Baroque Collective Singers - Christmas Celebration

Tickets here.

More on Facebook here.

Programme:

Messe de Minuit pour Noël - Marc-Antoine Charpentier

INTERVAL - mulled wine and mince pies

Jesus Christ the Apple Tree - Elizabeth Poston
Christmas Hath Darkness - Ed Hughes
In the bleak midwinter - Harold Darke
O Radiant Dawn - James MacMillan 

Wallands CP School Choir:
Away in a Manger - Alan Woods
Calypso Carol - Michael Perry
Somewhere in my Memory - John Williams 

Good King Wenceslas - Reginald Jacques - audience carol 

O Little One Sweet - Trad arr J S Bach
Hymn to the Virgin - Benjamin Britten
Ding Dong Merrily on High - Charles Wood 

It Came Upon the Midnight Clear - Arthur Sullivan - audience carol

O magnum myseterium - In dulci jubilo!

BREMF Consort of Voices

Deborah Roberts - Director

Music for advent and Christmas by 

Victoria, Palestrina, Praetorius, Walter and Paminger

Saturday 5 December, 6pm

St Paul's Church, West Street, Brighton

Mince pies, mulled wine and fizz!

Tickets £12 (£10 concession) from here.

On Facebook here.

CD Reviews - November 2015

The Tallis Scholars, directed by Peter Phillips, have followed up their acclaimed 2013 release of music by John Taverner (c1490-1545) with a recording of his massive Missa Corona Spinea. Taverner was a huge influence on English composers who followed, including Tallis and Byrd, yet remarkably little is known about his life, and details about his compositions and musical appointments really only account for less than ten years of his life from 1524 to about 1530.  Yet eight masses and a number of motets and antiphons remain, and the importance of this composer in the development of English music cannot be overstated. His command of texture and form, combined with the ability to create a sense of serenity and clarity in his melodic lines is amply demonstrated in the Missa Corona Spinea.  Unlike in his other great work Missa Gloria tibi Trinitas, where the virtuosity required across the six parts is more or less equal, in the Missa Corona Spinea, it is the trebles (the top soprano line) who are the stars. Right from the opening bars they are soaring on top B flats, and stay up there pretty much throughout. Not only that, but there are two significant ‘gimell’ sections – this is where one part splits into two separate lines. So here, the two trebles (Janet Coxwell and Amy Haworth on amazing form) have incredibly intricate solo lines which weave in and out of each other, underpinned by a bass line. For the second gimell, Taverner complicates matters even more by splitting the mean voice (the next voice down) too, making this a double gimell.  The resulting virtuosic intricacy is amazing, and as ever, The Tallis Scholars relish this challenge, with the trebles in particular producing effortless, crystal clear lines above the rich sonorities of the lower voices.  Taverner further accentuates the soaring top line by scoring two bass parts at the bottom, adding to the richness of the fuller choral sections.  It is not known exactly what occasion Taverner composed this amazing work for, but there is speculation that none other than Cardinal Wolsey may have commissioned it, with Henry VIII possibly present at the first performance.  The scale of this single work, at nearly 48 minutes long, is immense, but it rewards concentrated listening. You can’t help being transported by those ringing top notes and the intensity of Taverner’s complex writing. The Tallis Scholars complete the disc with Taverner’s two settings of the Easter responsary Dum transisset Sabbatum. The first of these is better known, but it is great to hear them side-by-side. Despite using the same tenor chant line, they demonstrate the composer’s skill at producing strikingly different settings within the same construct.  The text describes the women arriving at Jesus’ tomb on Easter Sunday morning, and Taverner creates a sense of awe and wonder in both settings. A worthy end to another top-notch recording from The Tallis Scholars.

Taverner, J. 2015. Missa Corona spinea. The Tallis Scholars, Peter Phillips. Compact Disc. Gimbal Records. CDGIM 046.

