Review: Moscow State Chamber Choir & Chamber Orchestra Moscow Soloists

The abovementioned concert, held on 12 June, was only 'alright' to me.

The programme was rather heavy, with Stravinsky's Concerto in D for strings and Brahms' Adagio in B minor from Op 115. The concerto was executed decently, but the motifs and gestures of the phrases were not always articulated well. It was, at least to me, obvious that the instruments were not tuned properly prior to the performance, too. Either that, or the intonation is not always spot-on. I know it's ironic that one would comment that a Stravinsky's piece is played out of tune, but I think it really was.

And I was proven right, when I heard the Adagio. Some notes of the scale were tuned too high or low for the chords to lock totally. Still, the Adagio was performed better than the concerto. Nicely shaped, lyrical and pleasing. Yuri Bashmet, the soloist on the viola, was rather musical. However, he was sometimes not audible against the accompaniment. Perhaps that was because his parts were often in the mid-register, and that he just blended in too well with the rest in timbre. Although I could hear he played his parts denser in quality whenever he crossed downwards into the midst of the accompaniment, I sometimes confuse his part with the other violists or cellists. The work was originally to be for a clarinet soloist, by the way.

Takemitsu's Three Film Scores for strings was more palatable than the previous programmes. Although Music of Training and Rest was played with appropriate lightness, the jazz piece was not played like a jazz piece. Honestly, I don't remember much about the other two pieces, Funeral Music and Waltz from Face of Arthur, now that the concert is long over, but I do know that they were decent, just not spectacular.

I liked the soprano soloist in Mozart's Exsultate, jubilate (K165). A pity that the audience didn't seem to enjoy the piece as much as the rest, judging wholly on the volume of applause given. She was very tasteful in the passages, and the cadenza was, although not mind-blowingly amazing, very florid, in style with the rest of the work, and exhibited her vocal prowess. Lovely.

Schubert's Mass No. 2 in G major for mixed chorus and strings was up to standard, too. The chorus was brilliantly shimmering throughout the work, although in a tad destructive manner as well. Vibrato sounds good, but when 40-odd choristers sing together with soloist voices, harmonies become vague and the soundscape becomes too thick and opaque. Perhaps the intended effect was to imitate a large chorus sound, which worked out perfectly. Thankfully the Mass was entirely homophonic, so the opacity of the sound did not disturb the melody-accompaniment balance. The soloists were all good - I liked the tenor's voice. Very clear and bright. The soprano solo was slightly operatic and off-tune, though.

The encore pieces, performed by the chamber orchestra and Yuri Bashmet, were well-played, I must say. It was just that most of the programme was either dark or executed heavily, such that the encore pieces felt coherent and did not evoke any new sensations.

Overall, the concert was rather disappointing as I had expected top-notch quality from the state's choir and more so, the chamber orchestra. Punctuating the programme with one or two short light works, especially after Stravinsky, would have made the slow, heavy parts of the programme more listenable. Also, the choir could have been featured more and sung a piece which contrasts with Schubert's Mass. That could have possibly made the second half a joy to hear, especially after the fantastic start with Mozart's motet.

Personal score: 6/10