A long and proud history can be a mixed blessing for an orchestra, raising expectations that are sometimes impossible to meet.
Few can match the illustrious history of the Staatskapelle, founded in 1548 and counting Weber and Wagner among its former music directors.
The achievements of living memory are the only ones against which any orchestra can be measured. On this European tour under guest conductor Christoph Eschenbach, the Dresden is flying the flag for the core values of the German orchestral tradition. It was ever thus.
At this concert there was an odd disposition of players, with everyone bar violas and second violins ranged more or less to the conductor's left. In the perfect acoustic space of St David's Hall, this created an imbalance.
Even so, the performance of the Brahms First Symphony had every hallmark of the tradition the orchestra serves in displaying richness, depth and sturdy structure without much interpretative questioning.
Eschenbach, ever willing to give soloists their due, must have realised that it was only for exceptional team-playing. In fact, the swell and surge of the string section almost made the brass and woodwind sound subdued.
The orchestra seemed magically to hold back for soloist Leonard Elschenbroich to explore the range of possibilities which Tchaikovsky wrote for the cello in the Rococo Variations, and it enhanced his assumption of the melancholic without making it morose.
Schumann’s little-heard overture The Bride of Messina was an odd choice and a missed opportunity. A Weber or Wagner overture might have been in order. We don’t see this orchestra all that often.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereComments are closed on this article