It begins cinematically with enchanted shimmer, this sound has become so popular among many contemporary composers. But Tobias Broströms almost half an hour long ”Nigredo – the Dark night of the soul”, as in last Thursday, got its first performance in Malmö, is something now so rare that a dubble concerto for two trumpets. The aim here is to explore the soul’s dark night, with references to C G Jung’s analytical psychology, the alchemical urmateria and a poem by the Spanish 1500-talsmystikern John of the Cross. Broström has previously written a dubble concerto for two percussionists. But the ”Nigredo” is, of course, a sequel to the ten-year-old trumpetkonserten ”Lucernaris” written for Håkan Hardenberger and live-electronics.
Malmö’s own world-famous ”Håkan Bråkan” instead the company of the belgian trumpeter Jeroen Berwaerts. Initially, compliance with the two solostämmorna as shadows or echoes of each other. But in the other part becomes Hardenberger more of a trumpetstötande antagonist in relation to Berwaerts lyrical lines in a light impressionistic no man’s land that turns into a pepprande pas de deux. Timbral seen it will be a grand and very elegant music that, while never really dare to go deep. Broströms hallmark is otherwise a well-balanced orkesterbehandling, where even small, small improvisations on kalimba – tumpiano – can make themselves heard. And given Broströms own slagverksstudier, it is perhaps not so strange that just the rhythmic footwork makes the strongest impression. Both in the form of the minimalist triolmönster which often plant life between, inter alia, marimba and piano or harp, and a cleverly inserted slagverkstrio that for a moment, steals the show.
George Antheil, best known for his ”Ballet mécanique” with the sirens and flygplanspropellrar in the percussion instrument sections. Less boisterous, the short tone-poem ”Over the plains”, which provided the impetus for Thursday’s concert and looked out over the american plains in the adventurous Aaron Copland-spirit. The Malmö symphony orchestra has this season emerged as exceptionally modern. If you believe musikbloggen iMusikens fresh statistics is the MSO actually for a ”record share of new music” (composed after 1970) in comparison with the country’s other storstadsorkestrar. Moreover, according to the iMusiken (driven by Per-Åke Byström, previous repertoarräknenisse to the association Broom, Female Accumulation of Swedish Composers) up in the 20% – the entire 316 minutes – music composed by women. Evidence also suggests that Malmö is far from finished with his exciting process of change. But no abonnemangskonsert is complete without a classic celebrity. That conclusion took Malmösymfonikerna consequently, an Shostakovich’s politically-embossed symphony no 12 ”the year 1917”, on the theme of the Russian revolution. During the finn John Storgårds management – deserved rewarded with touché – tinkled the soviet imposed governing social realism with a much more personal tone of proud and work motvindsmusik.
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