I'm just back from seeing the RSNO perform
Das Lied von der Erde as well as
Also Sprach Zarathustra by Richard Strauss. I only knew the opening to the latter so I haven't got much to say except I enjoyed the opening and then the rest of it was okay. Not my cup of tea but nothing wrong with it either.
Das Lied was a tale of two halves: the lights weren't dimmed after the intermission so it took until the start of
Der Abschied for me to really settle into it. But once Der Abschied began I was totally caught up in its spell, hook, line and sink. Seriously, I was practically having an out-of-body experience, with trembling limbs and tears about to flow forth, such was the performance.
As for the tenor's vocals, they seemed close to being about right considering his part often swamped by full-on orchestration much more so than his counterpart.
What I'm keen to know is, did the lights stay on for Das Lied at the Usher Hall? If yes, I guess that means they were left on to allow the audience to read the translation of the songs in the programme. If they weren't, I guess that means somebody forgot to turn the lights off!
As an aside, the conductor opened the evening with a brief speech on the relationship between music and philosophy via Nietzsche with a focus on climate change and what we've lamentably been doing to the planet during our tenure of it as a species. I thought it worthy of applause so I started clapping and most of the audience joined in accordingly.
As an aside not once but twice, I'm now listening to
this version of Das Lied by Philippe Herreweghe as transcribed for chamber orchestra by Schoenberg. It's perfect for late-night listening as it's a more intimate affair than the fuller Das Lied we've come to know and love.
