Cummings, a team of crack soloists and the AAM win ‘Leipzig's Got Talent’

Helen Charlston, Rowan Pierce,
Nick Pritchard & Ben Kazez with the AAM
© Mark Allan

Rowan Pierce (soprano)

Helen Charlston (alto)

Nick Pritchard (tenor)

Ben Kazez (bass)

Academy of Ancient Music

Laurence Cummings (director & harpsichord)

7.30pm, Thursday 16 April, 2006

Milton Court Concert Hall, London

★★★★★

'The Chosen One'

Graupner, Christoph (1683-1760): Lobet den Herrn, alle Heiden, GWV 1113/23b

Rolle, Christian Friedrich (1681-1751): St. Luke Passion, 'Es wurden aber auch' & 'Verdammliche Bosheit'

Kaufmann, Georg Friedrich (1679-1735): O ich elender Mensch wer wird mich erlösen

Telemann, Georg Philipp (1681-1767): Ich muß auf den Bergen weinen und heulen

Fasch, Johann Friedrich (1688-1758): Concerto for flute & oboe

Bach, Johann Sebastian (1685-1750): Du Wahrer Gott und Davids Sohn, BWV 23

Encore: 

Bach, Johann Sebastian (1685-1750): Jesus nahm zu sich die Zwölfe, BWV 22, 'Ertöt uns durch dein Güte'

Rachel Brown & Leo Duarte
with the Academy of Ancient Music
© Mark Allan

Bach:

'Soprano Rowan Pierce and alto Helen Charlston wound their lines together beautifully with the lilting oboes, with Charlston in particular growing from nothing on long notes to emerge out of the texture'.

'Nick Pritchard’s recitative was tender yet with the communicative immediacy now familiar from his Evangelist performances in the Passions. And when joined with Pritchard, bass Ben Kazez delivered their busy duetting with perfect clarity'.

Telemann:

'Clear-focussed recitative from Pritchard, righteous shaking from Kazez, and gentle trotting from Pierce, against stunningly virtuosic filigree from flautist Rachel Brown'.

Fasch:

'Brown and (Leo) Duarte were a delight, mixing perfectly judged expression with deft virtuosity'.

'Cummings directed from the harpsichord with clarity and energy, and the players performed with sensitivity, dexterity and affection for the music throughout'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.

Prom 50 - Cummings and the AAM bring the house down with Samson at the Proms

Laurence Cummings conducts the Academy of Ancient Music
© BBC/Sisi Burn

Allan Clayton (Samson)

Jacquelyn Stucker (Dalila)

Joélle Harvey (Israelite Woman)

Jess Dandy (Micah)

Brindley Sherratt (Harapha)

Jonathan Lemalu (Manoa)

Will Pate (Messenger)

Philharmonia Chorus

Academy of Ancient Music

Laurence Cummings (harpsichord/director)

7pm, Wednesday 23 August, 2023

BBC Prom 50

Royal Albert Hall, London

★★★★

Allan Clayton & the Academy of Ancient Music
© BBC/Sisi Burn

Handel, George Frideric (1685-1759): Samson (1741-2, rev. 1743)

'The Philharmonia Chorus’ performance was totally convincing'. 

'Clayton’s Samson was unflinching in rejecting Dalila’s pleas, but showed vulnerability too, never afraid to sing incredibly quietly, lamenting the “Total eclipse” of his sight with heartbreaking pianissimo control on the words “no moon”'.

'Stucker’s Dalila was bright-toned and full of self-righteousness, her “plaintive notes” more wheedling than sensuous, but beautiful nevertheless'. 

Brindley Sherratt & the Academy of Ancient Music
© BBC/Sisi Burn

Dandy:

'When Cummings kept the players back, her rich tone was allowed to shine through, with particular expression of pain in her long-held “griefs” in “Return, oh God of hosts”'.

'Brindley Sherratt was in danger of stealing the show as Harapha, his arresting presence dominating the stage as he strode on, delivering his first recit from memory'.

Jacquelyn Stucker & Joélle Harvey
© BBC/Sisi Burn

Cummings & the AAM:

' consistently energetic presence, he commanded the combined forces with enthusiasm, making for a memorably magnificent performance'.

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.