Master Series 1. Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Adelaide Town Hall. 29 Mar 2019
Nicholas Carter, Principal Conductor of the Adelaide Symphony Orchestra, has never conducted better than he did for this concert, the first in the ASO’s 2019 Master Series. He was on fire.
The generously long program comprised Elgar’s In the South (Alassio) – Overture, Op.50, Sibelius’ Violin Concerto in D minor, Op.47, Ravel’s La valse – poème chorégraphique, and Resphigi’s Pines of Rome, P.141. Although all of these pieces have been previously essayed by the ASO, and each deserves to be heard frequently, there is so much other music composed by ‘the masters’ that the ASO has not yet played that one wonders why the entire program should be repeated within nine years.
Each composition on the program is expansive in melody and orchestration and each has its own special interest. The Elgar foregrounds the viola and the horn. Principal viola Caleb Wright performs a disarmingly beautiful solo that is such a joy to hear on an instrument that is rarely in the spotlight. Adrian Uren excels in his leadership of the horns, and the dialogue between the combined strings and the horns is quite transporting.
Sibelius’ entire oeuvre contains only one concerto, his violin concerto, and it is one of the high points in the catalogue. The ASO last played it in 2016 with Grace Clifford on violin. It was a very pleasing performance but tonight Dutch violinist Simone Lamsma gives an object lesson in how it should be performed. At the end of the first movement, the audience spontaneously broke into heartfelt applause, which, incidentally, gave Lamsma time to re-tune her “Lynarski” Stradivarius violin which was showing signs of misbehaviour in Adelaide’s currently volatile weather conditions.
The concerto is atypical and breaks some compositional conventions, such as the inclusion of an extended cadenza for the violin in the first movement when one would otherwise expect the main thematic material to be developed. The cadenza is virtuosic and introspective and Lamsma shows a deep affinity for the musical narrative which is the real secret: her undoubted technical expertise then has something to play with. The brass section is particularly fine during the adagio second movement, and Carter clearly enjoys himself during the final allegro and all but dances his way through the waltz-like second theme. But this is just a warm-up for the Ravel!
Carter is exceptionally light on his feet as he takes the ASO through La valse. Again, without a baton in his hand, his instructions to the orchestra comes through his swaying body and through his clenched then relaxed hand gestures. His direction is precise and elegant and the orchestra’s response is nothing less than one would expect from a world class outfit.
The Pines of Rome is a favourite amongst concert goers. It is scored for a large orchestra and has surprises! Not only does the pipe organ get an outing, so do buccini, which are ancestors of the trombone and trumpet. There is also an expanded percussion section and recorded birdsong! By any means, this is an exciting work to hear and to see. The Town Hall stage is enlarged for the performance so that the orchestra actually fits! Carter’s control of the musical forces is adroit. The dynamism between the sections is keenly balanced throughout, and there is a logic in how one movement is contrasted with the others. The final climax is truly that, and not just more of the same.
Resphigi’s use of the woodwind is quite dramatic, and Carter is right to give a special bow to the section and especially to Dean Newcombe on principal clarinet.
For whatever reason, the ASO titled the concert From the Mists of Time, but one thing is certain, Carter is certainly not that. He is in the ascendant, and with impressive lucidity.
Kym Clayton
When: 29 Mar
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed
Australian Chamber Orchestra. Adelaide Town Hall. 19 Mar 2019
In this particular tour, the Australian Chamber Orchestra serves an Australian premiere of a work (written in 2008) that is bookended by orchestral arrangements of Prokofiev and Beethoven string quartets. It’s an interesting sandwich, but not entirely satisfying.
For many, the string quartet is the apotheosis of chamber music. It is an exacting form and in the hands of an appropriately skilled composer, the result is exhilarating. But then to take a well written quartet and arrange it for a string orchestra is something else indeed, and for it to work the arranger needs to be skilful and needs to choose their source material very well.
Guest director and lead violinist Lorenza Borrani prepared the arrangements of the Prokofiev and the Beethoven, and she clearly knows what she is doing. Prokofiev’s Violin Sonata No.1 in F minor, Op.80 is arguably better suited to being arranged for string orchestra than Beethoven’s String Quartet in F, Op.135, his final work. The two quartets were written at dramatic times in the lives of their composers, and the pall of death and finality pervades both compositions. Although Beethoven’s quartets – regarded by many as pre-eminent in their genre – possess structure and musical ‘might’ that might suit it to being exploited by a larger ensemble, Borrani’s arrangement masks the tension and drama of the first movement, but allows the playfulness to come through in the second with more obvious dialogue.
The Prokofiev is altogether different. The ruminating undercurrent flows throughout, even when the spiky and dissonant melody threatens to become something else as it readies to soar into something lyrical. The cellos and single bass in the first movement are as one – the playing is masterful, and the second movement is almost concerto-esque. The undulating violin lines in the third movement are imbued with a wistfulness, especially from Borrani, and the result is at times an eerie premonition of another world. All is shattered in the final movement with its robust tutti opening that gives way to an exquisite display of pizzicato.
