Page 113 - FINAL_CBSO Media Highlights - Sept 2021 - Jan 2022_Neat

While the sheer scale of the Saint-Saëns, bringing the evening to an end, was enormous, it was as
nothing compared to the performance of Tchaikovsky’s 1812 Overture that opened the concert.
Famously regarded by the composer as rather trivial, this assessment was turned on its head in a
rendition of the piece that returned to the 1960s experiments of Karajan, who used voices to sing the
opening section of the work, and Igor Buketoff, who also used them to reinforce the nationalistic ending.
It could have been so crass and overblown – yet it was nothing of the kind. On the contrary, here was
that most rare of things: one of the most famous pieces of music ever composed, made to sound with all
the impetus and edge of a world première. Yamada went further, teasing out countermelodies often
missed in the urge to focus on the big tunes. More than a mere crowd-pleaser, it was a jaw-dropping
display of joy, confidence and triumph that bodes enormously well for Yamada’s future with the
orchestra.

****