Ogrintchouk, BBCSO, Bělohlávek, Barbican

Stravinsky, Prokofiev and even the squiggly new Dalbavie work fall flat

by Igor ToronyilalicFriday, 17 December 2010

Squiggled storyline from Laurence Sterne's 'The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy'

Everywhere I looked I saw children, some burying their heads in their mothers' chests, some doodling on programme notes. One was dancing to Prokofiev's Sixth Symphony. Ambitious. Last night's BBC Symphony Orchestra concert had been given over to family listening. My first thought was why? Stravinsky's fun but dry Dumbarton Oaks is hardly suitable. And Prokofiev's Sixth is psychologically X-rated when done right. Sandwiched between these two works, however, was, superficially, a perfect stocking filler: a new Oboe Concerto from accessible Spectralist Marc-André Dalbavie that sees the apotheosis of the humble squiggle.

The orchestra did a clean job but didn't seem confident enough to burn rubber with Stravinsky's impressive engine

Explore topics

Share this article

The future of Arts Journalism

You can stop theartsdesk.com closing!

We urgently need financing to survive. Our fundraising drive has thus far raised £33,000 but we need to reach £100,000 or we will be forced to close. Please contribute here: https://gofund.me/c3f6033d

And if you can forward this information to anyone who might assist, we’d be grateful.

Subscribe to theartsdesk.com

Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.

To take a subscription now simply click here.

And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?

more Classical music

Currie, Hallé, Wong, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - sparkle and intrigue Energy and excitement in MacMillan … and then a surprise

Rajakesar, Selaocoe, The Hermes Experiment, Wigmore Hall review - a joyful, fascinating laboratory of noise Celebrating the avant-garde through different cultures

Classical CDs: Vitamins, kings and magic spells A neglected ballet score, romantic piano concertos and contemporary British music

Kavakos, Philharmonia, Blomstedt, RFH review - a supreme valediction forbidding mourning Nonagenarian conductor provides the flow, his players the passion, in Mahler's Ninth

Perianes, Orchestre Symphonique de Montréal, Payare, Barbican review - elegance and drama but not enough bite Often dynamic Venezuelan conductor misses the darkness of the 'Symphonie fantastique'

La Serenissima, Wigmore Hall review - an Italian menu to savour Tasty Baroque discoveries, tastefully delivered

Roman Rabinovich, Wigmore Hall review - full tone in four styles Fascinating Haydn, Debussy and Schumann, odd Beethoven

Wyn, Dwyer, McAteer, RSNO & Choirs, Diakun, Usher Hall, Edinburgh review - ebullient but bitty ‘Carmina Burana’ is fun in parts, but Langer’s ‘Dong’ doesn’t flow

Gerhardt, BBC Philharmonic, Chauhan, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - from grief to peace Anna Clyne, Shostakovich and Richard Strauss tell us about loss, struggle and healing

Bach Brandenburg Concertos, OAE, QEH review - forever young Zest, dash and fun in rejuvenated favourites

First Person: Alec Frank-Gemmill on reasons for another recording of the Mozart horn concertos On ignoring the composer's 'Basta, basta!' above the part for the original soloist

Andrej Power, LSO, Mäkelä, Barbican review - singing, shrieking rites of darkness and light Radical masterpieces by Sibelius and Stravinsky have never sounded more extraordinary

Follow @theartsdesk