Concerto

Press and Program Notes

Concerto was premiered by the BBC Symphony Orchestra with Paul Watkins on cello and David Robertson conducting, at the BBC Proms, on August 12, 2001, at the Royal Albert Hall.

The Independent (London, UK)
Annette Morreau

"[Picker's] moving and attractive Cello Concerto, a Prom's commission receiving its world premiere, is the first major orchestral work by this gifted American composer to be heard in the UK. Picker has been written about in this country on account of his staged operas, so it comes as little surprise that his cello concerto should have found inspiration from the written word. Of the four movements, Picker regards the first and last as songs without words. Words, however, are intimately associated: the solo cello line of the first movement follows closely the rhythm of ee cummings' not even the rain, as Paul Watkins demonstrated in a particularly delightful pre-concert talk between soloist and composer. The two inner movements are inspired by the shortest of poems by Quasimodo.

"Picker has reworked an earlier suite for cello and piano giving it a new shape and blessing it with fine instrumental colouring that never swamps the soloist. Picker describes himself sardonically as a "collapsed 12-tone composer" and indeed the work is rooted in tonality beginning almost where Elgar left off. In its first and last movements, Picker preserves an Elgarian sense of melancholy, opting for broad lyricism which allows the soloist ample room to do what the cello does best: to sing. Contrast is provided by a bouncy, syncopated Stravinskian-influenced second movement where the soloist hardly draws breath. Watkins excelled, tenderly nurturing the lyricism yet powerful in virtuosic moments of double-stopping and passage work. It appears grateful to play; a valuable addition to the cello repertoire."

The Times (London, UK)
Hillary Finch

"After the interval, a taste of the post-avant-garde in the world premiere of Tobias Picker's Cello Concerto. The BBC had commissioned an American composer whose lyrical facility and meticulous craft ensure there is never a wasted or worn note to be heard. The work was played with affectionate understanding by Paul Watkins. Picker's style fuses long-limbed melody with rigorous contrapuntal repartee: sometimes Stravinsky's spirit is fleetingly honoured, sometimes that of Elgar."

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