★★★★★
When the dynamic Maxim Emelyanychev conducts, the platform needs to be cleared for action. Equipped with nimble patent-leather shoes, he needs room to sway, to jump, to flex his knees, to fling out an arm, massage each bar with flickering fingers. All this is accompanied by the smile of a child delighted to be alive.
He deserved to be extra happy on Sunday. His two years as principal conductor of the Scottish Chamber Orchestra have mostly been lived under the virus’s lock and key. But here they were in public in London, strutting their stuff in repertoire perfect for showing their strengths: the last three symphonies of Mozart, easily grouped as a trio on recordings, but never before programmed together at the Proms.
Right from the start, with No 39, we knew we were in for a wonderful time. Spry rhythms, plenty of punch: here was the influence of the period instrument manner, underlined by the fruity hues of two valveless horns and strings unburdened by vibrato. Platform energy reached its peak in the teeming counterpoint of the Jupiter symphony’s fugal finale, briefly visited as an encore.
Interpretation and musicianship, though, were even better during the slow movements of all three symphonies. Strings relaxed into nonchalant, flowing, lyrical pianissimos, partnered by wind playing of poise and simplicity, cut free from tricks and baubles. The andante of No 40 was particularly striking for its sustained mood of dappled reverie; although throughout the concert every movement showed the results of scrupulous care, with speed, dynamics and phrasing inflections tightly controlled, yet without any sense of being the result of micromanaging or a military drill.
How refreshing it was, as well, to focus on just one composer, rather than coping with the usual Prom leapfrogging and ticking of boxes. Not every composer would benefit from such prolonged exposure; not even Mozart, in some early works. But only heaven awaits when it’s a matter of the last three symphonies, written in 1788 in six blazing weeks, and when Emelyanychev and his Scottish ensemble are so obviously joined at the hips, the knees, the mind and heart.
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