May the PRSO endure and continue…

Mr. Baborák, the piece is from 1951. At that time avant-garde composers like Cage, Ligeti and Boulez were influencing developments in the world of music, whereas Gliere composed a concerto rooted in the Romantic tradition. Despite occasional sneers at the prettiness or sentimentality of the piece, horn players continue to perform it with pleasure. How would you describe its qualities to listeners?

Reinhold Gliere really didn’t succumb to those avant-garde trends. And it wasn’t just him. For instance Richard Strauss, another distinctive composer of the horn repertoire and more, also maintained his own style. Fortunately it doesn’t apply in music that what is regarded by a small group of senior critics as outmoded when it comes out won’t be played and popular in the future.

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If Rachmaninoff, Khachaturian or Prokofiev had written concertos for French horn, it would have been harder for Gliere, but as it is he has no competition. The key thing is whether the music imparts something to you, whether you enjoy it and whether it’s good to listen to. If anybody scoffs at it, they should first look at themselves and their own art in the mirror.

Do you recall how your first public performance of Gliere’s concerto went?

The first time it seemed to me that it wasn’t possible to play it to the end.

And which performance has been the most memorable?

Definitely my three “farewell” concerts with the Berlin Philharmonic. But also perhaps a performance in Kiev, where Gliere comes from and where he is regarded as a Ukrainian composer. The concerts with Mr. Ashkenazy and the NHK in Tokyo were marvellous.

What projects planned for the near future are currently keeping you busy and giving you pleasure?

There are lots of them but I’m most looking forward to the projects of the Baborak Ensemble, for which I have more time and energy than when I was employed in an orchestra. And we’re preparing Mozart’s Requiem and Beethoven symphonies with the Czech Sinfonietta. They’re also big, joyful affairs.

Your performance today will close another Prague Radio Symphony Orchestra season. The next will be a jubilee season, as the orchestra will be celebrating its 90th birthday. You have rich experience with first-rate ensembles. What do you regard as the core values that need to be cultivated in really good orchestras?

First and foremost there has to be a good team, the personality of the principal conductor, astute management.

What would you wish the PRSO?

I wish the musicians good working conditions, high-quality instruments and scores and high pay. And that they don’t have to play pieces they don’t enjoy. From what I have observed, the PRSO has gone through great changes. My impression is that it’s on the up, so simply put: May it endure and continue.

Are you thinking about any further joint projects?

Yes. For now it’s secret and I don’t know if the plans will work out, but I’ll divulge them: It should be the premiere of Ondřej Brousek’s Second Symphony “On the Wings of Glory” for French horn, piano and orchestra, and the English composer Ethel Smyth’s Double Concerto for violin and French horn. So we’ll see.