Cellist Pieter Wispelwey has been joined by pianist Paolo Giacometti for the first disc in a projected six disc cycle in which he plans to record all of Schubert and Brahms’ chamber duos – predominantly composed for other instruments than the cello. Why, you might ask? Well, as he argues, some works, such as Brahms’ Clarinet Sonatas, are regularly performed on other instruments – Brahms himself published versions of these for viola. And the famed ‘Arpeggione’ Sonata, usually performed on the cello, was, as discussed with Tasmin Little’s recent Schubert disc, composed for a now defunct guitar/cello hybrid. So why now explore these works with the different sonorities of the cello? Well on the basis of this opening disc, I would tentatively agree – although I think this works better with some works than others. The Fantasie that opens the disc, a late work composed by Schubert for violin and piano, combines virtuosity with some incredibly touching moments. The cello is not quite lithe enough for the most virtuosic moments here, and Wispelwey’s tone in the higher registers is more brittle than a violin produces. However, Wispelwey and Giacometti have great fun with the piece, and they bring a fresh angle to the work as a result.  The second of the aforementioned Clarinet Sonatas by Brahms fares better, with the instrument’s natural lyricism suiting Brahms’ beautifully smooth lines well – although again here when taken to the higher reaches of the instrument, the tone becomes a little dry.  The early Schubert Sonata works well, and Wispelwey and Giacometti bring out its light, engaging spirit well. Wispelwey separates the three duos with two movements from Solo Cello Suites by Max Reger (1873-1916) – highly Romantic works, despite their obvious nod to Bach, and convincingly performed here.

Various. 2015. Schubert - Brahms. The Complete Duos/Phantasie. Pieter Wispelwey, Paolo Giacometti. Compact Disc. Evil Penguin Records Classic 608917720426 - 2015 EPRC 0018.

(These reviews first appeared in GScene, November 2015)

Revelatory Schumann and bold Mendelssohn from András Schiff and the OAE

© Nadia F Romanini

Sir András Schiff (conductor/piano)
Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment

Mendelssohn: Overture, The Hebrides, Op. 26

Mendelssohn: Symphony No. 3 in A minor, Op. 56, 'Scottish'

Schumann: Piano Concerto in A minor, Op. 54

Royal Festival Hall, London
Tuesday 10 November 2015

'As fresh and uncluttered by tradition as if we were hearing it for the first time'.

'A Schumann Piano Concerto that wasn’t beaten within an inch of its life ... but one with delicacy, life and boundless energy'.

'That sense of newness that Schiff said he was aiming for was well and truly nailed'.

'An incredibly intimate and touching performance'.

Read my full review on Backtrack here.

'Heroines of the Golden Age': Intimacy and variety from Kirkby and Lindberg

Brighton Early Music Festival

Dame Emma Kirkby (soprano)
Jakob Lindberg (theorbo-lute)

Works by
Dowland
Byrd
Henry Lawes
William Lawes
Blow
Purcell
and others

St George's Church, Brighton, Wednesday 4 November 2015

'Kirkby’s diction and communication were so crystal clear'.

'Kirkby’s execution was incredibly precise, whilst still communicating the text'.

'It was a delight to see performers so able to communicate such intimate repertoire, making for a thoroughly engaging evening'.

Read my full review on Backtrack here. 

CD Reviews - October 2015

Johannes Pramsohler and the Ensemble Diderot are back with a beautifully packaged disc of concertos by Antonio Maria Montanari (1676-1737).  Not heard of him?  Neither had I – perhaps because not much of his music has survived, and little was published in his lifetime. Yet as a successor in Rome to Corelli, he was a significant violinist composer, also giving lessons to Pisendel, the Dresden composer, who’s works Pramsohler has also been bringing to new audiences of late.  In fact, some of the concertos only exist in copies Pisendel had following his visit to Rome.  This disc brings us six of Montanari’s Violin Concertos, only one of which has ever been recorded previously.  The concertos are written in seven parts, for two solo violins and a solo cello, two further violin parts, a viola part and basso continuo. However, Montanari makes flexible use of these parts, not always simply contrasting the solo ‘concertino’ and the full ‘ripieno’ grouping, as in the classic concerto grosso, but sometimes mixing and matching and doubling parts.  The Ensemble Diderot also varies the basso continuo combining harpsichord (Philippe Grisvard) with violone (Youen Cadiou), theorbo or guitar (Jadran Duncumb).  Pramsohler takes the lead solo violin part and directs proceedings.  Concerto No. 6 has a wonderfully mysterious slow central movement, followed by a halting yet jauntily leisurely Allegro, the longest movement of any of the concerti. Concerto No. 5 opens with a bristling Allegro, with wonderful tit-for-tat solo violin and cello exchanges.  Concerto No. 7 has solo violin parts that sing, and the interchange between the two instruments is contrasted expertly with the full ensemble, and Concerto No. 8 has real fire in the virtuosic solo parts in its fast movements.  These concerti are real gems, and the performances here bristle with energy and spirit. The balance achieved between the solo and fuller passages is spot on – this is so clearly a small ensemble of dedicated musicians who are able to communicate their obvious enthusiasm for this wonderful music.  Another hit from Pramsohler and friends.

