the quirky rhythmic drive with its offbeat accents and gypsy flair, which led to a thoroughly enthralling conclusion to one of the very best Brahms Violin Concerto performances that has been heard at the DFP Hall since its opening.

In the concluding piece, Sarasate's Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs), Suwanai's interpretation did not however evoke memories of Joshua Bell's superb recent performance in KL. In the opening Moderato section, Suwanai's technique remains irreproachable. Two minor bones of contention were the odd and wide "wobble-vibrato" that Suwanai imparts to two double stops of F and A flat in bars 14 and 22. The "wobble-vibrato" coincidentally also exists on her Philips CD of the same piece.

What seemed to be lacking in her interpretation of the Lento and Un poco piu lento sections, was the element of improvisation. However, Suwanai dispatched the final swift Allegro molto vivace section with its running semiquavers and left-hand pizzicato brilliantly, eliciting warm applause all round. Suwanai proffered the audience a lovely encore in the shape of Bach's calm Andante from the Solo Sonata No 2 in A minor BWV 1003.

Briger and Suwanai are two excellent top-rated artists who graced this wonderful evening. It is my fervent hope that I can attend their concerts again in Kuala Lumpur in the very near future.

Kochanovsky's innovative Mahler concert

Bach and Mahler do not usually fit into a modern classical concert programme together. However, the rising Russian conductor Stanislav Kochanovsky innovatively and ingeniously assembled Mahler's Bach Suite and Fifth Symphony into a most delectable programme with the MPO.

Proceedings for the evening opened with Mahler's Bach Suite (or to give it its long name - the Suite for string orchestra, harpsichord and organ by J.S. Bach). Mahler re-arranged and re-orchestrated the first two movements of his Bach Suite from the Overture as well as the Rondeau and Badinerie from Bach's Orchestral Suite No 2 in B minor BWV 1067.

Since the flute has a prominent part to play in Bach's Second Suite, the guest principal flautist for the evening, Andrew Nicholson, took up a position next to conductor Kochanovsky on the podium. In the opening Overture (Grave), the sustained organ notes often swamped the strings in the balance. However, in the following movement of the Rondeau flanking the Badinerie, very lively playing with sprightly rhythms from the strings and flute lifted the portentous mood of the opening movement.

In the lovely third movement (known as Bach's Air on the G string) from the Orchestral Suite No 3 in D major BWV 1068, Kochanovsky encouraged the MPO strings to paint a very serene mood with wonderfully rich tones. In the last movement of the Gavotte I and II also from the Orchestral Suite No 3 in D major BWV 1068, festive trumpets heralded a triumphant closing of this rarely-played Mahlerian opus.

After a brief interval, we heard Kochanovsky's interpretation of Mahler's Fifth Symphony. More often than not, one can tell how good (or bad) a performance of Mahler's Fifth will be from its opening trumpet call. Here, the MPO's guest principal for the night, Shane Hooton, struck a balance between stridency, edginess and tragedy; but without the accuracy of intonation which Mahler's stratospheric and formidable trumpet part calls for.

Kochanovsky unfolded the first movement with bleak crispness in the tread of a fairly brisk funeral march, in keeping with modern performing traditions. The first movement's darkness was quickly eclipsed by the second movement which emphasized the rugged, almost schizophrenic nature of the score. In keeping with Mahler's explicit instructions, Kochanovsky had the MPO principal hornist, Grzegorz Curyła, play the first horn part for a solo obbligato horn next to himself, accentuating the dialogues between the horn and the strings in the great central bucolic Scherzo third movement.

The MPO strings and harp took centre stage as Kochanovsky unfolded the famous beautiful Adagietto movement (made famous by its use in Visconti's film Death in Venice)) in a romantically gorgeous reading which was full of passion at a reasonable pace.

Kochanovsky's approach to the jolly finale, as Mahler moves from tragedy to triumph, was one of fierce industry, leading to a jubilant and glorious conclusion to a terrific concert, marred only by occasionally poor MPO horn and trumpet playing.

Ray Chen in a stunning Symphonie Espagnole.

Okko Kamu's concert with the MPO opened with a somnolently paced Ravel's Pavane pour une infante défunte. At Kamu's restrained and funereal tempo, the MPO were uncomfortable at maintaining Ravel's long melodic lines of the work's recurring theme and the interpretation lacked a consummate dreaminess.

The full-capacity concert hall sparked to life as Ray Chen returned to the DFP to present Lalo's Symphonie Espagnole. Chen's tone had plenty of weight in the opening movement that was full of dark and sultry utterances on passages that were high up the mellow G-string of his superb Kurt Widenhouse violin of 2008. His softer playing in the second subject radiated a hushed intensity which entranced the audience. Chen spun a silky cantabile line for the opening and central sections of the second Scherzando movement, whilst maintaining taut rhythms in the swift linking triplet passages. The MPO, Kamu and Chen established the ideal mood for the Spanish-Moorish influenced habanera rhythms of the Intermezzo third movement.

