S2.E21. The sound of The London Philharmonic Orchestra.

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Welcome back to Perfect Pitch with Nick Healy Hutchinson and his fresh approach to the world of classical music. Whether you're an expert or a beginner, old or young, Perfect Pitch has something for everyone.

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We're going to do something a little different this week. The first thing I'm going to ask you to do is to head for the volume button. Turn it up a notch or two, and then brace yourself for this most iconic of symphonic openings. Okay. Here we go. In the opening bars of Marlis Fifth Symphony. The last time I heard this in a live performance was about 40 years ago, when I heard it conducted by Claudio Abardo in the Albert Hall. I went away that night thinking to myself that I have no need to hear this in a live performance ever again, because there's no chance it will be equaled. Never mind better. And then it featured in the LPO's 2022-2033 program of concerts, and I knew I had to take the plunge again. After those opening bars, my guests and I looked at each other with a huge smile, in exactly the same way my father and I had done some 40 years before, knowing that we were in for a real treat. The only way I can describe that first portico is that it was almost terrifyingly exciting in its volume. One of the direct consequences of this podcast is that I was asked to join the advisory council of the LPO last year. Like so many, I've admired the orchestra from afar for many years. But only after joining the council did I begin to understand the extraordinary work it does outside the concert hall and the high esteem in which it is held all around the world as a result. So today, without either their sponsorship or even their request, I want to share some moments with you to demonstrate the quality of the sound which belongs to the LPO. Because I honestly believe it is one to rival any of the other London orchestras, and indeed the European and American ones, that being the precise aim of Sir Thomas Beetham and Malcolm Sargent when they set up the orchestra in 1932. It will quickly become clear to all of you that these are not the sophisticated thoughts of some seasoned specialist, just the observations of an ordinary and appreciative listener. But it's striking to me nevertheless how every single section is right at the top of its game. Strings, a woodwind, a brass, a tempany, a percussion. And that's actually really important, because there's simply no place to hide for anyone in a Marlowe symphony. I'll give you a few brief snippets like the opening we just heard by way of taste. But let's start today with a sweet sound of the strings in a gorgeous dialogue with a woodwind, including the briefest, warmest, almost cameo-like reminder of his favourite instrument of the French horn, and sharing the orchestra's long affiliation with a German tradition by listening to the third movement of Brahms' Third Symphony, a work which was instantly more popular than his previous two. And what a lovely melody this is, conducted here by one of the orchestra's principal guest conductors, Alpesh Schorhan. You were never left disappointed in those big moments in Mala, of which happily there are so many. He would take you to this explosive sound and then appear to underline it to really drive home the point. I mentioned that because when I spoke to Edward Gardner, the LPO's current principal conductor, who's joined an esteemed list in that role, including Sir Adrian Bolt, Bernard Haitick, Sir George Schalty, Klaus Tempskett, and Vladimir Rotsky, almost the first thing said to me was that the orchestra has, as he put it, of knowing what needs to be heard, adding that it made his job a whole lot easier. I think there's an element of modesty in that last observation because no orchestra does it completely on its own, besides which you'd never get a different sound from one conductor to the next if it did. But it does mean that the collaboration between podium and orchestra is naturally aligned and seems to have a common aspiration in the outcome. So here's another short example in the second moment of Mars Fifth Symphony to show you what I mean. Out of a stormy despair, you suddenly get this ecstatic, albeit temporary lift from the gloom. It's a sort of yes moment when everyone participates in a brief and joyful collective fire relief. Edward Gardner is once more at the helm. But as this is the 101st episode, it would be crazy not to demonstrate the sound of the orchestra, whether it's comprised of nearly 130 people, or, as in this case, only around 30, in Hyper Symphony No. 101, the so-called clock. When you get over familiar with a piece such as this, it can be all too easy to overlook what's really going on. But it's worth concentrating. A couple of themes at the opening are followed by a series of variations, culminating with a full orchestra. And almost all the time with that ever beating tick of the clock. But don't forget the sense of humor of the composer as well. The prolonged rest in the middle is surely no accident, but a trick from Haydn into teasing you that the clock might have stopped. And that's certainly something you sense in these opening bars of Mozart's penultimate symphony, is a fortieth, conducted by Vladimir Jurovsky. There's a real urgency about this, a palpable tension in one of the most familiar and perfectly structured symphonies ever written. But here's a lengthier example under Edward Gardner's battery. And rarely is that quality more needed. The second movement of the Vorjak's Seventh Symphony has a note at the bottom from the composer with four telling words from the sad years, which is a direct reference to the death of his mother, and maybe also to that of his eldest child. So it's a movement which combines grief and turmoil, calling upon that understated intensity. Here it is in the fall conducted by Edward Garner. Alongside the strings, the combined beauty of the woodwind, brother, and Tippany all enhanced the powerful emotional message within. At the end of Marlosphere, you can't have thought I'd leave that out, surely. Everyone gets one last chance to chime. And here's another device which is so thrilling with this man's music. I can't think of any other composer who reaches a climax of a piece with such overwhelming emphasis on a downward cascade. When the moment arrived of that live performance in April, the first time I'd heard it in the concert hall for about 40 years, the Royal Festival Hall near erupted. And now we come home to the UK with the closing moments of Elgar's first symphony, a piece of, which many would say combines much of those other countries' efforts. But has, as you will hear, an identity and nobility all of its own, which can only come from the hand of this one man. It was a huge success on its first outing in 1908, hocking up about a hundred performances around the world within the first twelve months. Edward Gardner opened today's podcast to its close. If you enjoyed the episode today, please dive into some of the other episodes which are usually just over half an hour later. And we will see the weekly mission is quite happy to share my lovely music with you in the same way you might have to hear about a book, a play, or a film with a gentle idea here or there, in the hope that it makes the listening a little more enjoyable and understandable. Following a reason, and if you like what you hear, please do rate it and write a comment. It's a mission to show that everybody can like something in classical music. If you're involved with the orchestra in any capacity, or if you're a member of it and would like to comment or put me right on anything, please do send me a tweet. I wouldn't presume to ask you to send me an X as that would sound like a request for something rather different. I hope I've done the Orchestra some justice today. It's a near impossible task in the time available. But I trust you can see why I love this group, the educational work they do elsewhere, and it's very particular sound. If you're in London between now and April next year, there are still about 20 concerts at the World Festival Hall, and there's nothing quite like the excitement which comes with a live event. And if you want to hear more of the LPO in the meantime, the musician and broadcaster Yolanda Brown hosts her own podcast with the orchestra called LPO Offstage. For the UK orchestra, but with a truly world-class status, the last word fittingly goes to Elgar in the closing moments of his first symphony conducted by Edward Garber.

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Nick will be back again soon. Please rate and comment on any of the previous episodes, and if you like what you hear, take a moment to press the follow button, as it helps to spread the word.