Directed by Leonard Weiss
Queanbeyan Performing Arts
Centre, August 5.
Reviewed by TONY MAGEE
Somerset county provides a rich tapestry of musical heritage and
Gustav Holst explored this when he composed his “A Somerset Rhapsody” in 1907,
using themes drawn from the collected works of his friend Cecil Sharp, who had
amassed over 1500 folk songs from the region. Also home to the
Glastonbury Festival, Somerset is a Mecca for musicians and music-lovers from
around the world.
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| Somerset Scene |
So began the National Capital Orchestra’s concert at Queanbeyan’s
beautiful “Q” Theatre. A fine opening piece and well played by the orchestra
with particularly melodious work from the combined unison violas and cellos.
Second on the program was the world premiere of “Autonomy” by Canberra
composer Chloe Sinclair. The work was marred by a disastrous tuneup which left
the orchestra struggling to find any common pitch. It is a rhythmically
challenging work and tested the orchestra to its limits, sometimes a bit
beyond. The work itself is admirable and showcases Sinclair’s passion and
talent for unusual polyrhythms and block chordal writing contrasted with complex
polyphony. It must have been quite a thrill to hear her new work performed by a
full orchestra for the first time. More rehearsal would be a great idea and
hopefully there will be another and more successful performance in the near
future.
The Symphony No.8 by Ralph Vaughan Williams is a brilliant showcase
for an expanded percussion section and of particular note in this performance
was the beautiful doubling between woodwinds and vibraphone and later in the
final movement, the inclusion of celeste. The woodwind section is of a high
standard in this orchestra and actually carried the sound for a great deal of
the entire concert. Unfortunately, due to stage limitations, the gong had to be
placed in the wings and I could’t hear it from the centre of the theatre.
Perhaps other listeners in different locations could.
Tuning was poor to start the symphony, although it did improve. Not
enough care and attention to detail was placed on this critical part of
preparation for a performance. This is something that could be corrected easily
in rehearsal. Spend an entire rehearsal or more just on tuning practices if
necessary.
In the final movement the orchestra projected the power and drama of
the piece very well and in particular the strings captured the essence of the
Vaughan Williams sound with the classic sweeping parallel octaves and fifths (a
huge “no-no” in classical harmony!), sometimes reminiscent of his “Tallis
Fantasia”. Violin solos were nicely played by orchestra leader Thea Lau,
reflecting themes from “The Lark Ascending”.
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| Christopher Pidcock |
Elgar’s “Cello Concerto” with soloist Christopher Pidcock closed the
concert and was a stand-out performance. The orchestra transformed as Pidcock,
dressed in a stunning pale blue linen jacket over white T-shirt, led the way
with a masterful reading full of conviction, emotion, fire and delicacy. He
plays a 12 year old Schnabel cello, especially made for him in Germany and uses
a modern French bow. His powerful projection of pitch and intonation seemed to
pull the orchestra together and the sound was beautifully harmonious. Of
particular note was the fine ensemble playing and intonation from the quartet
of French Horns. Which just proves that the National Capital Orchestra can do
it, if only they would concentrate on details, pay more attention to their
conductor and listen to what is happening around them.
To quote Sir Thomas Beecham in a 1961 interview for BBC Television:
“In rehearsal, I pinpoint the details - all the little tricky bits. We go over
those a few times. The rest generally falls into place. Or as my father used to
say, referring to his Pills empire, ‘If you look after the pennies, the pounds
will take care of themselves’”.