Salonen/Bullock; Stucky, Britten, Ravel

Esa-Pekka Salonen

Photo: Minna Hatinen, courtesy of San Francisco Symphony

(Get used to seeing this photo a lot)

Last week's SFS program, with MDD Esa-Pekka Salonen and soprano Julia Bullock, was wonderful: 

• Stucky, Funeral Music for Queen Mary, after Purcell; 
• Britten, Les Illuminations 
• Ravel, Three songs to texts by Mallarme and Mother Goose Suite (Ma Mere l'lye)

The first thing I have to say is that I have never much cared for Mother Goose, but apparently it was because I'd never heard Salonen conduct it. This was utterly beguiling from beginning to end. Beyond a doubt, it helped that I was sitting in Row J; the last time I heard it at Davies I was in the first tier even though I was reviewing. That was in 2006; the conductor was Leonard Slatkin, and he didn't go a great job with anything on the program, including a weirdly dull Pictures at an Exhibition.

The Stucky is a terrific piece, true to the Purcell but also unusually orchestrated, winds and brass plus piano and harp. The Britten was fantastic, so very beautifully sung by Julia Bullock. Once again I could only marvel at the variety and brilliance of Britten's string writing. Bullock is one of E-PS's "creative partners", so I am looking forward to hearing her regularly in the next few years. 

The Ravel/Mallarmé was completely new to me and I liked it a lot. It's really a chamber piece, for piano, string quartet, flute, piccolo, and some clarinets (Carey Bell and Jerome Simas were both up there, with Simas juggling three instruments.)

Joshua Kosman has a much longer review and I agree with him 100% except that I have always loved Les Illuminations and its gnomic text.