NSO's Chinese puzzles

THE National Symphony Orchestra heads off to the Far East today for a series of concerts as part of the Hong Kong Summer Festival, writes Michael Dervan. The Hong Kong visit is one of the fruits of RTE's association with the Naxos and Marco Polo labels, part of the Hong Kong based HNH group. The NSO will be giving no fewer than six concerts (five different programmes!) over seven nights between next Monday and Sunday, August 11th.

Control of artists and repertoire seems to have been firmly retained by non RTE sources, hardly surprising when the influence of Naxos/Marco Polo on the NSO's concert programming at home has reached alarming levels. In Hong Kong the NSO will introduce itself with two performances of a programme billed as "Eternal Love (Chinese Repertoire Night)". The soloist here is the busy Naxos/Marco Polo violinist Takako Nishizaki (wife of Naxos founder Klaus Heymann) and the conductor is Yu Long.

Strange as it may seem for the NSO to introduce itself abroad with a conductor it has never worked with before, the commitment to Long goes further, as is he also to conduct the orchestra in an evening of "Cinema Classics" (the sort of programme which, in Dublin, is usually the province of the RTECO). The remaining three programmes - Classical Programme (including Rodrigo's Concierto de Aroruez with guitarist Norbert Kraft), "Operatic Highlights", and "Symphonic Dances" are all to be given under Naxos/Marco Polo conductor Gerhard Markson. Could we imagine the Abbey embarking on a similarly prestigious tour without work by the artistic director, or, indeed, a Chinese national symphony orchestra coming to Dublin and giving us two whole nights of Irish airs?

The strangest element in all of this is, in fact, one of omission. Principal conductor Kasper de Roo is not appearing with the NSO on the first major international tour of his term with the orchestra. This fits into the downward spiral of his fortunes in Dublin. Naxos/Marco Polo have yet to show an interest in recording De Roo's work for issue on CD. He is no longer popular with the players the way he was before he took up his appointment. And, if audience levels are anything to judge by, he hasn't found great favour with the public either. With the 96/'97 concert season being the last of his current contract, it's hard to imagine that many of the musicians will be clamouring to have him kept on.