Montanari, A. M. 2015. Violin Concertos. Johannes Pramsohler, Ensemble Diderot. Compact Disc. Audax Records. ADX 13704.

Alexander Zemlinsky (1871-1942) was a Viennese composer, who, like his friend and one-time pupil, Arnold Schoenberg, emigrated to the US in later life.  However, unlike Schoenberg, he was largely neglected in the US, and his music has never taken a foothold in the repertoire.  Supported by Brahms, he developed an individual voice perhaps more influenced by Wagner and Mahler – he never went down the atonal route that Schoenberg followed. Zemlinsky fell in love with Alma Schindler, who initially reciprocated his feelings, but dumped him for Mahler. In the intense and somewhat incestuous environment of turn of the century Vienna, Schoenberg married Zemlinsky’s sister, Mathilde, who then had an affair with the artist Richard Gerstl. She returned to Schoenberg, and Gerstl subsequently committed suicide. The affair had a deep impact on Schoenberg and Zemlinsky’s friendship, with Schoenberg also contemplating suicide. So to the music – the Brodsky Quartet have recorded his four numbered String Quartets, as well as a premiere recording of an early String Quartet in E minor, which failed to pass muster with the all-powerful Tonkünstlerverein in Vienna, and was thus abandoned by the composer. Whilst he clearly hadn’t mastered writing for the string quartet here, and the influences of Brahms and also Dvorak are most evident, this is nevertheless a work that didn’t deserve such out and out rejection. The String Quartet No. 1 is in a happy A major, and is perhaps the least troubled of the four mature works. The slow movement begins in a rather stately fashion, but relaxes into a more lyrical mood, and the finale is uncomplicatedly positive. The String Quartet No. 2 is a long, single movement work, and the Brodsky Quartet take some of the tempi quite slow here, the whole quartet coming in at over 43 minutes. In contrast to the first quartet, this is a turbulent, almost tormented piece – hardly surprising given that it expressed the traumatic personal period of his life described above. There are lots of symbols here the ‘cross’ of the F sharp minor key signature, associated with pain, grief and guilt, and coded references to himself, Mathilde and Schoenberg. It is a complex piece, with real virtuosic writing, and the Brodskys maintain the intensity and coherence despite not rushing things.  The tormented yet Romantic language is somewhat reminiscent of Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht – String Quartet No. 3 moves into harsher, more neo-classical territory, and is perhaps initially the least accessible. Yet it rewards patient listening, and it actually contains surprisingly melodic writing, particularly for viola and cello, within its modernist construction. He opens String Quartet No. 4 with a Präludium that contains motifs from the second and third quartets, and another reference to Mathilde, creating a sense of mournful nostalgia perhaps. Zemlinsky combines the urgency and passion of the second quartet’s late Romanticism with the brittle virtuosity of the third quartet, and this is surely a masterpiece of string quartet writing. The Brodskys seem to shift across the varied styles of all of these quartets with ease, and make one wonder why these quartets are so seldom performed.  A great collection, well worth exploration.

Zemlinsky, A. 2015. Complete String Quartets. Brodsky Quartet. Compact Discs (2). Chandos CHAN 10845(2).

(These reviews first appeared in GScene, October 2015)

Fireworks of the right kind from Matsuev, Temirkanov & the Philharmonia

Yuri Temirkanov
© Sasha Gusov

Denis Matsuev (piano)
Yuri Temirkanov (conductor)
Philharmonia Orchestra

Tchaikovsky: Piano Concerto No. 1, Op. 23
Tchaikovsky: Méditation, Op. 72 No. 5 (Encore)

Brahms: Symphony No. 4, Op. 98

Royal Festival Hall, Sunday 4 October 2015










'Refreshing performances of these familiar masterpieces.'

'A performance with plenty of fireworks, but the right kind for a change: power, virtuosity and drama for sure, but extreme contrasts, fine detail and moments of high intimacy too.'

'Temirkanov produced real drama here, ... a powerful finish to this taut reading, one of the strongest I’ve heard in a long time.'

Read my full review on Bachtrack here.