Concert Reviews 2011 - 12
Marcus Farnsworth/ Navarra String Quartet/ Horn Trio/ Alexandra Dariescu / Orchestra of the Swan / OOTS Children's Concert
| Sunday 8th January 2012 Marcus Farnsworth baritone James Baillieu piano Review Keswick Music Society’s latest concert featured Marcus Farnsworth (baritone) and James Ballieu (piano). Marcus is currently studying on the Opera course at the Royal Academy of Music, and already has a wealth of experience in opera, oratorio and in the concert hall, while South African-born James has won many awards and coaches regularly in Italy, Spain and London. Their recital at the Theatre by the Lake was a veritable feast of song, taking us through the whole gamut of emotions. They began with Eight Mörike Lieder, selected from the fifty-three songs by Hugo Wolf to texts by Eduard Mörike, and immediately we were transported to a joyous world of blossoming love, then to haunting visions of a love lost in Peregrina I and II, and the humourous Encounter in which the embarrassment of a girl dishevelled by the storms of passionate young love brought laughter from the audience. Hands clasped in Prayer then led to the delightful story of the Stork’s message and the atmospheric stillness of To an Aeolian harp. The final song of this set was Abscheid (Farewell), in which Marcus’ superb dramatic skills and clear annunciation brought all the humour of the story to life, even for those with limited German! Next came ‘something completely different’, to quote Monty Python: Histoires Naturelles, five settings by Ravel of animal stories by Jules Renard. Marcus’ relaxed conversational introduction to these settings helped the audience appreciate Renard’s brilliant observations of animal characteristics, of which every nuance is translated into Ravel’s music with astonishing economy and effectiveness. Again Marcus communicated each story superbly, repeatedly eliciting laughter from his listeners. A highlight for me was the Kingfisher, a compelling portrait of stillness in sound. James’ piano playing throughout was equally dramatic and seemingly effortless, a delight to watch and hear. The second half of the concert began with four Garden Songs by Martin Bussey, who was present in the audience to hear these songs performed as a set for the first time. Although united in theme, these very enjoyable songs each had a distinct style: the romanticism of The Garden gave way to the Reichian minimalism of the piano in Planting flowers, and the defiant optimism of Planting trees was followed by the brilliantly funny complaining of Mr Hancock’s Letter. Then came Benjamin Britten’s teenage settings of Walter de la Mare’s poems in Tit for Tat, and the programme concluded with six songs from A Shropshire Lad, Butterworth’s settings of Houseman’s texts. Marcus seemed very much at home with these English songs, and the occasional hard edge to his voice seemed to suit the character of the Shropshire Lad. James’ extraordinarily neat and light accompanying was faultless, and the highlight of the whole evening for me came right at the end, with Is my team ploughing? The two characters in the song were vividly and poignantly portrayed and no audience member could have remained untouched by the ghostly dialogue. A brief and upbeat encore sent the audience away with a smile on their faces and I hope a little more joy in their hearts! Ian Wright |
| Sunday 4th December 2011 Navarra String Quartet Magnus Johnston, Marije Ploemacher violins Simone van der Geissen viola Nathaniel Boyd cello Haydn: String Quartet in B flat Op. 103 (unfinished) Britten: String Quartet No. 3 Brahms: String Quartet in C minor Op. 51 No.1 Review I am always content to sit back and enjoy
the varied and high standard of programmes that the Keswick Music Society
continues to provide year in, year out (this is the 64th season). Last Sunday's
concert by the Navarra String Quartet was just such a one. This quartet was
formed in 2002 at the RNCM and already has an impressive CV. Britten's Third String Quartet was a different kettle of fish. Written some thirty years after the other two, it is also meatier and longer, at almost half an hour. Much of it was composed in Venice, scene of his opera Death in Venice, and there are numerous references both to the city and to the opera. Its five movements are built round the 'solo' slow third movement, with the first violin playing a very high cantabile melody over spare accompaniment - beautifully realised and, for me, the emotional high point. Two scherzo-like movements come either side and are energetic and virtuosic, the players making eye contact all the time. There were hints, I thought, of another opera, Gloriana, especially the dances. The first movement, 'Duets', paired the instruments in every possible combination, starting with the second violin and viola who introduced the main motif. The final movement was a Passacaglia, one of Britten's favourite forms, and once the theme was established after a 'recitative' it wound its way through the instruments. He subtitled it La Serenissima, and quotes music from Death in Venice for all four instruments. The playing here was superb, reaching emotional intensity before the music faded to a quiet ending. After the interval came another complete change of mood and period. Brahms's first quartet, op. 51 no. 1, was the first work in this genre that Brahms was prepared to publish - he maintained that he had written and destroyed more than twenty others, fearful always of the ghost of Beethoven looming over him. He need not have worried; the confident start swept audience