Friday night’s programme of Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No. 6 and the Strauss Horn Concerto No. 2 with Mees Vos, solo horn player of the Phion Orchestra, was a clever choice for this opening concert of the season in Enschede. Coupled with the return of Kahchun Wong, a conductor who has experienced a dramatic rise in the past year, meant that expectations were high.
Strauss Horn Concerto No. 2
Mees Vos quickly settled into his stride and gave an assured reading of Strauss Horn Concerto No. 2, one of the most difficult in the repertoire. Using the generous acoustics of the hall to the full, his sound echoed round the Muziekcentrum. As the lesser-known of the two Strauss horn concertos, this work can sometimes be a hard-sell to an audience, but this was not the case tonight. Vos displayed wonderful agility and lyricism in his playing. In a nice touch, he turned to face the orchestra as the woodwind soloists took the reins.
Beautifully controlled playing, especially in the high and quieter moments, soared over the rich orchestral texture. The last movement – an astounding feat of technical prowess – was delivered with aplomb, before time for quieter melancholic reflection moved us swiftly to the finish with the expected Straussian bravura. Vos is such a talented and humble musician – he appeared visibly touched by the very warm reception he received from the audience. His encore, an arrangement of Strauss’s Four Last Songs, No. 3 ‘Beim Schlafangehen’ for horn quintet showed a particularly sensitive side to his playing. Just beautiful.
Tchaikovsky Symphony No. 6 in B Minor
The focus now was on Phion and their guest conductor, Kahchun Wong. The evening had started with Wagner’s The Flying Dutchman, which at times lacked fluidity and a certain freedom of expression. However in complete contrast, the opening of Tchaikovsky’s Sixth Symphony was immensely assured. Conducting the symphony from memory, Kahchun Wong was a commanding presence on stage. We witnessed a precise and detailed reading of this amazing symphony, written at the very end of Tchaikovsky’s life. This was most definitely Wong’s interpretation. The immense climax in the first movement had gravitas, power, and emotion as he made us wait for those all-important moments as if hearing them for the first time. An incredibly clean upper strings opening to the tricky third movement prompted an approving smile from Wong. He was clearly enjoying himself.
Without a doubt, Wong is every brass player and percussionists dream conductor. Rarely do we hear a bass drum played with quite such conviction. Thundering its way through the third movement, aided by lower brass and double basses as the trumpets and horns vied to see who could create the most dramatic and exhilarating swells, the bass drum was something to behold. The audience were on the edge of their seats!
With barely a moment to take a breath, we descended into the intense pathos of the final movement, one so associated with the end of life and the sorrow. Wong created such majesty in these long, sumptuous phrases, I dare not take a breath. Dramatic accelerandos pushing the music ever forward gave momentary respite before we were cast down into the depths, and an acceptance of fate.
The music on stage tonight was truly glorious. What a magnificent opening to the season.
Reviewed at the Wilminktheater en Muziekcentrum, Enschede on Friday 22nd September, 2023
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