Somerset Guardian, July 2010

Rewarding evening of music making by young orchestra

Last Saturday evening saw a welcome return visit by the Amadeus Orchestra. The purpose of the orchestra is to give valuable experience to young musicians many of whom go on to play in a world class orchestras. As one would expect from so youthful a body, they play with a commitment not always shown by their senior colleagues in the profession.

 

As befitted a beautiful summer evening, the concert opened with one of Ralph Vaughan Williams' most popular works, The Lark Ascending. The fine soloist was the orchestra's leader, Francesca Barritt. Paul Johnson, a student conductor, set the scene with hushed opening string chords above which the soloist entered with easeful tone. Her handling of the difficult florid passages was impressive as was her double stopping. In the central section the woodwind were discrete and nicely balanced. The close of the piece where the lone violin soars to the heights was quite magical.

 

Philip Mackenzie, the orchestra's regular conductor, took the helm for the remainder of the concert beginning with Kaleidoscope by Peter Hope. Written in 1969 for the BBC Concert Orchestra, it is in the form of a theme with variations designed to show off the various sections of the orchestra. It was a contrast to the serenity of the Vaughan Williams with influences of jazz and echoes of Aaron Copland.The young players weighed in with considerable zest taking the virtuoso writing in their stride.

 

The first half of the concert concluded with another renowned orchestral showpiece, Richard Strauss's tone poem, Till Eulenspiegel .From the subtly phrased opening to the final flourish the players delivered an exciting account of the score. The first horn deserves special mention for his confident rendering of his tricky solos. The conductor must be commended for steering his players through the many changes of tempo and also his use of rubato. This was a hair-raising performance.

 

The concert concluded, as it began, with a work by Vaughan Williams, his Sea Symphony – the second time in just over a year it had been heard in the cathedral. The arresting opening fanfare set the tone for a powerful rendering.

The orchestra was joined by the excellent Bournemouth Symphony Chorus whose chorus master, Gavin Carr, conducted last year's performance. They sang with great precision and power when demanded and with sensitivity in the more reflective passages. The soprano soloist was Janis Kelly, well known for her operatic performances at Covent Garden and elsewhere. She thrilled us with her powerful delivery and projected well over the orchestra in the climaxes. Richard Morrison, the baritone, has an attractive timbre and sang with great warmth of feeling, especially in the second movement, On the Beach at Night Alone.

 

The orchestra was more than equal to their task. In particular they impressed with a deft account of the third movement, The Waves , which has strong echoes of Debussy's La Mer.

 

All in all, this proved a rewarding evening of music making.

 

Brendan Sadler

 

Read this review on the this is Somerset website

 

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