and players forward, with the initial musical idea which was later evident throughout the entire work. Again, the unanimity of the players was obvious, glances and body language acting to keep them in touch. Perhaps the cello could have been more assertive, but when it had important points to make, the tone was warm and firm. The third movement, a scherzo, was not a 'joke' but opened with a sobbing, pulsing motif which kept returning, even puncturing the lighter mood of the Trio. The final allegro seemed to sum up what had gone before. There were references to the initial idea from the first movement, the texture became thicker and more impassioned, and it drove relentlessly to the conclusion. The audience applauded long and loud and would have been happy with an encore, but the players were probably too exhausted, and anyway - "follow that"? Douglas Cook |
| Wednesday 16th November 2011 Horn Trio Richard Watkins horn, Lucy Gould violin Leon McCawley piano Beethoven: Sonata in F major for horn and piano Op 17 Schubert arr. Liszt: Three Songs for solo piano: Die junge Nonne, Du bist die Ruh’, Auf dem Wasser zu Singen Schumann: Sonata No 1 in A minor for violin & piano Op. 105 Brahms: Horn Trio in E flat Op 40 Review Three of this country’s finest musicians joined together on 16th November at the Theatre by the Lake to give a superb concert of music written in the nineteenth century. The three performers were violinist Lucy Gould, pianist Leon McCawley and the horn player Richard Watkins. Their programming enabled us to hear these three instruments in different combinations, horn and piano, Violin and piano, solo piano and finally all three together. The only work in the evening not to come from the Romantic Period was a relatively early work by Beethoven, his Horn Sonata in F, apparently written in only twenty four hours, which is very much in the Classical style of Haydn and Mozart. Watkins and McCawley are not only technically accomplished but displayed musicianship of the highest standing. The horn sound was vibrant and well focussed whilst the piano playing sparkled with crisp scale and arpeggiated passages. The interplay between these two performers was a joy to listen to. In order to promote the works of Schubert, Franz Liszt wrote over fifty transcriptions of his songs which he played in his concerts around Europe. Noted as a virtuoso on the piano these works are extremely difficult and our pianist, Leon McCawley, allowed the solo vocal line to sing out whilst maintaining the textural difference in the accompaniment. Here was seemingly effortless virtuosity and in the very gentle and peaceful “Du bist die Ruh’” the audience was so absorbed in McCawley’s control of the instrument that, as they say, “you could have heard a pin drop”. The violinist Lucy Gould made her first appearance with Schumann’s passionate and turbulent first sonata. Even in the dry acoustic of the Theatre these two performers filled the auditorium with a wonderful warm sound which contrasted well with some very delicate passages. This was a very fine performance of a work which makes great technical demands on both players. The major work in the concert was the monumental Horn Trio in E flat by Johannes Brahms which involved all three of the performers. There is such emotional intensity, drama and passion in this work relieved only in the final movement which burst forth with such rhythmic vitality and the climaxes throughout were quite awesome in their power. There were some passages where I felt the violin was a little too much to the fore particularly where the musical material was subordinate to the other instruments, but in the main the balance was excellent and there was a real sense of ensemble. It was a great privilege to hear such fine British performers and I hope that we will hear them again soon either as an ensemble or soloists in their own right. John Cooper Green |
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Sunday 23rd October 2011
topAlexandra Dariescu piano Ravel: Ondine (Gaspard de la Nuit) Schumann: Abegg Variations Op.1 Beethoven: Sonata in E flat Op. 31 No. 3 Debussy: L'Isle Joyeuse Liszt: Liebestod Liszt: Ballade No. 2 in B Minor Chopin: Andante Spianato and Grande Polonaise in G, Op. 22 Review A near capacity and very enthusiastic audience of Keswick Music Society members and visitors were totally enthralled by the piano recital given by Alexandra Dariescu, in the Theatre by the Lake last Sunday evening. Alexandra set the scene by giving a concise and illuminating introduction before playing each piece, which helped to set the scene and communicate her great enthusiasm for the music. The first half of her programme consisted of Ravel’s Ondine, Schumann’s Abegg variations, Beethoven’s E flat sonata and Debussy’s L’Isle Joyeuse. The first was notable for Alexandra’s exceptionally fluid, delicate and accurate playing, while Schumann’s variations displayed a wide dynamic range with great sparkle and good humour and expressed the young composer’s affection for the young Countess Abegg, extremely well. Alexandra played Beethoven’s much-loved E flat sonata with great elegance and panache and really brought this extraordinary work to life, most notably in the breathless Finale. She was able to deliver Debussy’s exhilarating L’Isle Joyeuse with wonderful clarity and colour, evoking the many marine images in the piece, such as the movement and breaking of the waves, the rocking of the boat and the circling seagulls, right from its gentle beginning to its ecstatic climax. The second half began with Liszt’s great Ballade in B minor. Alexandra conveyed this great exploration of piano textures with memorable fluency and delicacy, together with some powerful climaxes. Her formidable technique once again came to the fore in Liszt’s Liebestod, an adaptation of an aria from Wagner’s Tristan and Isolde. Chopin’s fusion of the melodious Andante Spianato and the florid Grande Polonaise in G enabled her to display her phenomenal agility at the keyboard in what was a memorable performance of considerable dexterity and brilliance. For an encore, she played fellow Rumanian composer, Constantin Silvestri’s energetic Baccanale, written in 1933, which brought an exceptionally fine evening of piano music to an exciting conclusion.Mike Town |
