I was really looking forward to last night's JPO performance, as it was going to feature the full recital of Mozart's Mass. It's nothing to do with the religious nature of the work - just enjoy the combination of symphony and choral. But this piece was cancelled, as the choir was apparently not ready; and will be performed next year instead (perhaps the pre-Easter show?)
While that was disappointing, the program was still briliant. It started with a short piece by Beethoven (Coriolan overture, op.62); followed by Charles Ives' The Unanswered Question - which I thought was just absolutely brilliant - not only the music, but the performance itself. The conductor, Bernhard Gueller, gave a short talk on the piece as well as a bit of background on the composer - which definitely shed some light on a very different piece.
The first half rounded off with Barber's Adagio for strings; which is instantly recognisable for most movie watchers as the theme tune from the movie Platoon. It is beautiful, and was superbly played by the JPO.
The full symphony was Schubert's 9th Symphony, which was interesting, but like the other pieces of the evening seemingly very different to other symphonies. It was a pity that the concert was not well attended - it was one of the best I have attended.
