Hervé Niquet’s period band performed this music as it was
intended, as entertainment. The raucous natural horns, though they may not have
always hit every note perfectly, as to be to be expected in live performances
with these old instruments, made a terrific sound. The period oboes blended
beautifully with recorders to give some sonorous sounds. A special mention must
be given to the large line up of natural trumpets that did a superb job.
The Music for the Royal Fireworks may not have had the line-up
of twenty four oboes that were used in the Kings Consort’s recreation of the
first performance in their Hyperion recording but, given that Handel wanted strings and the
King did not, this was a performance that Handel would have loved. www.hyperion-records.co.uk
Was it surprising that a French band seemed perfectly attuned to Handel’s music? Not at all, for though Britain adopted Handel with enthusiasm, he was of course originally German and travelled extensively in his youth.
The Royal Albert Hall provided a suitably large acoustic for
this essentially outdoor music. Such was the visual impact of this concert with
Hervé Niquet flamboyantly moving around the platform that I’m glad I was able
to both listen and see the performance and, switched through my amplifier to
use my Quad speakers, the sound was fabulous. No matter how good the sound at
home, I still wished I had been there for the live event.
You can still catch this concert on BBC iPlayer www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/b01lvcnl/BBC_Proms_2012_Season_Handels_Water_Music/
Last Night of the Proms 2012 with Nicola Benedetti, Joseph
Calleja and Team GB’s Olympic medallists
A Memorable Concert from Bernard Haitink and the Vienna
Philharmonic at the BBC Proms
BBC Prom - Max’s Ninth, fine Delius from Tasmin Little and
an Impressive Shostakovich Tenth from Vasily Petrenko
Subtle Saint-Saëns from Benjamin Grosvenor at the Proms
A Battlefield at the Proms
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