A Royal Orchestra

Her Late Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, after having completed her morning regal duties of petting the corgis and getting someone to make her a cucumber sandwich, decided to award the Scottish National Orchestra royal patronage in her Silver Jubilee year. Whilst from that point the orchestra became ‘royal,’ various events cemented its status, such as a hip new name change to the Royal Scottish National Orchestra, or the RSNO (1991) and its inclusion into Scotland’s Big Five (2007). Should we, humble subjects of Fife, show deference to this Royal Orchestra or continue plugging into Drake when we fancy ‘a bit of Spotify?’ My proposal to you, fellow humble subject of Fife, is that you should try out ‘a bit of classical music’ this year.

I have been down to the Usher Hall in Edinburgh a few times now since arriving in St Andrews, and I can tell you there is no greater feeling than sitting in the warmly cushioned seats of this fabulous concert hall. Bizarrely, this is the same hall in which the 1986 Commonwealth Games boxing was hosted. But the only punches being landed in the hall on the night of 14 February were punches to the heart. Musical pangs tugged at the chords of our hearts as the aching beauty of Tchaikovsky’s Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture reverberated through the hall. The programmers had much fun in making this performance a sort of Valentine’s-themed event, but it wasn’t only new young couples that filled the hall as touchingly, I saw many a grey-haired couple leaning on each other’s shoulders. Even if they were falling asleep, Cupid’s trail was very much present that evening.

So why do I urge you, humble subject of Fife (ok, sorry — I’ll stop now), to experience the same thing at the RSNO? Music is not only great at making us feel love — although there was something truly captivating about that night — but also a plethora of other emotions. As Tolstoy once said, “music is the shorthand of emotion.” And, yes, it sounds somewhat clichéd, but the pathetic, cathartic, visceral power of a piece of classical music is what makes it so extraordinary. I also remember my visit to Mahler’s First Symphony and Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto in December, heralded as the RSNO’s “best concert of the year!” It might have been one of the best concerts I have ever heard. In Mahler 1, I was in awe at the warmth of the strings and the dynamic of the orchestra, not forgetting the fulminating percussion. The Franco-Serbian violinist, Nemanja Radulovic, showed absolute command of his instrument in Tchaikovsky’s Violin Concerto, and his red cummerbund and impressive locks (that would tempt the eyes of Pope’s Baron even more than Belinda’s) added to his energetic performance. I will never understand how the critic Eduard Hanslick described the last movement as “odorously Russian!” following the piece’s premiere. The only odour I was smelling was that of the roses held by smug girlfriends in alternate seats across the concert hall.

Richard Urgell, Opera, 1922.

Now, you’re probably thinking, “Classical music concerts are for old, rich, and posh people.” But I promise you I’m not old. Concert halls love young people — they subsidise our tickets at £7 a person, and for brilliant seats too. Also, Edinburgh is just a free bus journey away (thank you SNP), so I can nip down in under two hours, spending not even a tenner on an unforgettable evening of symphonic magic. I could almost guarantee you’d be hard pushed to find anything else quite as fulfilling and enchanting for £7 these days!

And whilst we’ve all listened to a bit of classical music to help energise our revision sessions, or even to help us fall asleep, nothing beats seeing it live. You become part of a listening experience that cannot be replicated; it only happens at that moment in time. The entire room fills with the sounds of the orchestra, and you can feel the vibrations of the instruments. 

So, what’s to lose in going just once to try it out? The answer: nothing. Nietzsche took it even further and said that “without music, life would be a mistake.” So don’t make a mistake and get yourself to a concert hall this year. Better still, a Royal Orchestra.

Image from Wikimedia Commons