Yesterday’s rehearsal took place without the full orchestra. One second violin is ill and will not be present at the concert; the second bassoon and the principal double bass were absent due to work commitments. Situations like these are not unusual at this stage.

When we arrived at the church, the heating system was not working and the temperature was rather low. Before starting, a practical issue had to be solved: the timpani tuning key had been misplaced, and I had to improvise in order to tune the two available timpani properly (the third timpano will arrive only on the day of the concert).

We began with Mendelssohn, working with the soloist Maria Luce De Ruvo on many ensemble details. In particular, we focused on the transitions between movements and on the tempo changes at the end of the first movement, which are especially tricky in this concerto.

We then moved on to Prokofiev, which remains the most demanding piece for everyone: the highly virtuosic opening of the first movement for the strings, and the final movement, a fast-paced run full of technical and ensemble challenges.

After the break we played the full dress rehearsal, without interruptions and in the final concert order: Schubert, Mendelssohn, Prokofiev.
Schubert flowed naturally. Mendelssohn felt a little more tired, with a few small ensemble issues with the soloist in the first movement, but we truly appreciated and enjoyed the beautiful, deeply moving second movement. Prokofiev went well, considering the complexity of the score.

A few things still need to be adjusted quickly in the final run-through before the concert. Overall, it was an intense and productive day of work. Tiring, certainly, but now it is time to rest: today we pause, and tomorrow there will be only a short final adjustment before the concert. We will be fresh and ready.