Alexander Chance and the Dunedin Consort
Crichton Collegiate Church, 8/9/24
Alexander Chance (Countertenor), Dunedin Consort, Matthew Truscott (Violin/Leader)
I do love the Lammermuir Festival. I’ve seen two shows so far, and they have been two of the concerts of the year already!
After the jolly shenanigans of ‘Albert Herring’ in Haddington, we heard a sublime recital today in Crichton Collegiate Church in Midlothian. The Dunedin Consort with Alexander Chance (countertenor) presented us with a programme of works (almost certainly unknown to 99% of the audience) by Vivaldi, Tůma and Zelenka.
The Dunedins have come a long way from the brainchild of Susan Hamilton and Ben Parry, which was a Scottish based vocal ensemble dedicated to baroque music, to the current, largely instrumental, consort dedicated to period performance, which has become one of the leading ensembles in the world. While we may lament the loss of the initial concept, one must salute the extraordinary success of the present Consort, and this concert certainly highlighted the magnificent musicianship of the players, all of whom are first-class virtuosi in their own right.
The little church at Crichton is an acoustic gem, if not ideal for access in a wet year! The place was packed and buzzing in anticipation of a top class concert, and we weren’t disappointed.
We started with a bassoon concerto by Antonio Vivaldi (RV503) - one of 39 he wrote for the instrument - which was expertly played by Inga Maria Klauke. This German bassoonist, an integral member of Solomon’s Knot, the cutting edge collective of singers and instrumentalists who play from memory and are currently revolutionising early music in the UK, gave an impassioned, bravura performance of this extraordinary piece.
Next we heard ‘Per labra nectar bibitur’, an amazing work by the Bohemian composer, František Tůma (1678-1741), Kapellmeister at the Imperial Court in Vienna, a Marian hymn for Alto, violin and viola, with continuo. This introduced us to the fabulous countertenor, Alexander Chance, who I raved about in the New Year Messiah with the Edinburgh Royal Choral Union in the Usher Hall. His singing is simply superb, with a huge variety of colours, a large range, moving easily through the registers, and a control of dynamics rare in a countertenor. The whole package is enhanced by a commanding stage presence, relaxed but dominant, and I was pleased to see that his rather louche demeanour from the Usher Hall had disappeared. The piece was most unusual, with great interplay between voice, violin and viola, and a heady mixture of devotional and erotic, as the text waxed lyrical about the effect just of Mary’s name on the heart of the disciple.
The first half ended with a setting of part 2 of the ‘Lamentations of Jeremiah’ by another rarely heard Bohemian, Jan Dismas Zelenka (1679-1745), with a quartet of alto voice, violin, oboe and bassoon with continuo. Along with Mr Chance and Ms Klauke, the work featured the skills of Matthew Truscott and Alexandra Bellamy. This was another unique composition, with flights of fancy over the introductory Hebrew letters at the beginning of each section, and the Latin words performed as a sort of recitative. Mr Chance once again produced a gorgeous flow of beautiful countertenor singing, and the various combinations of texture supplied by the solo quartet were most effective. Everything was rounded off by an extended meditation on the words ‘Jerusalem, return to the Lord your God!’
We mingled outside the church in the autumn mist and discovered the major drawback of Crichton Collegiate Church – there’s only one loo! It’s a delightful venue, but the other problem is that, as it is in the middle of the country, virtually everyone has to come by car, and parking is in a field. After a summer like this one, fields are not ideal for moving cars around and the admirable volunteer ushers had a lot of trouble organising the parking.
The second half began with the ‘Concerto à 8 Concertanti’ by Zelenka, a wildly epic piece for eight instruments, with duelling violins Matthew Truscott and Huw Daniel, viola, cello and bass played expertly by John Crockatt, Jonathan Manson and Hannah Turnbull, virtuosic parts for oboe and bassoon, played by Alexandra Bellamy and Inga Maria Kaluke, and the whole ensemble kept together by the chamber organ of Jan Waterfield. Jan, wearing her piano accompanist hat, appears on my solo CD, ‘Songs of Stevenson’ (Birnam CD), and is much in demand all over the country as one of Britain’s top continuo players.
The concert was concluded with more Vivaldi, firstly a reverential piece for Holy Week, the ‘Sonata à 4, al Santo Sepolcro’, and then ‘Stabat Mater’, the great cry of pain at the sight of Mary weeping over her lost child at the cross.
The Sonata is a descriptive string piece on the subject of the three Marys who come to the tomb and find it empty, while the ‘Stabat Mater’ is an extended vocal work for countertenor, strings and organ, which uses the desperately sad words to great effect, finally finding hope in sharing Mary’s grief, and, after a fugal Amen, landing on an optimistic chord of F Major.
Alexander Chance was given free rein by Vivaldi to show us the extent of his range and interpretative skills, and the ovation at the end suggested he had succeeded. As I said in my review of his Messiah in January, Alexander is that rare beast, a son who easily bears comparison with his renowned father, the countertenor, Michael Chance. I asked him afterwards who he had studied with, and he revealed that, after working with various voice teachers, he now works with Michael himself. Why spend money on expensive voice coaches when you can work with the best by popping home! Whatever the journey, the result is stunning, and I look forward to hearing lots more from Chance Junior in the future.
