Adelaide Festival. Adelaide Town Hall. 5 Mar 2022
Haydn was commissioned by his royal patron and employer to compose many works and amongst the first were the so-called ‘time of day’ symphonies. There are three of them: Le Matin (The Morning), Le Midi (The Afternoon), and Le Soir (The Evening). It is thought they were written to not only impress Haydn’s employer, but also to curry favour with influential musicians who would be performing them by incorporating instrumental solo passages that were almost virtuosic. This was revolutionary at the time in a symphony – to foreground so many instruments – and it is unusual even today. The symphonies are relatively short in duration, and are not frequently included in standard orchestral repertoire. So, what a delight to be able to hear them all, and performed at the time of day appropriate to their names.
Performed over three hour-long concerts on a single day in the wonderful acoustic and ‘old-world’ ambience of the Adelaide Town Hall, the Australian Haydn Ensemble presents a wonderful program featuring Haydn’s three ‘time of day’ symphonies, three of his keyboard concerti, the very first keyboard compositions by Mozart for keyboard, and three sinfonias by CPE Bach. Threes abound!
Played expertly on mostly period instruments (or modern ones crafted in period style), the three programs provide a wonderful musical survey of the music of the late 18th century.
The Australian Haydn Ensemble’s playing is typified by clarity and precision, but never devoid of passion and apparent impulse. Energetically conducted by Erin Helyard from the keyboard – also a genuine instrument from the period lovingly and expertly refurbished by Australian craftsman Carey Beebe – and skilfully led by violinist Skye McIntosh, the Ensemble impresses with every note and every phrase. The clarity and precision is not coldly clinical – it is a living thing that is impatient to evolve and continually strive for flawlessness. It’s really quite astonishing, and the audience applauded enthusiastically whenever it got the chance.
Individual musicians (including violin, violone, viola, bass, cello, flute, bassoon, and horn) excel in their performances of the challenging lyrical passages that provide the spice of the Haydn symphonies. Haydn’s orchestration is perfect, and allows the solos to be clearly heard, as well as the harpsichord, and Helyard and McIntosh ensure this happens.
The Ensemble’s performances of the CPE Bach sinfonias are as good as you will hear anywhere in the world. They are played with brightness, and the occasional adventurous harmony and rhythm sound instantly fresh.
Helyard’s expertise at the harpsichord is palpable. His performance of the Mozart keyboard pieces allows them to be heard with fresh ears. Yes, they are ‘youthful’ and ‘immature’ compositions, but Helyard is not dismissive and allows the fledgling genius to shine through.
These three programs are the true stuff of major festivals. Hearty thanks and congratulations to the Adelaide Festival for bringing the Australian Haydn Ensemble to Adelaide for the first time ever, and for programming such an enthralling musical event.
Kym Clayton
When: Closed
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed
★★★★
Adelaide Fringe. Pilgrim Uniting Church. 23 Feb 2022
It’s a big call to name any composer as the greatest ever, let alone four of them even if the field of contenders is narrowed down to those whose surnames all begin with the letter B, but that is precisely what The Adelaide Virtuosi Trio have done in their concert The 4 Greatest Classical B’s. Of course it’s a programming and marketing ploy, but there can be no doubt that the four B’s they’ve selected – Bach, Beethoven, Brahms, and Bartok – loom large in the pantheon of greats and almost any selection of their compositions provides a solid survey of the history of western art music.
The Adelaide Virtuosi Trio comprises Adam Rybovic (piano), Marta Sutora (violin), and Matej Sutora (violin). They are accomplished professional musicians who all have their roots in Slovakia. For their well-attended concert they have chosen Bach’s Concerto for Two Violins in D Minor, BWV 1403, Beethoven’s Romance for Violin and Orchestra No. 2 in F, Op.50, Brahms’ Violin Concerto in D, Op.77 (second movement), and Bartok’s Romanian Folk Dances, Sz.68. In some ways it is a risky program: all pieces are well known to audiences, and expectations are understandably high.
To a person, the Trio’s playing is lyrical and underscored by understanding and enthusiasm, without being zealous or overly demonstrative.
The Sutora’s articulated the two violin lines in the Bach with notable clarity, with one gently retreating when it is time for the other to feature.
Rybovic and Matej Sutora performed the Romance, and easily conveyed the ample melody. Rybovic was perhaps a little too generous on the pedal in some of the unaccompanied sections.
Marta Sutora replaced Matej Sutora in the Brahms, and Rybovic played the piano reduction of the orchestral part. The pace was comfortable and dreamy, and despite the adagio marking could have been slightly more andante to ease the nakedness of the phrasing of the violin which is apparent when an orchestra is absent. When it was over, the sigh of contentment from sections of the audience was palpable.
The Bartók Dances were a highlight of the concert. The Trio found the playfulness in each dance, the innate lyricism, and downplayed the temptation to be percussive.
And there were encores, the highlight of which was a heartfelt performance of Chopin’s Ballade No.1 in G Minor, Op. 23, which he played as homage to his grandmother who recently passed away. It is one of Chopin’s most popular works and pops up in films from time to time. It evokes sorrow, majesty, contemplation, and passion. It evokes memories of loved ones.
