Heat waves, farewells and turnips ‒ the BBC Symphony Orchestra in Bad Kissingen

The BBC Symphony Orchestra has been coming to Bad Kissingen practically every summer since 1998. It is an idyllic spa town in the Franconia region of northern Bavaria, where the good burghers of the surrounding areas come to take the waters and the Cure. I must be getting old because although I've been here a dozen times, I increasingly look forward to our visits here. 

Part of the reason is the air of relaxation amid the beautiful gardens, but also the venue, which is stunning. Built in 1913, the oak-panelled Regentenbau seats about 1000 people and has fine, warm acoustics. 

Particularly warm this year, for, like London, 'Bad K' (as we affectionately call the place) is experiencing a scorcher of a heat wave. The opening piece in the first concert happily reflects this as we start with Grieg's first Peer Gynt suite. Most people like to think of the opening 'Morning mood' as a snow-covered mountain scene, set amidst the Norwegian fjords, yet it actually depicts sunrise in the Sahara desert where the itinerant Peer Gynt has ended up. With the heat around 30 degrees at 8pm, we are undergoing our own desert ordeals as reeds dry out and fingerboards turn into lakes of perspiration. Someone comments that this is good training for the Proms, which will soon be upon us.

Another heroic piece next as the young Israeli pianist Igor Levit bounds on to the stage to tackle Beethoven's mighty 'Emperor' piano concerto. I'm glad I'm not a betting man as I would have lost money on his choice of encore: the recently-deceased Ronald Stevenson's Peter Grimes Fantasy, which Igor took care to explain to the audience in fluent German. The piece ends with him leaning inside the piano and literally plucking a few notes from the opera.

We use the interval to slake thirsts and remove our white jackets, tho' if anything, it is still warmer outside than in. Sometimes, in the face of adverse conditions, an orchestra can pull an exciting performance out of the bag. So it was with Beethoven's 4th Symphony which Sakari Oramo seemed to make fizz from start to finish. The good people of Bad K clamoured for more. Fortunately we had an Elgarian calling card in the form of the overture to his first Wand of Youth Suite. Seldom done these days but full of character and and just enough chutzpah to send the audience away into the balmy air on a high. There is a dinner for all at the beautiful Ratskeller restaurant, a converted Town Hall.



Unusually we have a free day to rehydrate. Some brave the temperatures and play a round of golf, some masochists go on long bike rides. I go in search of a turnip (more on that vegetable later...). At lunch somebody produces a copy of the local paper which has reviewed last night's concert, flatteringly calling it the highlight of the festival.

At 10 o'clock the next morning we find the hall in a state of considerable excitement as 600+ school children have arrived to watch the rehearsal. They are in luck as the ridiculously talented Alina Ibragimova kicks off the rehearsal with a nimble rendition of Mendelssohn's Violin Concerto. After the break we run through a couple of Mozart arias with the wonderful Korean soprano Sumi Hwang. Then it is time to say farewell to my desk-partner, the turnip-loving Carol Ella (above) who leaves the orchestra after 10 years. Speeches and presentations are made and then another valediction to the director of the festival, Dr Kari Kahl-Wolfsjäger.

The incredible weather continues, soaring to 35 degrees, and I spend the afternoon stripping off clothes to cool down and watching Wimbledon with German commentary. Later at the hall I realise that I have taken off too many clothes as I have no socks. At that precise moment our conductor opens wide his dressing room door and says hello. I seize the moment and ask if he has a spare pair of black socks. He has. Concert saved and attire all in place, we head out into the garden for an orchestra photograph. This is taken by one of our viola players, Nikos Zarb, who is a talented photographer (his pictures usually adorn my Blog posts, this being no exception) to boot!



The Meistersinger overture gets a rousing performance and by the end Wagner has transformed my fingerboard into the River Rhein (I know, that's a different opera..). No such problems for Alina Ibragimova as she breezes effortlessly through the Mendelssohn and delights with a Bach Gavotte encore.



Before the interval Sumi Hwang appears looking radiant in a mint julep dress and sings so beautifully it makes me want to hear her sing the whole of the Magic Flute.

Brahms's Second Symphony is such a sunny piece that it is a perfect choice for such an evening and it really goes down a treat. Sakari whips up a blistering Brahms Hungarian Dance as an encore and we descend on the Ratskeller once more for noch einmal ein Stein. Something tells me we'll be back soon.

The BBC Symphony Chorus and Orchestra and Sakari Oramo open the 121st season of Henry Wood Promenade Concerts on Friday 17th July. The programme includes music by Nielsen, Mozart, Sibelius, Walton, and the world premiere of Gary Carpenter's Dadaville.