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                                    JOE DAVIES CONDUCTS MAHLER’S SYMPHONY OF A THOUSAND

                                                                        By Christopher Morley

 

Mahler’s Eighth Symphony, the “Symphony of a Thousand”, does not quite live up to its name. For its world premiere in Munich, in 1910 there were only around 400 people on the platform, performing under the composer’s baton. This monumental work has as its first part a blazing setting, written in three weeks, of the medieval hymn “Veni Creator Spiritus”, with the second part a visionary setting of the redemptive conclusion of Goethe’s Faust., Part II.

 

Whatever the numerical strength of the forces, Leamington Sinfonia gives the work’s Warwickshire premiere (Birmingham excepted) at Coventry Cathedral on May 16, joined by singers from Coventry Cathedral Chorus, Coventry Cathedral Choir, Daventry Choral Society, Divertimento, Warwick and Kenilworth Choral Society, Leamington Bach Choir, Spires Philharmonic Chorus and Warwickshire Youth Choirs, and eight vocal soloists; the total is estimated at over 500.

 

Conducting this immense undertaking is Joe Davies, building upon a performance of Mahler’s Second Symphony, the “Resurrection”, in June 2023, which involved over 250 performers. I last

reviewed him when he was a conducting postgrad student at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, but he has since built so many irons in the fire, as he tells me.

 

“I was lucky to get three jobs while studying at Birmingham Conservatoire: Worcester Philharmonic, Leamington Sinfonia, and the East Midlands Branch of Contemporary Music for All in Nottingham. This lovely trio meant I stayed in Birmingham for five and a half years (2018-2023), and could continue building up my diary and adding contacts! I moved to London in January 2024, but still conduct around the Midlands regularly. Juggling everything can be the hardest part, as I always want to be on time, well-prepared, and - crucially - to not let anyone down! So I spend hours with the diary and my scores, the old saying 'Fail to Prepare, Prepare to Fail' is something I think about a lot!

 

“I was born in Liverpool, but grew up in Cumbria. I live in North West London now, but spend most of my life on the motorway or on the train - I find myself becoming a modern day expert on service stations! I grew up as a cellist, vocalist and pianist - a jack of all trades, really. It was only when I focused on conducting at 19 that I realised what I wanted to do.”

 

Does Joe have any conducting specialisms, or is he a proudly jobbing conductor?

 

“Variety is the best part of my job, and I love conducting a lot of different pieces from a lot of different composers! I'm a bit of a Mahler obsessive, to be honest, and I love conducting new pieces from living composers, but I want to be as versatile as possible.”

 

Joe has Mahler’s two preceding “biggies” under his belt, and has been busy bringing together all the elements for this, the biggest of them all.

 

“I conducted Mahler 2 in 2023, and Mahler 3 earlier this year in Oxford, so it will be my third Mahler choral symphony - but it definitely feels the most logistically-challenging! I've been meeting with all the choir directors since 2023 - we've been organising this for a long time now - and I've been in regular communication with the soloists, too. But the big 'night before' rehearsal - where we have everyone there together for the first time - is crucial. Months of rehearsing lead to this!”

 

The first time I reviewed in Coventry Cathedral I just couldn’t make anything out in the mushy acoustic for many minutes. At least much of Mahler 8 is well-suited, though there are some spirited contrapuntal moments.

 

“Yes - I think for a lot of the piece the big, reverberant acoustic will suit it well, but there'll definitely be moments where we'll have to work hard for balance, rhythmic clarity, and colour specificity. Since January, when we started orchestral rehearsals, I've been warning the orchestra of this - they're probably sick of me saying 'shorter, shorter!' by now!”

 

I refer Joe Davies to the breaks made by his great snooker-playing namesake, but he responds on a different tack. “Becoming the Assistant Conductor of the English Symphony Orchestra felt like a break I was very, very lucky to receive - the musicians are incredible, and just so collaborative and encouraging. Working with the ESO, Kenneth Woods their Musical Director, and their brilliant roster of soloists is a huge honour.”

 

Joe concludes by paying tribute to the Leamington Sinfonia, lynch-pin of this forthcoming “Symphony of a Thousand”.

 

“I'm so proud of what we've achieved at Leamington Sinfonia over six and a half years. Mahler 8 will sadly be my last concert with them (my Tuesdays are now at Windsor and Maidenhead Symphony), but three tours, four Mahler Symphonies, three Schools' Concerts, Composition Competitions, Concerto Competitions, premieres from Howard Skempton, and works by Stravinsky, Bruckner, Strauss and Shostakovich... we've certainly taken risks, and enjoyed every minute of it!”

 

 

*Joe Davies conducts Mahler’s Eighth Symphony at Coventry Cathedral on Saturday May 16 (7pm).

 

ends

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