This concert is accessible to a broad general audience and to aficionados alike.
Kym Clayton
When: 3 and 13 Mar
Where: Pilgrim Uniting Church
Bookings: adelaidefringe.com.au
Adelaide Symphony Orchestra. Sanctuary series. Grainger Studio. 4 Feb 2022
We all naturally gravitate to music for many reasons, including to relax and to refresh. Unlike most (all?) other forms of human creativity and artistic expression, music promises the rare ability to alter our perspective of things, and the effect is almost immediate. The Adelaide Symphony Orchestra’s recently concluded Time and Space concert delivered on that promise, in spades.
In these COVID stricken times, the ASO has capitalised on the imperative to operate with a reduced audience and turned it into the silver lining of an otherwise grey cloud. Specifically, the seating for the concert is gloriously spaced with choices of either sitting or lying down on a yoga mat, or sitting in comfortable chairs that are well spaced. The lights in the Grainger Studio are dimmed throughout the concert, and there is silence between each piece of music and at the end – no applause.
For an hour there is the music, you, and your thoughts. Nothing else and it is transcendent.
David Sharp, who usually is a member of the ASO’s cello section, conducts with quiet confidence and assurance a program for string orchestra comprising Philip Glass’s Tirol concerto for piano and orchestra (second movement), Osvaldo Golijov’s Tenebrae (arranged by Sharp himself), Valentin Silvestrov’s Der Bote, and Arvo Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel. The music is deeply meditative and contemplative, and persuades you to settle back, close your eyes and forget the troubles of the outside world.
Michael Ierace finessed the complexities of the Glass concerto and made each hypnotic repetition sound fresh and new. Having the grand piano at the back of the orchestra is an interesting decision (presumably by Sharp), but in the context of the event it’s entirely appropriate not to have a visual focus on such an imposing instrument. The dominant sense is intended to be hearing. His playing in Silevstrov’s Der Bote is again haunting as it emerges from the back of the auditorium and creates a sense of aching longingness and pathos.
Originally written for soprano, clarinet and string quartet, Sharp’s arrangement of Golijov’s Tenebrae is mostly successful but perhaps works better with a smaller ensemble where the voices of individual strings can shine through with greater clarity.
For many, the highlight of the concert was a sublime performance of Pärt’s Spiegel im Spiegel, featuring Simon Cobcroft on cello and Ierace on piano. Again, the repetitive nature of the piece – with its exquisitely beautiful variations that are seemingly predictable but always a surprise – inspired a deep sense of calm and tranquillity and sent the audience out into the balmy evening refreshed and relaxed.
Bravo ASO. What a wonderful addition to our concert diary. This is the first of two concerts in the ASO’s Sanctuary Series, and the next one is in October and is not to be missed.
Kym Clayton
When: Closed
Where: Grainger Studio
Bookings: Closed
State Opera South Australia. Her Majesty’s Theatre. 19 Nov 2021
He walks on stage and you gasp at the sheer size of the man. You gasp again when his beautiful bass-baritone fills Her Maj, and now there is no oxygen in the theatre and you swoon. OK, that’s all a bit over the top, but within seconds, you know you are in for a very special evening.
Ironically, Teddy opens with Figaro’s Largo al factotum from Rossini’s Barber of Seville. I say ironically because he is surrounded by the colourful doors and windows of the Seville set – the opera was still playing this weekend. In that production, several players easily fitted into the imagined town square, but Teddy, Guy Noble and his piano seemed to fill it all by themselves. The tongue-twisting la-la-las delightfully came trippingly off his tongue in singular sonorous monosyllables. The first act was nicely bookended with Figaro’s famous aria, Non piu andrai, from Mozart’s opera buffa, The Marriage of… the same guy.
The song list was as electric as it was eclectic. A classical song-set from the canon of Schubert and Schumann was separated from a cycle of Rodgers & Hammerstein musical numbers by Guy Noble’s sensitive rendition of Chopin’s Nocturne Op. 9, No.1. Guy and Teddy have a delectable rapport, including some risky ribbing about the 300 onstage kisses Teddy had with Lisa McCune during the lengthy season of South Pacific nearly 10 years ago. Wink, wink, nudge, nudge, and say no more.
Guy Noble opened after interval with a cheeky re-worded When I Was A Lad from H.M.S. Pinafore including a jab at the vax-shy. This and the rest were enthusiastically enjoyed. Teddy let it slip that his oeuvre of operatic roles is missing King Phillip in Verdi’s Don Carlos. He implored someone in the audience to produce the opera and subsequently auditioned with a stunningly nuanced Ella giammi m’amo. Bravo! His precious pipes seemed too rich for Fiddler On The Roof’s If I Were A Rich Man. The remaining program demonstrated the Kiwi’s respect for old-time Australian ballads like Clancy of the Overflow and Botany Bay. I imagined a local band at The King’s Head saying, “I think I see a Kiwi songbird in the audience! Teddy, will you come up and sing Along The Road to Gundagai for us?”
