The Hallé at the Butterworth Hall, Warwick Arts Centre, Friday 10 May 2024

It was no surprise the Butterworth Hall was pretty full with Sir Stephen Hough and Sir Mark Elder - “two colossuses of the classical musical world” - combining last Friday night for a Hallé concert on their short tour to Bristol's Beacon, Basingstoke's Anvil and Warwick's Butterworth.

Sir Stephen first played with the orchestra at the age of 12; he remains as busy as ever, aiming to perform over 80 concerts during this 2024/25 season.  In contrast, 2024 will be Sir Mark’s celebratory season reaching its finale next month at the Bridgewater Hall in Manchester when he relinquishes the role of Musical Director to assume the new role of Conductor Emeritus. Sir Stephen, in paying tribute to Sir Mark, asserts, “his efforts have lifted live music in Manchester during his twenty plus years in charge”.

Brahms’  Piano Concerto No. 1 is the work of a young man, not the long-bearded old man usually shown in images. Hearing that his great friend, Robert Schumann, had attempted suicide, Brahms composed a work full of anguished emotions, a work of 50 minutes which is a “symphony with the piano”  A daring first movement begins a work which moves from darkness to light by the third movement.  Hough’s performance was a mature interpretation of a surprisingly mature work by the young Brahms. Dramatic timpani playing opened the work after which Hough sailed through the technical difficulties of the many arpeggiated chords and trills before developing an explosive coda in the last movement. What a treat to witness a remarkable collaboration of two most experienced and skilled practioners.

Butterworth’s heartfelt orchestral rhapsody, A Shropshire Lad, an epilogue to the songs of A E Houseman, and Elgar’s Variations on an Original Theme (Enigma), a friendship inspired composition took over in the second half of the evening. The success of the work permitted Elgar  to leave his choral society writing to move to writing symphonies and other great works.  With enhanced violin desks and percussion, Elder delivered one of the most elegant, sometimes fragile, at times an almost  brittle pianissimo performance with players responding to Elder’s clear directions.  Four curtain calls later the Butterworth Hall audience allowed the colossuses to return to Manchester.