Scottish Chamber Orchestra: Maxim’s Baroque Inspirations
Queen’s Hall - 07/12/23
Maxim Emelyanychev, conductor/harpsichord | Katherine Spencer, chalumeau | William Stafford, chalumeau | Stephanie Gonley, violin | Gordon Bragg, violin | Marcus Barcham Stevens, violin
Last November the Scottish Chamber Orchestra gave a Baroque Inspirations concert which left me and the audience members who commented on the Edinburgh Music Review website struggling for superlatives – “such complete joy” said one. Unsurprisingly tonight’s concert is a sell-out, although most of the works are little known. It shows how much the audience trusts this imaginative conductor and his multi-talented orchestra to explore sometimes tricky and unfamiliar music and provide exciting results.
First up is Vaughan Williams ‘Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis’ in which the playing is as perfect an example of the term “beautiful string tone” as I’ve heard. The composer proposed three groupings of strings to create the sound he required in Gloucester Cathedral in 1910: an ensemble of nine players, a string quartet and larger group of the other strings. Maxim keeps the nine players on the back row (four violins, two violas, two cellos and a double bass), but has the other players set more conventionally, first violins to his left, seconds to his right and the other strings behind, so the quartet – the principals of the sections – play from their normal orchestra positions. It’s complicated but it certainly works. After the pianissimo opening, violas and cellos play Tallis’s melody, which appealed to Vaughan Williams for its folk-like elements. By raising the nine piece band above the others their harmonising echoes of the theme played by the larger orchestra produces a lovely resonance. The string quartet’s placement provides a sense of space, with the viola, played by guest principal Asdis Valdimarsdottir, often leading their quieter interventions. Possibly the best-known work in the programme is given a new-found sense of wonder in this fine performance.
Maxim’s harpsichord is situated in the midst of the small chamber grouping for Philip Glass’s 2002 ‘Harpsichord Concerto’: a string quartet of the section principals sits in front of him, with two horns, two oboes, flute, bassoon and double bass behind. The stage incidentally is set up in tiers tonight, improving the audience’s view of the players, and also having an effect on the sound. Compared with last year’s minimalist but exuberant harpsichord work by Gorecki, the first two movements of Glass’s concerto are much more restrained. There is little minimalism either, with Glass being keen to explore both the Baroque repertoire for the instrument while pitting what he called “the more robust sound” of the modern harpsichord against a chamber ensemble. The Baroque influence is particularly obvious in the second movement which the harpsichord begins with a slow decorated theme, like a Bach keyboard prelude, which is picked up firstly by the strings and then by the winds. There’s a complete contrast in the third movement, a Latin American inspired upbeat dance, with bassoonist, Cerys Ambrose-Evans, swaying like a saxophonist to the beat, Andre Cebrian finding jazz-inspired whoops on the flute, Nikita Namov playing groovy pizzicato on double-bass and Maxim enjoying his syncopated chords. Needless to say there’s terrific applause after the storming finish.
Respighi’s 1917 ‘Ancient Airs and Dances Suite No 1’ needs the largest orchestra tonight and is the most authentic sounding of the Baroque-inspired pieces. There are two rows of winds; Eleanor Hudson is on harp and Jan Waterfield on harpsichord. Respighi took the themes for his four dance movements from two named 16th century composers, Molinaro and Galilei, and other anonymous sources. Each section contrasts the outer sections which explore the melody with a central section which offers another theme featuring different instruments and speeds. In the opening ‘Balletto’ strings and harpsichord play an elegant dance while the slower middle section features oboes and bassoons. The ‘Gagliarda’ has a strongly accentuated beat played by horns, flutes and strings, contrasted with the quicker flowing theme for strings and oboes before the flutes lead the swaggering conclusion. The slow ‘Villanella’ begins with string pizzicato, the first violins holding their instruments like lutes. This leads to an oboe and flute melody, with the harp playing with violas and cellos in the quicker central section. Peter Franks on trumpet leads off the final movement, which features tunes played at masked balls, and combines various folk dances in a celebratory mood for horns, as well as a trumpet solo in the middle section.
As the bar fills up at the interval, the sound of pipes and drums heralds a procession of SCO musicians to a make-shift stage next to the stairs. Cerys Ambrose-Evans on bassoon, Alison Green on contra-bassoon, Pablo Fitzgerald Verdon, our lutenist for the second half, on guitar, Iain Sandilands on wooden tambors and a tambourin, Julian Scott, I think, on oboe and leading the band, Maxim on recorders of different sizes. They play the sort of rhythmic music which might have been played by street bands. It’s a delightful unexpected bonus for the appreciative crowd.
A special word of thanks to Maxim who, despite being on stage all evening, has fronted this musical treat with obvious enjoyment. He returns to stage promptly to take his place at the harpsichord to direct the second half. During the three ‘proper’ baroque works, the strings stand to play, something which always produces an extra rapport and energy between the musicians. Jan Waterfield is on the chamber organ and Pablo Fitzgerald Cerdan plays the lute. Corelli’s ‘Concerto Grosso in B-flat Opus 6 no 11’, which probably dates from the late 17th century was one of a set of twelve published in 1712. The composer coined the term Concerto Grosso, and the six short movements are for a featured group of players, the “concerto,” here two violins, cello and harpsichord and lute continuo, which are accompanied by the larger group of other musicians, called the “ripieno”. After a sedate start, both groups of players seem to chase each other in the fast second movement. The third movement adagio has a sumptuous melody with rich harmonies and the fourth movement andante has a solo spot for the lute. Another very listenable discovery.
The chalumeau, Maxim tells us, is the precursor of the clarinet, and as each instrument has only an octave range, William Stafford will play tenor chalumeau and Katherine the alto version in Telemann’s ‘Concerto in D Minor for Two Chalumeaux.’ The work in four movements begins with a largo, and the first impression is how softly these instruments play. I heard a trio of basset horns, the near relatives of the bass clarinet, at St Cecilia’s Hall in the summer, and these large wooden jointed instruments produced deep and carrying notes. In contrast the audience has to focus to hear the two chalumeaux, - you can hear a pin drop in the hall - and they play separately from the rest of the orchestra. In the sprightly allegro, the instruments are played with more attack, along with the cello, lute and harp. There’s some nice embellished passages, particularly from Katherine on the alto, showing off the possibilities of the instrument, which William exploits on his lower chalumeau in the adagio, before a sparkling melodic finale.
After their work-out in the Bach double concerto last week, Stephanie Gonley and Marcus Barcham Stevens are joined by Gordon Bragg for the final work, Bach’s Triple Concerto in D (circa 1730), which was “reconstructed” for three violins in 1970. Donal Hurley commented recently on the special feeling in an orchestra when one of their members takes the solo limelight, and that’s certainly true tonight - and may explain why the last two works happen virtually without a conductor or director. The trio turn round for a signal from Maxim at the beginning of each movement and that suffices! The soloists play pretty much all the time, in different permutations from playing together, playing in a fugue, echoing each other’s solo lines, and short solos from each of the players. There are some interesting effects too, when the five section principals play with the trio, and in the second movement act as an echo. The pacy allegro has time for a solo cadenza from Stephanie Gonley before the orchestra brings another exciting evening of musical discoveries to a close.
Can I commend the essential companion for this wide-ranging concert, the programme.
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