David H Spence
This prom most essentially consisted of the diminution of two great musical masterpieces, to be cramped into a narrow mold or aesthetic to the liking of the composer conducting them. As auteur as I found Knussen here, the results were completely insipid. The Schoenberg frequently became very hard to follow, given that it was broken up into so many very small episodes, seldom any, at least until within the last piece, connecting with the rest. The brilliance of effects that Knussen generated was hardly ever in doubt, especially with upper winds, but this rendition of Opus 16 fed the lie very well that Schoenberg had no grasp of form or melodic line, as so much of the latter would get covered up by so much other activity about. It also unintentionally made self-parody out of several big rhetorical gestures, as seemingly disconnected from anything else - all in all, within as grotesque a disfiguration of this work as of a face in Edvard Munch. The highly nuanced, caressed opening of the third piece robbed this long moment of its frozen stillness. Did this music really have to wait ninety-seven years for unto us to be revealed so much seemingly unique color and nuance, as we heard here? Truth be told, the real way to hear the radicalism of Five Pieces, which still often sounds fresh today, is within the context of cogent musical forms. How would have the first Vienniese audience been so mortally offended otherwise, rather than just highly bemused or entertained?For Rite, we had probably as flat, neutered, two-dimensional an account of it I have heard yet, and probably the worst I have heard from an orchestra of true professional ability since Slatkin’s, or thirty years ago from New York, Mehta’s. What was attempted here at the outset seemed interesting, a Romantic view of the score and with great textual clarity, but all of it was robbed entirely of the pulsation that is second nature to this piece. Though loud where necessary, Knussen appeared so shy of the music’s quintessential primitivism. Untoward rubato and dovetailings brought to mind Stokowski, but whereas Stokowski’s Stravinsky was also really no longer the composer in mind, at least you were guaranteed brilliant orchestral results. Here, willfully misconstructed balances, ensemble problems, missed rhythms were legion, and in Danse sacrale (that started off so light to be almost silly), missed entrances, notes, and rests. Tempo contrast between Young Girls and Abduction Game was compromised. Dance of the Earth went by more quickly than the violins could play it. Switching of rhythmic emphasis during Glorification de l’elue was comically such that it would be for a dancer not sure of which part(s) to be gyrating; the infusion of a little shuffle into a breezy Spring Rounds was hardly less risible. The still new Henze piece, phantasmagorically the highlight of this prom (apart from Josefowicz’s playing of the Knussen), thanks only to Knussen once more, seemed a little devoid of form.

Chris Caryer
I have written this in the light of the events that took place two days later in the RAH. BBCSO take note!Although I'm not a fan of the Second Viennese School I was nevertheless prepared to listen to the Schoenberg with an impartial ear. It came across as an intense and thought-provoking set of pieces that commanded one's attention. I could be converted ...I must admit that, for the Violin Concerto, my attention was distracted by some home computer problems, but I was left with the impression that I blinked and had missed something although I knew not what.The Henze passed me without any recollection of the previous 15 minutes or so.The Rite just didn't do it for me; I had the impression that the conductor didn't seem to know how the piece should 'go' and that he and the orchestra would be happy to get to the pub asap. Although the orchestra played the notes they seemed not to have any musical sense of the event they were supposedly depicting. The piece was lacked any natural variations in tempi, was altogether hurried through and could not 'breathe' as a result. A very routine performance indeed!I am prompted to recall a season back in the mid 80s when, as a season ticket holder for the arena, I was aware of feeling among the Prommers that the orchestra had lost its way - until the late Gunther Wand took hold of it by the scruff of its neck and brought out a superb performance of a Bruckner symphony that left one wondering why they could not perform to this level all the time. The BBCSO is there to inspire and enlighten their audiences!

Guy Rickards
"James Reiss is correct in noting the echoing of the soundworld of the Schoenberg 5 Pieces in Henze's tone poem, but to call the latter 'wretchedly sprawling' is to misunderstand its structure. Read the Trakl poem again and re-listen to this fine late score, a model of lucidity, splendidly performed as was the rest of the Prom."

Joshua Penduck
I have to admit that I found the Knussen Violin Concerto shamelessly enjoyable! It's not often that you hear a piece of new music and think 'yes, that could remain in the repertoire for a very long time!' Also, I felt Knussen's handling of Schoenberg to be a delight, especially since all previous performances I have heard of it have tended to emphasise Modernist rather than Romantic tendencies - more please from Knussen!

James Reiss
Knussen got a warm reception-a much loved figure/shaker and mover on the music scene.The Violin Concerto is ravishingly scored but a bit inscrutable.The Henze was a wretchedly sprawling 15 minutes though it nicely echoed the soundworld of the opening piece in the programme.Rite of Spring was a well thought out performance which emphasized textural beauty as opposed to savage intensity.