But that’s the familiarity Teddy and Guy fostered. A one-off chance to get to know these great artists who are normally remote behind the 88s and costumes in more formal performance and character modes. Teddy introduced so many songs as his lifetime favourites, even from his boyhood singing lessons at the teacher’s house (again my mind raced, “What’s going on next door? Is she teaching a motorcycle how to sing?”) He told us why each song was important to him and how it fit into his development and dreams. And nothing was dreamier than sending us off with a childhood memory – New Zealand TV’s sign-off song when going off air. In a cartoon, he explained, a Kiwi bird pulls up a blanket as it snuggles into a satellite dish and a lullaby signals that the viewing day is over. He honours that memory, and purred the good-night like I’m sure it’s never been done before. Double bravo!
David Grybowski
When: 19 to 20 Nov
Where: Her Majesty’s Theatre
Bookings: Closed
Musica Viva Australia. Adelaide Town Hall. 22 Sep 2021
At the start of the second half of the program before the ensemble launched into the mighty Piano Quintet in F minor, Op.34 by Brahms, pianist Konstantin Shamray addressed the audience – as is customary in Musica Viva concerts – and gave us an insight into Brahms himself rather than the music. “Brahms”, Shamray quips, “was politically incorrect”, and to the great delight of the audience related the following example of Brahms’ gruff humour: Brahms and his colleague Josef Gänsbacher, a cellist, were privately playing one of his sonatas for cello and piano when Gänsbacher complained that he couldn’t hear himself over the piano; Brahms replied: ‘You’re a lucky man!’
It may have been that Gänsbacher wasn’t worth listening to, but what an absolute joy it is to hear this fabulous quintet of players. They don’t regularly play as an ensemble, and hence they have no name. On this occasion they have joined forces to replace the celebrated Goldner String Quartet and Piers Lane who have been locked down in COVID-ravaged Sydney and unable to meet, rehearse or tour! The program they present here is almost the same as what the Goldners and Lane were planning to tour for Musica Viva, except that the planned world première of Jakub Jankowski’s quartet, Kairos, commissioned by the Adelaide Commissioning Circle, was postponed to a future time and replaced by Peter Sculthorpe’s evocative String Quartet No. 15.
Sculthorpe’s String Quartet No. 15 is an evocative composition, and according to Sculthorpe is his response to the vocal tradition of the Simori mountain people of New Guinea. Comprising five eclectic short pieces of about three minutes each, the composition traverses a range of melodic and rhythmic structures that clearly have a non-western ‘feel’ about them. The ensemble play with extraordinary clarity and expose the essence of the work. The droning and stridency evident in the first movement becomes beautiful and playful; the menace and foreboding of the second movement evokes Bernard Herrmann’s score to the famous shower scene in the Hitchcock thriller Psycho, but the ensemble imbues it with a respectful awe; the third movement features a sublime panoramic partnership between King on viola and Cobcroft on cello, and the fourth movement allows Hill and Ayres on violin to usher in a feeling of optimism and arriving at a new destination. The final movement, entitled a cry of joy brings a hush over the audience: were we actually listening to birdsong? The superb technique of the ensemble is laid bare.
Dvořák’s ever-popular String Quartet No.12 in F, Op.96 – the so-called ‘American’ – is a veritable cornucopia of lyrical melodies that once heard remains on humming lips for hours to come. Various musicologists have suggested a programme to the composition, but as pure music it stands by itself and requires no ‘imposed explanation’ to enhance one’s enjoyment of it. Articulation and clarity is again the dominant feature of the ensemble’s performance. In the allegro first movement, Hill and Ayres play with careful and welcome restraint to allow the viola and cello lines to have dominance when needed. In the lento second movement, Cobcroft plays the languid and sad melody with much sensitivity. The heartfelt humour and friskiness inherent in the third movement is evident, and this gives way to joyful playfulness in the finale.
And then to the engine house of the program. The Brahms quintet is a major undertaking for any band, and the performance by tonight’s ‘occasional’ ensemble is as good as any, one has ever heard. Shamray’s performance at the piano, particularly with the right hand, provides a robust and well defined backbone that sustains the endeavours of the strings. The dynamical balance between each of the five instrumentalists is intelligently thought-out, expertly executed, and results in a performance that exudes both lucidity and passion. The forté sections are exhilarating yet pleasingly controlled with ever-present momentum - nothing mawkish.
The most pleasing thing about this concert is that Cameron Hill, Helen Ayres, Stephen King, Simon Cobcroft and Konstantin Shamray all call Adelaide ‘home’. As the old saying goes, every cloud has silver lining, and the COVID-cloud has forced us to rely on our local musical talent to provide our fix of quality art music, and what a fix this performance has been. Here we have an ensemble of musicians at the peak of their craft performing an immensely challenging program and producing an exceptional result. Let’s have more of it, and once the pandemic is done, let’s continue to enjoy and support local talent. It’s world class.
Kym Clayton
When: Closed
Where: Adelaide Town Hall
Bookings: Closed