|
Uniquely Memorable
The Kronos Quartet at the BBC Proms,
heard by MALCOLM MILLER
To mark forty years as one of the preeminent ensembles of the world of contemporary music, the Kronos Quartet made a welcome debut at the BBC Proms on 24 July 2012, eliciting stirring enthusiasm from the sizeable late-night audience scattered around the hall. During four decades, their sheer quantity of recordings and commissions is astonishing, and the programme provided both a retrospective and a taste for the new, with a BBC commission world premiere as well as several proms premieres. Chief amongst the Kronos' qualities is the eclectic nature of their repertoire and style of performance, hence its post-modern appeal, with something for everyone. The evening launched with a startling electronic middle-eastern rock beat underpinning an arrangement (by Jacob Garchik) of Syrian singer songwriter Omar Souleyman's 'I'll Prevent the Hunters from Hunting You' (La sidounak sayyada)...
Copyright © 25 July 2012
Malcolm Miller,
London UK
|
