In my opinion Semyon Bychkov's innate musicality, knowledge of music and conducting technique place him among the greatest conductors, past and present. I first heard him when he conducted Boris Godunov at the Royal Opera House a few years ago. It was a wonderful performance which made me think that perhaps one needed to be Russian to do justice to Mussorgsky. A fortnight ago I was overjoyed by Bychkov's Lohengrin – again at the ROH – and it was clear that it was not only Russian repertoire which inspired him to great music making in the opera house. And now Bychkov's concert with the Chamber Orchestra of Europe showed me that whatever the genre or venue, his musical insight and skills of communication inevitably produce exceptional results.
Members of the orchestra responded splendidly to Bychkov's sensitive direction. I assume it helped that they played the programme four times in succession (on their Toulouse, Frankfurt, Paris and London tour). On the other hand, with a less able conductor, the fourth performance could have sounded jaded.
Ravel's Le tombeau de Couperin was an excellent choice for the first item: with its expressive nuances and playful rhythms, it coaxed the audience into a receptive mood. Bychkov's reading was elegant in beautifully flowing tempi. The wind section particularly excelled with virtuoso and tasteful solos in the second movement and full marks to the violins for echoing the oboe/flute dialogue motive so smoothly in the third.
Shostakovich's Concerto No.1 for piano, trumpet and strings showed Bychkov's sense of humour in abundance but, of course, the performance owed most to pianist Denis Matsuev and, in a slightly lesser role, to trumpet player Nicholas Thompson.
Matsuev was highly disciplined – I recall wild excesses in some other performances which I heard in the past – and Thompson excelled as chamber musician. Matsuev gave us two solo encores: Lyadov's lyrical Music Box – although I might have misheard the title – and what sounded like his own fun arrangement of a well-known tune from Grieg's Peer Gynt. So apart from virtuosity, discipline and lyricism, perhaps a touch of Lang Lang also contributes to Matsuev’s artistic personality.
Bychkov conducted Mendelssohn's Symphony No. 3 (Scottish) from memory. Before the concert I rated the composer high but, due to Bychkov's interpretation, after the concert I thought of Mendelssohn as one of the greatest composers. Bychkov and the COE created sharp contrasts between lyricism and drama, they portrayed minute details within the overall structure and presented exemplary ensemble playing. It is perhaps unfair to single out individual players in such a good orchestra but I feel compelled to mention oboe, flute and clarinet for their exquisite solos and ensemble work.
This concert made me happy. I shall treasure the memory for a long time.
By Agnes Kory
Photo Credits: Semyon Bychkov by Sheila Rock
Related articles:
Concert review: Chamber Orchestra of Europe at the Ether festival
Interview: We chat to Semyon Bychkov in April of this year
CD Review: The fifth installment of Semyon Bychkov's Shostakovich cycle
Opera Review: Bychkov's Lohengrin