Berlin Concerts

We went to a sort of opera by Sciarrino, entitled "Vanitas, a still life in one act".   Very correct description.   Not much happened.  Participants were a singer, two elderly, well dressed people who occasionally moved, and a cellist and pianist.  It took place in the workshop of the Schiller Theatre, now the temporary home of the Staatsoper.

The singer spent most of the time stuck in the doorways; when she eventually made it in to the room, she was crawling.   As we were in the front row, the most exciting part was when she was on the floor, about 3 feet away from my shoes, singing.  The texts were incomprehensible as sung.

In a more traditional vein, we went to hear the Konzerthaus Orchestra in the Konzerthaus.  The hall itself is beautiful; I liked the sound of the hall.  Every hall (and every seat, in some cases) has its own special sound.  The Konzerthaus orchestra would not be mistaken for the Berlin Philharmonic, and the conductor was rather idiosyncratic.  The first piece, the Brahms first piano concerto, was subject to some very pronounced tempo shifts.  The second half was Mendelssohn's music for Midsummer Night's Dream; not the melodramas, but most of the rest.   It was delightful, and a great pleasure to hear.  And, of course, there is the famous wedding march.  Rather odd to hear this played in a concert!   The conductor, Ivan Fischer, placed all the members of the chorus seated, interspersed within the orchestra.  It seemed to work well.