If you think you’ve never heard the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO), think again. Founded in 1932 by the caustic and quotable Sir Thomas Beecham, the LPO has embedded itself in popular culture as few other ensembles have, playing soundtracks for films such as the Lord of the Rings trilogy and Lawrence of Arabia, as well as video games, including Dragon Quest. They’ve backed the band Oasis and have even released tribute albums to Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin. Oh yes, and in 1973 they were the first Western orchestra to visit China, beating Philadelphia by around six months.
Yan Pascal Tortelier doesn’t share the household name status of many of his predecessors, but his LPO associations go way back. He began playing violin and piano at age four; ten years later, he won first prize for violin at the Paris Conservatoire and made his LPO debut the same year. He studied with the doyenne of music education Nadia Boulanger, a legendary French composer-conductor-teacher whose students have included Astor Piazzolla and Aaron Copland. Today, Tortelier serves as ‘Principal’, ‘Chief’, ‘Guest’, or ‘Principal Guest’ conductor in orchestras such as the BBC Philharmonic, the Sao Paolo and Pittsburg Symphony Orchestras, as well as collaborating with a who’s who of other ensembles. The LPO’s programme includes Mendelssohn’s ‘Ruy Bias’ and Beethoven’s ‘Symphony No. 7’ (Thur 5), followed the next day by Rachmaninov’s ‘Symphony No. 2’ (Fri 6).
Hailing from Chongqing, Chen Sa is known as one of Chinese piano’s ‘big three’. Back when Lang Lang and Yundi Li were battling for a market share, Chen emerged as the understated alternative, with her famously warm, liquid melodic line and her signature touch of class. Trained at the Shenzhen Arts School, Chen was only 16 when she medalled at the UK’s Leeds Piano Competition; her follow-up awards at both the Chopin and Van Cliburn competitions made her the only pianist in history to medal at the genre’s three most prestigious contests. More recently, the Polish government awarded her the ‘Chopin Art Passport’ for her dedication to the composer; she was also Gramophone magazine’s featured artist for its China launch and is Steinway’s only female musician.
Chen Sa’s new album features Greig’s ‘Piano Concerto’ and Rachmaninov’s ‘Piano Concerto No. 2’, however, her LPO programme consists of Tchaikovsky’s iconic ‘Piano Concerto No. 1’ (Thur 5) and Beethoven’s ‘Emperor Concerto’ (Fri 6), which she calls a revolutionary composition. ‘The first movement is such a grand form; the cadenzas are full of light and glorious depth. This compositional style had never been seen before,’ she says. ‘The second movement sounds like strings; the piano is weightless, tender and angelic before we hear Beethoven’s most sincere confession. The third movement is a burst of joy, with a typical Beethovenian leap of faith,’ she continues. ‘The three movements are based on three completely different dimensions.’
At a time when the idea of English music generated German guffaws, Sir Thomas Beecham wanted his homeland to be taken seriously. A self-taught conductor and impresario, Beecham was born into a wealthy family, but was later disinherited – and lost much of his personal fortune by programming controversial pieces and keeping music organisations alive during the First World War. While his LPO and Royal Philharmonic Orchestra survive today, Beecham also achieved immortality through his rapier wit, such as when he told a female cellist: ‘Madame, you have between your legs an instrument capable of giving pleasure to thousands, and all you can do is sit there and scratch it,’ He sadly died in 1961, but left behind a tremendous legacy that still ‘gives pleasure’ today.