RTE Concert Orchestra - Proinnsias O Duinn, conductor. November 5, 2014.

National Concert Hall, Dublin.  Stalls (Seat S25, E30).

Program - Mendelssohn's Elijah

Artists
Orla Boylan, soprano; Kate Allen, alto; Julian Hubbard, tenor; David Park, bass.
Our Lady's Choral Society
Galway Baroque Singers (Director: Audrey Corbett)
Wesley College Chamber Choir (Director: Helen Doyle)

Our car radio was tuned to RTE-Lyric while we were driving from Killarney to Dublin (by way of Rock of Cashel), and we heard the announcement that there was going to be a performance of Elijah tonight.  We were going to stay overnight at a hotel close to Dublin Airport to catch our flight the following day, and decided we could squeeze in another event before checking into our hotel.

Traffic into town was a bit congested, but with our GPS and Anne's constant reminder that we should keep to the left, we managed to get to the Concert Hall without too much difficulty.  Arriving at the time we did (around 5 pm), we found a few open spaces on the street, and we parked right across the street from the venue, having to feed the meter only E5.  Tickets were still available, and we decided not to get the senior discount this time.  We had enough time for coffee followed by a leisurely dinner.

They certainly had a lot of singers for this concert - easily over 200.  It's a combination of three different organizations.  The RTE Concert Orchestra is a different organization than the National Symphony Orchestra, the most obvious distinction is its smaller size.  "College" in Ireland refers to high school, and the 20 or so young girls mostly sang the part of angels.

We enjoyed this performance.  No doubt I didn't bring along the mind of a critic as a tourist, and no doubt the small concert hall helped tremendously with the acoustics, but the performers also did a great job.  Unfortunately the attendance wasn't that great; I estimate the hall was only about 60% full.

During the intermission I read up on my blog entry of the New York Philharmonic performance we saw several years ago.  I had no real recollection of that event, but the blog seems to indicate that we enjoyed it also.  I did remark the bass had some trouble at the beginning but came back strong after the intermission.  Tonight's bass had the reverse problem, he was a bit weaker during Act 2, it was still okay, though.

Park is Korean, did his training in Germany, and had a rather strong accent.  I had quite a bit of trouble following him - and I am glad we shelled out E5 again for a program which contains the libretto.  It makes me wonder if a native-speaking Italian would similarly cringe when an Italian opera is performed by non-native speakers.  The role of Elijah is quite demanding, and overall he did a great job.

The other soloists did well also.  The choirs did very well, convincingly portraying the roles of the masses and the angels. O Duinn demanded and got quite a bit of dynamics and precision from them, and in doing so delivered much of the drama of Elijah's story (or rather the several episodes chosen for this oratorio).

The role of the child looking for signs of rain was performed by the boy soprano Andrew Jones.  It must be exhilarating to be able to do that at such a young age.  He was understandingly shaking a bit, but delivered his lines clearly.

There was enthusiastic applause afterwards, and everyone got a bouquet.  We felt a sense of relief when someone finally gave Jones one; I thought he was ready to burst into tears.

With my getting to the wrong hotel, it was past midnight that we checked into our hotel room.  Nonetheless, I was glad we got a chance to go.