According to Michael Kennedy, Vaughan Williams's The Lark Ascending "captures the idyllic mood of a pre-1914 England, perhaps a pastoral Arcadia which never existed except in the imaginations of composer-poets". That may be so, but one cannot complain when the Arcadian England is as beautiful as Mark Elder, violinist Lyn Fletcher and the Hallé Orchestra serenely demonstrated here.
Fletcher's unaccompanied violin solo began the piece with piercing sweetness. The Hallé's strings were soft, yet had a refined presence. Elder paced it beautifully, allowing it to glow with the perfect mixture of nostalgia and nature. Yet this near-ideal view of Vaughan Williams's pastoral was ruined by the plethora of coughs resounding in the cruel acoustic of the Bridgewater Hall.
It is a shame that Borodin left so few finished works. His Second Symphony, still in proof stage at his death in 1887, was given a rare outing by the Hallé. From the opening bars, it was clear that the piece would be taken at full throttle. Yet there were sensitive moments. The Allegro was brimming with throaty brass and quicksilver strings. The subsequent Prestissimo danced, and the Andante, featuring horn melodies and harp accompaniment, was lovely. In the final Allegro, Elder encouraged a jazzy inflection that brought out Borodin's modernity and inventiveness.
Chausson's Poème for solo violin and orchestra is an abstract piece that was inspired by a tale about a violinist with magical powers. Fletcher was outstanding, alternating between impressionist and Gypsy. Elder moulded an enigmatically evocative climax, but this piece, like The Lark Ascending, was also badly disrupted by audience participation.
Debussy's La Mer is the seminal example of French musical impressionism, yet here, in comparison with the preceding Chausson, it was notably episodic, livelier and more diverting. Elder produced a contoured, flowing performance that seemed to present a perfectly coherent structure. The most vital moods of Debussy's score were expressed, including the cinematic sunrise, the unpredictable nature of the waves and the blaze of light in the tone poem's climax.