The filling of the sandwich is the contemporary composition Such Different Paths by Dobrinka Tabakova. Next to the Prokofiev it is the highlight of the evening which deserves to be listened to repeatedly. It is a composition that reveals itself to be much more complex than one thinks it is. On the surface there appears to be no obvious musical narrative. It comprises a succession of often languid melodies that taken together border on being described as ‘ambient’ music, but this is to sell the piece short. The musical threads are exposed with crystal clarity by the orchestra, and then in the blink of an eye the tonality changes, and clarity gives way to haziness and seductive droning sounds that shift into dance rhythms, and the journey continues. Yes, it needs to be listened to again and again.
At the end of the concert the members of the ACO smile and congratulate each other, as they usually do, but the solidarity doesn’t quite seem as obvious and passionate and spontaneous as it usually is. Maybe the Beethoven arrangement wasn’t quite the piece to end with?
Kym Clayton
When: 19 Mar
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed
Musica Viva. Adelaide Town Hall. 7 Mar 2019
Natalie Clein (cello) and Katya Apekisheva (piano) have a shared and deep understanding of each other and of the music they play together. A nod or tilt of the head here, a knowing smile at each other there – it all adds up to one artist voicing with the other to produce a sound that is finely balanced and completely aligned to the emotional structure of the music. This is in evidence throughout the performance, and especially so in the two pieces by Ernest Bloch.
The program comprises compositions by composers who are well-known – Vaughan Williams, Bloch and Beethoven – and less well known – Rebecca Clarke and Natalie Williams, and it is a testimony to the enduring nature of the string quartet combination that the less well-known is as vital and enjoyable as the well-known. Although every composition is separately enjoyed in its own right, together they weave some special magic.
Six Studies in English Folk Song by Vaughan Williams and From Jewish Life by Bloch – composed within two years of each other – both celebrate the passion each composer had for their cultural heritage. The Dreaming Land by Williams celebrates the connection one has with the physical world and the relationship with others who are similarity connected. The physical world inevitably shapes the human world, and our response in turn influences the physical. Arguably, the Vaughan Williams and the Bloch celebrate the same: how we emotionally connect with what is around us. Williams paints a fictitious and imagined world, but we are drawn into it as if it were our own.
The alchemy of the programming deepens when one realises there is a connection between Clarke and Bloch, for Clarke’s Sonata for Viola (or Cello) and Piano came second to Bloch’s Suite for Viola in a composing competition in 1919.
And then, out by itself is Beethoven’s Sonata for Cello and Piano no 4 in C, op 102 no 1, composed more than one hundred years earlier than anything else on the program. Clein produces seductively creamy sounds in the tranquil and meditative opening, and they are razor sharp in their treatment of the fiercely rhythmic octaves in the transition to the allegro vivace.
The clarity of their playing is on fine display in The Dreaming Land, which is a highlight of the program. Not only is this Musica Viva tour giving the world première of the composition, and Clarke was born and bred in South Australia, but she is also present at the concert and addresses the audience from the stage. This is always special, and particularly when the composition is a significant one and is likely to become an enduring work in the cello repertoire. Apekisheva produces delicate but incisive accompaniment on the piano, and Clein’s melody lines are firm and declamatory without detracting from the partnership with the piano.
Natalie Clein reportedly loves music that tells a story. This is abundantly clear in her playing and this program is a masterful display of how the sonic world can represent the corporal and spiritual.
Kym Clayton
When: 7 Mar 2019
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed
Australian String Quartet. Adelaide Town Hall. 21 Feb 2019
The Australian String Quartet (ASQ) is a world class chamber ensemble and they can be relied upon for out-of-the box programming and thrilling performances. Tonight’s concert, the first of their 2019 National Season tour, is a case in point. The only sadness is that their concerts are one-offs: if you miss their performance in Adelaide, you’ve missed it for good or you need to travel interstate to hear it elsewhere. And the ASQ should not be missed. An ASQ concert is an exceptional music experience.
The programme includes Haydn’s String Quartet op 33 no 3 ‘The Bird’, Helena Winkelman’s Papa Haydn’s Parrot, and String Quartet op 56 ‘Voces Intimae’ by Sibelius.
One has enjoyed a very fine recording of the Sibelius for years but this performance exposed afresh the vitality of the quartet and laid bare its earnestness and the anxiety Sibelius was experiencing in his life at the time he composed it. The simple and brief opening dialogue between the violin and cello is delicately performed and hung in the air for some time as a contrasting backdrop to what is soon to unfold, especially the disquieting double-stopped chords at the end of the first movement. The central adagio di molto movement has the ASQ playing at their best with refined rubato, silky control of mixed and wavering rhythms, and clearly stated themes.
