It looked as if the conductor was drunk and the orchestra played badly. Twenty two year old Rachmaninov hid on the stairs outside in despair at its premiere in 1897 and his First Symphony was not played again until 1945. Rachmaninov took three years to write any further music, and only once he had received counselling.
But for us Rossen Milanov, the Bulgarian conductor, was very much in charge of the Royal Scottish National Orchestra for the very enjoyable symphony played in four movements. There were some lovely melodies taken from religious chants whilst the opening of the fourth, Allegro con fuoco, was music fit for many a western movie. The principal flute and principal oboe were masterly.
On returning to the auditorium after the interval was the astonishing sight of the RSNO Chorus of eighty women in Loretto-red tops and fifty men in black jackets ready and waiting in the seats behind the orchestra perfectly still, almost waxworks like. They were set to sing in Russian Rachmaninov’s The Bells along with a Bulgarian soprano, Russian tenor and New Zealand bass soloist.
Edgar Allan Poe’s poem The Bells was Rachmaninov’s inspiration for his choral symphony written in 1913. It was said to be one of his two favourite compositions and is a loose translation of the poem. We heard many times the traditional Gregorian melody Dies Irae. The four movements mirrored life from birth, with silver bells, for marriage with golden bells, for terror with brazen bells and for death with iron bells. Again the flutes and oboes gave joy in the chirpy first movement and the tenor invoked the silver bells and sleighs and starlight. The soprano sang of the glorification of weddings. The bass gave us an emphatic but solemn feeling of death in the final evocative movement.
Rarely heard, I wondered how many of the audience had heard The Bells before. I had not and would want to hear it again to enjoy its beguiling sophistication.
Event: Friday 20 November 2009 7.30 pm, RSNO most Friday nights throughout the winter. £5 for students, Under 16’s free.