Proms 2019: Daniel Kidane – Woke (World Première)

by 5:4

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4 comments

Chris L September 18, 2019 • 13:50 - 13:50

i can’t remember a compositional ending ever sounding so completely false.

Pfft! That’s nothing! Try this for size…

https://youtu.be/3UQpE1EhQ24

I haven’t been able to listen to said piece fully more than once for that very reason. Well, that reason plus its more general sledgehammer awfulness, anyway.

5:4 September 18, 2019 • 13:54 - 13:54

Oh goodness, i forgot about that piece. i wrote about it for Bachtrack a couple of years ago (link); listening to that Symphony was one of the most infuriating experiences of my life. To be fair, it’s a posthumous completion, so it’s impossible to know how to distribute the blame between Górecki senior and junior.

David Breeze September 23, 2019 • 19:03 - 19:03

I think you underestimate Kidane’s piece. A lively and accessible start to the concert perfectly judged for the occasion. Rhythmic and harmonic interest was maintained throughout and it was not predictable. Classical Source’s review seems to agree.

5:4 September 23, 2019 • 19:39 - 19:39

Thanks for your comment, David. It’s not about underestimating, i believe i’ve simply sized it up for what it is: a perfunctory bit of party froth for the Last Night of the Proms. i didn’t claim it was unsuitable for that occasion (indeed, quite the opposite), simply that it’s pretty deplorable that Kidane should have given something so clichéd and predictable a title like ‘woke’, to imply it’s more than what it appears to be. Because it blatantly isn’t.

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