Like the adagio movement of the Sibelius, the ASQ’s reading of the slow movement of the Haydn is also outstanding in its tenderness. The opening interchange between the violins at the start of the composition is played with lightness and playfulness and with unflawed balance between the voices. The inherent comedy in the work comes through strongly, especially in the rondo final movement.
Composed in 2016, the Winkelman represents bold programming because it has a completely modern feel and wanders into new territory. However, because it is Winkelman’s homage to Haydn and is a ‘paraphrase’ of the Haydn quartet heard earlier, its inclusion in the program is genius. The connections between it and the Haydn are more obvious in the later movements, but there are enough ‘radicalisms’ early on to put one entirely off the scent! For example: quarter tones are used; strings are played at the very extreme upper ends of their ranges for extended periods creating unusual overtones; and knitting needles (!) are wedged between strings to create metallic zither-type sounds when tapped. The piece is exciting and has so much momentum that it is over before you know it. The seventh and eight movements are ‘closest’ to the Haydn and nicely bring us back to where the evening started.
The Winkelman would not have been to everyone’s taste, and it was astute of the ASQ to let the audience go home with the Sibelius and their enthusiastic response to it - wolf whistles and cheers – fresh in their minds rather than the Winkelman, which for this reviewer, was the true highlight of the evening.
Kym Clayton
When: 21 Feb
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed
Australian Chamber Orchestra. Adelaide Town Hall. 12 Feb 2019
Apart from displays of superb musicianship and technical ability, the Australian Chamber Orchestra can also be relied upon for bold, innovative programming and a sense of theatre. Their concerts are as much to be seen as to be heard.
Arvo Pärt and Johann Sebastian Bach is not an obvious pairing, but Artistic Director Richard Tognetti’s programming for the opening concert of the ACO’s 2019 season is quite inspired and is all the more surprising because he, a confirmed atheist, has selected a program of mostly religious or at least spiritual music. The glue that holds the program together is the 26 strong Estonian Choir that sings its way through most of the program all the way to heaven in the wonderful aesthetic of the Adelaide Town Hall.
It’s almost impossible to read the printed programme during the concert, which is probably a good thing, because the auditorium and stage is often in semi-darkness. Tognetti uses lighting to create a chiaroscuro effect when needed to underline the mood of the music and to draw us into an induced state to better appreciate the intentions of the composer.
With the choir arranged shoulder to shoulder across the stage in two tight ranks, the concert begins with a moody performance of Pärt’s Da pacem Domine. At its conclusion, the choir peels off to the sides to reveal a reduced ACO as they form two choirs in preparation for Bach’s Komm, Jesu, Komm, BWV229. The choreographed movement of the choir is accompanied by a lighting change which marks a movement some 200 years back in time. The vibrancy of Komm gives way to Pärt’s Summa which is an early expression of his so-called ‘tintinnabuli’ style. In it there is mathematical precision which, strangely, imbues a sense of liberation.
To round out the first half of the programme there is a swift and abrupt transition to four Bach motets: BWV225, 226, 229 and 230. These motets employ two standard SATB choirs which show the Estonian Choir at its very best. Precision, articulation, and finely tuned balance – especially in the alto and bass sections – allow the inherent joy of the four pieces to shine forth. All the time Tognetti’s conducting is precise and clear.
The linkage between Bach and Pärt is made more evident with an almost robust performance of Pärt’s Toccata from Collage on B-A-C-H. The mostly period instruments of the orchestra seem a perfect platform for the contrasting blend of baroque and modern minimalist styles that characterise the piece. Two more Bach motets (BWV 226 and 230) give way to Peter Sculthorpe’s Djilile, which was inspired by Indigenous song, and Estonian composer Galina Grigorjeva’s In Paradisum. The honeyed solo cello work of Timo-Veikko Valve in Djilile is spectacular, and the astounding clarity of the vocal lines in In Paradisum almost makes it sound as if we are listing to just a handful of voices.
The highlight of the eventing is an uplifting performance of Pärt’s Berliner Messe that highlights not only the musicality, passion and technical excellence of the musicians – singers and instrumentalists alike – but also reminds us of the genius of Arvo Pärt and how important a composer he is. In lesser hands, the exactitude in the composition might be perceived as pleasant but thin and tending to weariness, but Pärt instead invokes a heightened response from the audience that traverses tranquillity, entrancement, as well as moments of focussed passion. Noting that the composition was originally scored for choir and organ, the drone of the cello and bass in the exquisite Gloria very much imitates an organ, which is testimony to the appropriateness of the orchestration and to the skill of the players. The solo tenor and baritone vocalists in the Erster Alleluiavers produce some beautiful sounds, and the ‘tintinabuli’ effect of the altos and tenors in the Credo is a vocal highlight of the evening.
Bravo ACO!
Kym Clayton
When: 12 Feb
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed