Post by Owen Y on Aug 20, 2019 22:50:23 GMT 12
A brief report on the Sat 17 Aug concert in Auckalnd in which the NZSO played Beethoven's 4th & 5th Symphonies. The NZSO under Edo de Waart are touring a complete Beethoven Symphony cycle over 4 nights in each of Wellington & Auckland. All 9 Symphonies - 1/2/3, 4/5, 6/7 & 8/9. As Citroen mentioned, the 8th & 9th were sold out early but for the 4th & 5th we managed to get decent Row G Stall seats. The advantage of low level Stalls seats (over upstairs Circle seating) in the Ak Town Hall, is that bass power & clarity is excellent from the cellos & (6) basses, but I feel that the strings upper range loses some top end sheen compared with upper floor seating. I also prefer the view of the whole orchestra's instrumentalists from above - RHS Circle is my preference to best hear the first violins. The NZSO is a fine orchestra, the unison playing tight & the bigger orchestra (with extra horns) for the 5th, especially satisfying. (Ovation at the end of the evening.)
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Post by Owen Y on Aug 20, 2019 23:01:00 GMT 12
I had forgotten how beautiful the 2nd movement of the 5th is, especially the opening led by the cellos:
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Post by colinf on Aug 21, 2019 1:26:46 GMT 12
Great, I would love to have seen that. I always enjoyed the NZSO in Wellington. Also, Orchestra Wellington. Last time I heard the NZSO in Auckland I was struck by how distant you can be from the action in the circle. I’d possibly prefer the stalls. I’ve been attending concerts at Cadogan Hall in London, a similar bathtub shape to the Auckland Town Hall.
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Post by Owen Y on Aug 21, 2019 10:18:13 GMT 12
Yes, the Ak Town Hall is classic 'shoebox' shape, but with quite deep side balconies. Oh, another thing of note - the NZSO was set up in a 'classic' symmetrical layout, with the violins 'split' symmetrically L & R facing each other, rather than the 'modern' layout with 1st & 2nd violins grouped on the L, violas/cellos middle-right & basses on the R. There are pros & cons & reasons for the conductor's preference - eg. the particular composition, interplay of violin sections, etc.
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Post by Citroen on Aug 21, 2019 17:24:34 GMT 12
Not that I've been to many orchestral performances in the Town Hall, but the ones I have I've enjoyed about 1/3 the way from front ground floor the best.
Followed by mid back balcony. Great overview, symmetrically balanced sonically and visually.
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Post by colinf on Aug 21, 2019 23:26:11 GMT 12
Yes, the Ak Town Hall is classic 'shoebox' shape, but with quite deep side balconies. Oh, another thing of note - the NZSO was set up in a 'classic' symmetrical layout, with the violins 'split' symmetrically L & R facing each other, rather than the 'modern' layout with 1st & 2nd violins grouped on the L, violas/cellos middle-right & basses on the R. There are pros & cons & reasons for the conductor's preference - eg. the particular composition, interplay of violin sections, etc. I found this on the Classic FM (UK digital station) website about the placement of sections of the orchestra. “How come the flutes are always hidden behind the violins? And why can’t the tubas sit right next to the conductor and soak up a bit of the orchestral limelight which is totally snapped up by the strings anyway? When we think of the ‘traditional’ layout of an orchestra, we think of the violins directly to the left of the conductor and the violas in the centre, with the woodwind and then the percussion behind them. Then, the cellos and double basses are usually placed to the right of the conductor, with the brass section behind them. Loud wind together at the back, quieter strings together at the front – seems logical, right? Well, until around 100 years ago, this format didn’t exist. In fact, the second violins used to be seated opposite the first violins, where the cellos normally are. This seating plan helped support the ‘antiphonal’ – or conversational – effect in the strings, which 18th and 19th-century composers like Mozart, Elgar and Mahler often wrote into their music. But then in the early-mid 20th century, Leopold Stokowski came along and changed the game. Best known for conducting the Philadelphia Orchestra, Stokowski thought the previous layout didn’t provide the best sound projection, so he radically experimented with different seating plans. “On one occasion, he horrified Philadelphians by placing the winds and brass in front of the strings,” says Courtney Lewis, music director of the Jacksonville Symphony Orchestra. “The board was outraged, arguing that the winds ‘weren’t busy enough to put on a good show.’ “But in the 1920s he made one change that stuck: he arranged the strings from high to low, left to right, arguing that placing all the violins together helped the musicians to hear one another better. The ‘Stokowski Shift’, as it became known, was adopted by orchestras all over America.” With regard to volume, it makes sense to put all the violins together at the front. An orchestra has 20 violins and two tubas because tubas are a lot louder than violins – so with the same logic, violins should also be put at the front so they can be heard. There’s also something to be said for the visual beauty of putting violins at the front. The sweeping motion of twenty violin bows moving together in unison is rather pretty – and you could argue it would be a shame to change that. But after years of watching pretty unified violins, is it time conductors channelled their inner Stokowski, and changed up the seating plan again? Then, perhaps, the tubas could finally enjoy some time in the spotlight. Just don’t forget to bring your earplugs…”
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Post by Owen Y on Aug 22, 2019 10:14:21 GMT 12
Haha I hadn't heard the argument of Tubas having less limelight  I think that the woodwinds get a raw deal, the oboes in particular are hard to see, buried behind - at least the brightly shining metal flutes are held high & the bassoons are tall! This is mainly so in a multi-use hall like the Ak Town Hall with a flat stage (& for stalls seating) - the dedicated great concert halls most often have a tiered stage & the rearward instrumentalists are much more visible. Yes, the shift to all violins on one side, seems to be attributed to Stokowski in the 1920s & this 'American' layout is common nowadays it seems (depending on the music being played). Another point that I've heard made, is that, when the 2nd violins are split off to the RHS, those violins tend to be held facing (with their F-holes radiating toward) the rear of the stage, so those strings will sound less 'sharp' in tone - which actually can be useful with certain compositions (as mentioned above). Lots of things to observe when you next attend an orchestral concert 
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Post by colinf on Aug 22, 2019 23:06:36 GMT 12
Perhaps the conductor could be on stage right at the front corner, so that all the violins face the same way across the stage? Also, some of the quieter woodwinds like flutes and oboes could be interspersed with the violins at the front. It might look a bit odd though. But I agree the tiered seating arrangements have made things better in the dedicated halls. Maybe the second violins and violas could be slightly elevated behind the firsts in a Stokowski arrangement. The woodwinds would be higher than the second violins. It was good for me being a second violin player in the school orchestra. The audience could hear less of our questionable intonation!
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