Chen’s soft dynamics captured a mood of repose and found the emotional heart of the concerto in the lovely Andante which gained an elegiac wistfulness as he ascended to the high D, in a hushed but magical transformation to the tonic major. Chen’s impeccable technique carried off the final Rondo with abundant panache and aplomb as the lightness of his touch on his lovely spiccato bowing, his nimble runs and arpeggios, impeccable broken octaves and laughing trills brought Lalo's magnificent opus to a rousing conclusion.

After tumultuous applause, Chen presented the audience with two encores. The first was the opening movement of Ysaye's Solo Sonata Op 27 No 2 (Obsession), which was dedicated to Ysaye's violinist friend, Jacques Thibaud. Chen's favourite Paganini Caprice No 21, with its singing double-stops and fiendish up-bow staccato was his second coruscating encore.

Kamu and the MPO treated us to a lovely performance of Dvorak's genial Eighth Symphony after the interval. From the melancholic opening tune of the MPO cellos and the lovely flute solo by Dakota Martin, there was subtlety of dynamics and phrasing and drama in the gloriously melodious first movement. Charm characterized the pastoral second movement, with appealing dialogue passages from the principal flute, oboe and clarinet players and a luscious violin solo from Peter Danis.

Kamu caught the third movement's lilting mood and melodic lines impeccably, with the MPO violins coaxing a most alluring portamento and a well-played Trio from the woodwinds of idyllic grace. Almost without a break, an energetic trumpet fanfare heralded the fourth movement. The cellos recollected the material from the first movement, before Kamu built the symphony to a boisterous and exciting conclusion replete with folksy abandon.

MPO 20th anniversary special concerts for 2018

The MPO 20th anniversary season promises many special concerts from top conductors and soloists exclusively chosen for the remainder of 2018. Renowned pianist Stephen Hough performs Rachmaninov's evergreen Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini with conductor Mark Wigglesworth in a classic concert entitled Russian Rhapsody.

Mark Wigglesworth also leads a concert which juxtaposes Alban Berg's heart-rending Violin Concerto, with the stellar violin soloist James Ehnes and Sibelius' sunny Second Symphony.

Rising violinist Ray Chen makes a welcome return to the DFP in a colourful concert of Lalo's Symphonie espagnole and Dvorak's rustic Eighth Symphony, led by the veteran Finnish conductor, Okko Kamu. Another popular returning artist to KL is the electric harpist Leonard Jacome with Venezuelan harp offerings and Rachmaninov's romantic Second Symphony.

The perennial favourite conductor Robert Abbado offers us Carl Orff's epic choral spectacular Carmina Burana, prefaced by Haydn's Symphony No 103 ("Drumroll"), whilst the emerging Stanislav Kochanovsky also returns to delight us with two Romantic German third symphonies of Schumann and Brahms.

Making his debut here in KL at the DFP, Roberto González-Monjas directs Vivaldi's The Four Seasons from the violin and then leads the MPO in Mussorgsky's evocative Pictures at an Exhibition. Britain's premier historically informed orchestra, The Orchestra of The Age of Enlightenment (OAE) also makes an appearance at the DFP under the banner of the Toyota Classics.

On a lighter musical note, Billy Joel's protégé Michael Cavanaugh plays and sings the music of his mentor with the MPO, whilst the elegant "live" band Pink Martini with the sultry lead singer China Forbes also entertain us in their multilingual songs from around the world.

The 2018 MPO anniversary season promises many concerts of varied fare, with great artists in wonderful repertoire. For further information, visit www.mpo.com.my or call (03) 2331 7007.

Bell's brilliant Bruch & Sarasate outshines Bruckner

We had not seen Joshua Bell at the DFP for over a decade now after his last brilliantly varied and subtly modulated performance of the Brahms Violin Concerto with the MPO. So, it was a pleasure to welcome him back to the hall in Max Bruch's evergreen Violin Concerto No 1 Op 26. Equally, it was no surprise that a capacity audience turned out for one of the most popular violinists on the current international circuit, playing one of the four greatest gems of the German violin concerto repertoire.

Bell is a consummate artist of such great musicianship that he was able to instil new life into such a well-trodden score. He delved into Bruch’s music fully focused, avoiding any grand gestures and any unnecessary theatricality. Bruch's long melodic lines were played with character and a warm luscious sound emanated from his 1713 ex-Gibson Huberman Stradivarius.

The opening two solos of the Prelude (Allegro moderato) had a tender, withdrawn, improvisatory quality. Although Bruch's music is rather rhythmic and virtuosic in nature in this first movement, Bell eschewed these aspects in favour of a more introverted older-school interpretation and with sweeter tones and portamenti more reminiscent of his teacher, Josef Gingold. Conductor Mark Wigglesworth scaled back the dynamics of the accompanying MPO to accommodate Bell's softer and sweeter approach.

