Inventiveness

I had the inside goss as tenor Jack Jordan was staying with us for a few days to prepare and perform the first Living Collection session at the National Library, this one for the music of Aussie/Brit composer Luke Styles.  Luke was in house for the event; it was his archive that had been accessioned into the collection of the NLA and we were here to hear of it and to sample some of his music.  The event opened with a children's choir in the Library foyer, then a move to the NLA Theatre and several further performances and discussions.  Marie-Louise Ayres, NLA DG, opened the session.  We saw images of hand-written manuscripts on screen.  We heard discussion back and forth between Luke and Toby on Luke's history at Glyndebourne, the Foundling Museum, Covent Garden and more; his donation, his music and how he thinks on creation and composition; his first instruments (flute> e-bass>double bass); the joy both Luke and Tobias have in working on music with kids; the importance and implications of vocals; Shakespearean sonnets and the work we were to hear, Vanity, setting Sonnets 2,18,137,138.  The music in the theatre was some young-themed songs from the children's choir (out of Vocal Fry and Canberra Children's Choir) under Tobias, vln/vla duo and vln solo (Slogan 1 and Bound) from Brad and Pippa, and those 4 sonnets (Vanity) from Canberra Singers, tenor Jack and bass Andrew with accompaniment from violin Brad with Tobias conducting.  The youth pieces were amusing and playful and not at all rollovers.  The other pieces were hugely challenging to learn, to hear, to understand, at least at first hearing, but fascinating for a prepared, informed audience.  Suffice to say, part of the event was playfully child-centred and influenced, part was a difficult adult listen and a demanding performance, part was a fascinating discussion around this significant addition to the NLA collection.  And you can see all this: it was streamed live and is on YouTube with the title "Living collection: The music of Luke Styles".

Luke Styles (composer) and Tobias Cole discussed Luke's donation and history. Tobias Cole (conductor) led several groups in performance of some music of Luke Styles.  Performers were Canberra Children's Choir, Vocal Fry (choir), Kimberley Steele (piano), Canberra Singers (choir), Brad Tham (violin), Pippa Newmann (viola), Jack Jordan (tenor) and Andrew Fysh (bass).

Living collection : The music of Luke Styles

Revisiting youth

I've enjoyed my last few years playing in orchestras but I really thought I'd left my run for the Canberra Youth Orchestra a little late. But no! Last night I played with CYO in Carmina Burana! I joked about that with someone and they commented on the interchangeability of orchestras in Canberra. Perhaps because we are a smallish community where people have common connections and are physically mobile and flexible. Also that we are pretty well endowed with classical opportunities. I hope this lasts. At least last night, the complete viola and bass sections were friends or alumni. And they often just drop in at the last minute. I only sat in Friday night and Saturday morning before the performance on Saturday night. But it's quite readable for bass and I'd played it before. Not sure the singing was so easy. Canberra Choral Society provided most of that and they performed a treat. There were less frequent kids voices from the Canberra Children's Choir and some accompanying aged voices from Seasoned Voices. That was fascinating: the two ends of a singer's life represented in these mediaeval words put, fairly recently, to music (Carl Orff wrote Carmina Burana in the 1930s using mediaeval texts). Plus there were solo singers, soprano Rachael Duncan, tenor Tobias Cole and baritone Andrew O'Connor. They impressed massively, not least Rachael's glorious and touching resolution with the endless (8 bar+) sustained high note and Tobias' black boa and matching theatricality. The choir had been prepared by Dan Walker and he sang amongst the tenors. Otherwise, there was the CYO itself with its friends and alumni. Great job by them and all. I sat by the percussion and they were wondrously varied and sharp. The winds did a great job with their features. The basses done good, too. I'm pleased to notice my own improvement over recent years. I played CB with NCO in July 2016 but I felt far more in command this time. That's a personal satisfaction. And again Lenny is passing a baton: this was his last concert with CYO before going off to study in Baltimore. And perhaps just one oddity to mention: a classical concert with no interval, just the uninterrupted Carmina. This was a great pleasure and a wonderfully evocative and successful rendition of this popular classic.

Carmina Burana was presented by Canberra Youth Orchestra, Canberra Choral Society, Canberra Children's Choir and Seasoned Voices with soloists Rachael Duncan (soprano), Tobias Cole (tenor) and Andrew O'Connor (baritone) under Leonard Weiss (conductor) and Dan Walker (chorus master). The bass section was Hayley Manning (principal), Kyle Daniel, Chelsea Kennett and Eric Pozza.

Ya gotta love it

It’s Carmina Burana, of course. Everyone loves the brash and sensual audacity of it all. It’s used in numerous ads and films. It’s sexy and shimmering and speaks of lovs and student life and we all think back to that with rose-coloured glasses. It’s got a big orchestra and two choirs and lots of percussion and simple harmony with little development and malleable rhythms. It’s also one of the sure-fire pop hits of the classical repertoire. Perhaps some like it less given its frequency and pop presence. I spoke to a choir member who was sitting this one out (as she does the Messiah). Too boorish, I guess, too frequent. But I’ve only seen it a few times and I can still thrill at O Fortuna and the rest.

The Canberra Symphony Orchestra presented it with two choirs to a full house at the Llewellyn last night. There must have been 220 people on stage and it was a blast. I was surprised just how many themes are embedded in my consciousness. It must be borrowed even more commonly than I’d thought. I left enraptured but also considering the artistic environment of that time. Stravinsky is noted as an influence. CB is melodically and harmonically simple but very complex rhythmically, so I thought of the primitive in the arts. That path leads to Rite of Spring which was a sensation for Stravinsky a few decades earlier. And also to Gauguin's escape to Tahiti and Picasso's masks and newly discovered indigenous arts. They called this primitive and ethnic, but that’s only a European conceit. But they are pre-industrial. This was a convincing performance and truly impressive reading of rhythms. I felt some rushing at times, but I expect it was intended. The soloists were wonderful. I was particularly surprised by some falsetto baritone. Very competently performed. CSO and CCS can be proud.

There was other program, too. This was a German night, introduced by the German ambassador and sponsored by the embassy and German multinational SAP and thanks too to James Grieve who sponsored the Beethoven. Beethoven Leonora Overture no.3 was the first piece. Inevitable pastoral flutes, distant trumpet, sounding strings and the colours of Beethoven’s orchestration. I was taken by some semiquaver lines on bass and other strings. Beethoven does drop those lines in. Then Wagner Flying Dutchman, all bold and brassy with harp as rippling waters, and the stupefying Ride of the Valkyries. All led with energy by Nicholas Milton and an impressive competence from our our local players. Congratulaitons to all for an immensely entertaining show.

Carmina Burana and other works were performed by the Canberra Symphony Orchestra with the Canberra Choral Society, the Canberra Children’s Choir and the Turner Trebles. Soloists were Leanne Kenneally (soprano), Tobias Cole (counter-tenor) and Jeremy Tatchell (baritone). Carmina Burana, Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Canberra Choral Society, Canberra Children’s Choir, Turner Trebles, Leanne Kenneally, Tobias Cole, Jeremy Tatchell