| Sunday
25th September 2011 Orchestra of the Swan David Curtis Director Julian Lloyd Webber cello Jiaxin Cheng cello Handel: Arrival of the Queen of Sheba Haydn: Cello Concerto in C Alec Roth: Departure of the Queen of Sheba Vivaldi: Double Cello Concerto Mozart: Symphony No. 29 in A Review The Keswick Music Society’s 64th Season got off to a good start on Sunday evening with a sell-out concert given by the Orchestra of the Swan, from Stratford-upon-Avon. This was the seventh Keswick concert in the Orchestras Live Cumbria Series, generously supported by Arts Council England, aimed at enabling as many people as possible to experience inspirational, high quality, live orchestral music. This aim was certainly achieved on this occasion, with a programme of baroque and classical music, and one contemporary piece, delighting the capacity audience. Handel’s Arrival of the Queen of Sheba was given an effervescent performance, with a bright tone and neat articulation as the music was passed between the oboe duo and the strings. Here and in the Vivaldi concerto some harpsichord continuo would have added period colour, but was probably not practical. It was a great privilege to hear Julian Lloyd Webber, who had “warmed up” the previous evening in the Royal Albert Hall, together with Jiaxin Cheng, performing Vivaldi’s Double Cello Concerto, an unusual work in which the dark sound of the two cellos was effectively contrasted with the lighter upper strings. Julian’s virtuosity was very much to the fore in Haydn’s Cello Concerto, with more warmth and expression in the reflective middle movement. All the playing by this predominantly youthful ensemble was of a very high standard, although occasionally the balance at the back of the hall favoured the horns. However, all departments had plenty to do in Mozart’s sunny A major Symphony, with its “Mannheim skyrockets” echoing the music of Johann Stamitz, and with plenty of contrasts of pace and tone. The novelty in this programme was the Departure of the Queen of Sheba by Alec Roth, who has had works performed by English National Opera and in the BBC Proms. It was an accessible and colourful response to Handel’s masterpiece, ending with the literal departure from the platform of leading oboist Victoria Brawn, who personified the Queen alongside cor anglais player Louise Braithwaite who depicted King Solomon. It is always a pleasure to meet other music lovers in the congenial surroundings of the Theatre by the Lake, and the Music Society deserves to continue to go from strength to strength in providing fabulous concerts, if not on your doorstep at least not far away. Ian Hare |
| Sunday
25th September 2011 Orchestra of the Swan Small Ensemble Children's Lunchtime Concert Review Children wearing colourful crowns and their families filled the Theatre by the Lake at lunchtime on Sunday 25th. They had come to hear and take part in the Concert for Children, played by the Small Wind and String Ensemble of the Orchestra of the Swan. The oboe player, Louise Braithwaite, told the audience that with her name she felt quite at home, and that her family came originally from around here. One of the themes of the concert was in fact ‘comings and goings’, and the other was ‘Kings and Queens’. Children were invited to come up onto the stage and sit behind the musician, and about twenty did so, getting a close view of the goings on. There was great engagement from the audience, a roving microphone taking questions and answers about the lives of the players and the differences between the instruments – here some children already showed impressive knowledge. Expertly weaving music into this, the six, horn, oboe and string players included ‘The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba’ by Handel and ‘The Departure of the Queen of Sheba’ by the composer Alec Roth, in which we could hear exotic birds and snakes in the background.(Some people may remember the first performance of his Concertino Piccolo by the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields and children from Keswick School in 2006). We heard from another king - Henry VIII - in an arrangement of the tune Greensleeves, said to be by him. And there was a lot of action, as the audience was challenged to stand up every time a particular rhythm was heard in part of Mozart’s 29th Symphony. As they finally played the end of Haydn’s ‘Farewell’ Symphony members of the group said goodbye and left the stage, but returned immediately so that the children could meet them and have photographs taken with the musicians. By then it was clear that the audience had had a great time. Keswick Music Society was most grateful for support from the Neighbourhood Forum and from Yorkshire and Clydesdale Bank in funding this concert which was their third annual Concert for Children. Mary Cooke |
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