The inescapably romantic Adagio second movement was beautifully played, with both Bell and the MPO combining to produce a warm and rich texture, making the music flow with passionate intensity. The Finale with its gypsy feel was played with plenty of verve, with Bell navigating the interweaving phrases with superb technique and enthusiasm leading to a satisfyingly joyous climax.

Those in the audience who applauded Bell vociferously after the Bruch had another prepared encore shown in the programme notes as Bell served up a fragrant dessert in the shape of Sarasate's Zigeunerweisen (Gypsy Airs) Op 20. Bell began the gypsy music with a soulful introduction on the G-string, followed by a mournful slow section played freely almost as an improvisation, with subtle portamenti and astute choice of high position fingerings. Bell's wonderful spiccato bowing in the brilliant and fleeting finale whipped the audience into wild frenzy.

In the second half, Mark Wigglesworth gave us a decent performance of Bruckner's popular and lyrical Seventh Symphony. In the first movement, the MPO and Wigglesworth were not entirely convincing in portraying Bruckner's big musical building blocks into cathedrals of sound structural unity. In the eloquent and soulful Adagio, Wigglesworth rightfully discerned that the symphony’s heart lay there and unfolded the movement with stately grandeur up to one of Bruckner’s most impassioned central climaxes, replete with triangle and cymbals.

The third movement (Scherzo) felt perhaps a touch heavy, slow and sluggish instead of being a bit more light-footed in character and in keeping with the composer's Sehr Schnell marking. In the finale, structural issues predominated proceedings and the less-than-majestic ending did not sound organically woven into Bruckner's musical fabric.

Abbado's marvellous Mahler, wondrous Wagner

A perennial visitor to the MPO for the last few seasons is the distinguished Italian conductor, Roberto Abbado. This time his concert comprised Mahler's Fourth Symphony, Barber's Knoxville: Summer of 1915 and Wagner's Tannhäuser Overture. Usually most conductors would set the programme in the order of Wagner, Barber and Mahler but with this arrangement, Abbado and the MPO were able to fully concentrate their musical efforts towards the largest and longest work of the evening first.

Mahler's Fourth Symphony is the most classically conceived of his symphonic oeuvre and the last of his symphonies to use the texts from Das Knaben Wunderhorn, a collection of German folk poems put together at the beginning of the 19th century by Achim von Arnim and Clemens Brentano. Abbado led a beautifully paced opening first movement of the Mahler, with a relaxed gait reflecting the wondrous and bucolic nature of the piece, marked Deliberate. Not hurried - Quite genial. The playing had a spontaneous feel and the sound was beautifully balanced, allowing the upper strings and cellos to glisten with gorgeous turns of phrases and hints of luscious portamento.

Abbado and the orchestra brought out the more demonic elements in the second movement’s Totentanz (Dance of Death). Leader Peter Danis, clearly relished and characterized his scordatura violin solos most vividly, evoking Freund Hein (Friend Henry) - a skeleton who plays the fiddle and is a traditional German personification of death by poet Matthias Claudius. According to Mahler's widow Alma, Mahler took inspiration for this movement from an 1872 painting by the Swiss artist Arnold Böcklin entitled Self-Portrait with Death playing the Fiddle. Calmer interludes offered some contrast in the manner of a Ländler, Abbado and the MPO wonderfully capturing the spirit of the dance.

The third movement is marked “serene” and Abbado unfolded it in a hymn-like manner with ravishing string tone that almost verged on inaudibility. The set of variations that slowly unfolded was full of calm nobility and tender soulfulness, sculpted into longer arches of sound into a higher state of bliss. When the music changed into a grandiloquent E major signaling the opening of heaven's gates, rising soprano Lauren Snouffer tip-toed into an empty seat in the midst of the first violins.

Moving centre stage swiftly as the fourth movement began, Snouffer would have benefited from sharper German diction and better projection over the orchestra. Nonetheless, her lovely tone served the text of Das himmlische Leben (The Heavenly Life) well, gorgeous and delicate. Abbado and the MPO thoughtfully complemented Mahler’s often very detailed word painting. At the end, Abbado left us relishing the radiant meadows of this ineffably beautiful view of heaven.

In the second half, Snouffer was the ardent soloist in Samuel Barber’s Knoxville: Summer of 1915 in a performance where both she and Abbado took a non-sentimental approach and a preferred moderate tempo. Her deeply moving rendition utterly enchanted the audience, though her diction was again not always ideally crystal clear.

A wondrous performance of Wagner's unequivocal masterpiece, the Tannhäuser Overture closed this magnificent concert. Abbado led the chorale invoking the Pilgrims’ Chorus in a grandly expansive and stately manner. The Allegro representing the sensual, impious Venusberg was attractively evoked: the feathery, frivolous skittishness of the strings, the uneasy, irregular swellings of sound threatening to go ballistic and the percussive battery of the grand central climax. The final reprise of the Pilgrim’s Chorus was once again sumptuous and solemn, with an altogether righteous Wagnerian majesty.