Music Of Michael
Dooley
All Saints Church, Ainslie
28 November 2015
Review by Len Power
How could you resist “a musical Tardis transporting
concert-goers from baroque-era Leipzig through four centuries of musical heritage
ending in a tango hall in Argentina?”
In ‘Anachronisms’, local composer Michael Dooley delivered
on his promise at All Saints Church in Ainslie with eleven original
compositions in baroque, early and late classical, romantic, impressionist and modernist
styles, plus a tango. Somehow he also
rounded up a dazzling group of pianists to play his compositions with him,
including James Huntingford, Emily Leong, Sally Greenaway, Aaron Chew and
Andrew Rumsey.
This was no stiff and formal classical concert. It was a relaxed evening of great music with
clever and witty comments coming thick and fast from the composer and the
pianists, all of whom showed they could change to a career in stand up comedy
if they wanted to.
There were some standout moments in the concert. The dream-like andante grazioso movement of
the Sonata in C major reminiscent of Mozart and composers of the early
classical era was played beautifully by James Huntingford. The Pilgrim Fantasia – a grand, emotional,
romantic musical journey – was played brilliantly by Aaron Chew and Andrew
Rumsey expertly played the challenging Toccata, written in the style of composers
from the Modernist era. The big crowd
pleaser, though, was the Etude: In Pursuit Of The Mouse, a fiendishly fast and
witty piece performed with gusto by James Huntingford.
The evening finished with ‘Tango In Chic’, in which all six
performers managed to play this appealing work together on the one piano. As if that wasn’t enough, James Huntingford
and Andrew Rumsey danced a passionate tango together up and down the church’s
centre aisle!
This review was first published in Canberra City News digital edition 30 November 2015. Len Power's reviews can also be heard on Artsound FM's 'Artcetera' program from 9.00am Saturdays.