EIF: Richard Egarr and Friends
Queen’s Hall – 24/08/22
This delightful morning concert at the Queen’s Hall was billed as Richard Egarr and Friends. By the end of it, I can guarantee he had made many more friends!
A recital which covers pretty much all the baroque repertoire for three violins and bass continuo might be thought esoteric and perhaps rather dull, but a mixture of supremely talented players, the obvious enthusiasm of harpsichordist Richard Egarr, and a carefully balanced programme resulted in one of my “Concerts of the Festival”.
Mr Egarr’s witty and informative introductions to each piece made all the difference, as he pointed out what we should listen for, and drew attention to items of interest. Beginning with Giovanni Gabrieli’s Sonata XXI for three violins, we were plunged right into the wonderful sound world of the late Renaissance/early Baroque period. From then on, Mr Egarr mixed the instrumental variations about, and put in a couple of solo harpsichord pieces which he played exquisitely, although noting that the unevenly tempered tuning made for some outlandish sounds, and his warnings were heeded by the audience, as was his certainty that the penultimate chord would resolve everything happily.
The three violinists were cleverly chosen, the shoulder-held violin of Bojan Čičić contrasting with Ruiqi Ren’s cool perfection and Rachell Ellen Wong’s more theatrical style. It made for spectacular playing. Richard Egarr at the harpsichord controlled the proceedings, while Alex McCartney (theorbo) and Jonathan Rees (viola da gamba) provided the bass upon which everything depended. At one point, two violins were outside the hall, providing echoes to the one in the hall, in a magnificent stereophonic effect. This was the ‘Sonata in Ecco’ by Biagio Marini, who can never have imagined that 400 years later his unusual piece would be thrilling an Edinburgh audience.
The concert was billed as Richard Egarr and friends, and it was very clear that all the players knew and liked each other, such was the rapport between them, and there is also no doubt that the catalyst for this music making was Mr Egarr himself. He had even gone so far as to adapt a motet by Lully, ‘Salve Regina’, to find another example of a three violin piece. Perhaps the most thrilling work was the sonata by Buonamente, with fast virtuosic handing round of themes and tunes between the three players. The first half ended with Purcell’s estimable ‘Three parts upon a Ground’, where a swaggering six note bass pattern was the ground for flights of fantasy above.
The concert ended with the famous ‘Canon and Gigue’ by Johan Pachelbel, its eight note bass allowing even more excitement in the violins. Rather like the Bruch violin concerto we had heard played by Nicola Benedetti two nights before, this was an example of a one-hit wonder, but the name of Pachelbel is forever associated with this exquisite work.
A delightful encore sent us out laughing, as Richard’s arrangement of ‘Three Little Maids from School’ had everyone in fits!
Richard Egarr’s wonderful enthusiasm and gift for introducing music fills me with anticipation for his Brandenburg Concerto programme on Saturday morning. Grab a ticket if you can, and certainly listen to Radio 3.
Cover photo: Ryan Buchanan
