To start a trek

I've been wanting to hear the organ at Wesley for some time, and I got the chance with one recital that I could attend. Lauren Giddy was performing Bach, Krebs, Brahms and Mendelssohn as a recital for the ANU School of Music and audience was welcomed. Wesley are justly proud of this organ. It originates from an Alfred Hunter 3 manual organ of 1893, and following various additions and rebuilds, is now the "largest and most versatile liturgical and recital instrument in the ACT" boasting 42 pipe ranks and 2,466 pipes. I understand audio better than organ specs, but I enjoy listening to the swelling, delayed tones as pipes form notes and the variety of tones and impressive power that an organ can pour forth. Not for nothing that it's associated with religion and the divine. Lauren played 4 works for a fairly short recital. Bach's Prelude from his Prelude and Fugue in C major was joyous, loud and unrelenting in 3. Krebs was more meditative, slower, in 4. The Brahms featured melody played on the pedals. Lauren played the first movement from Mendelssohn's Sonata no.3 A major and this was the audacious, loud, bold take on the pipe organ that everyone loves. I much enjoyed this visit to one of the pipe organs of Canberra and thanks to Lauren for that. Next task is to explore other locals.

Lauren Giddy performed a recital on the pipe organ at Wesley Uniting Church (adjacent to the Wesley Music Centre).

Lunchtimers

Another Lunchbox concert at ANU. It amused me that I spoke to one muso after the performance and she spoke of nervousness, but it's common enough, even for a small audience of friends like this. Common but an essential step in a musician's development. Again, there were four items on the program -, three duos and one soloist. First up was Clara Barrs and Lauren Giddy performing Mozart Violin sonata in G major, K.301. Not unexpectedly, this was a lovely and dignified thing with courtly presence and considerable wit. Then Paul Broomhead accompanied by ANU staffer Calvin Bowman Anthony Smith playing the final movement of Franck Sonata in A major arranged for flute. More modern, impressionist, occasionally dissonant. I enjoyed the different and strong tone of the flute and admired Calvin's confident accompaniment. Then Stephanie Jones playing two pieces for guitar, Sor Variations on a theme of Mozart and Albeniz Cordoba. She played unhurriedly, with facial and musical expression, a wealth of dynamics and a sharp tone and I thought a subdued volume. Very involving. Then a heavy work, Ying Li and Katrina Rivera playing the first movement of Brahms Sonata for two pianos in F minor, Op.34b. This was heavy (grand and substantial) as expected and quite a change after Mozart and Spanish guitar tones. I enjoyed the task of identifying the two players, playing similar instruments but taking different roles and expressions throughout. The return of the Lunchbox concerts (especially ones I can get to) is valuable for the students and a great way to pass an hour on an occasional Tuesday afternoon.

The latest ANU Lunchbox concert featured Clara Barrs (violin) and Lauren Giddy (piano) playing Mozart, Paul Broomhead (flute) and Calvin Bowman Anthony Smith (piano) playing Franck, Stephanie Jones (guitar) playing Sor and Albenitz and Ying Li (piano) and Katrina Rivera (piano) playing Brahms.

So much learnt

I missed the Australian Haydn Ensemble but not the associated masterclass. The two guests with the AHE were Marc Destrubé (violin, Canada) and Neal Peres da Costa (keyboards, Sydney) and they ran the masterclass. This session was open to the public and I can only suggest that any interested listener also attend. This was not just for the performers. This is exposure to advanced musical thinking and I learnt tons. Students from the School of Music played five pieces over 2 hours and received comments and guidance from Marc and Neal. Nothing negative; nothing on occasional mistakes. This was mostly on interpretation and improvements were evident even after just a few minutes of guidance from a trained ear. Here are a string of quotes to give you the idea. [When practicing] "don't always start at the start" [so you learn the whole piece]. "In Mozart's time they played only new music" [so recognise the shock of the new in established music]. "Mozart was primarily an opera composer" [so think of the characters, the contrasts, the speech]. Read performance treatises (CPE Bach, Daniel Torke?) on the meaning of the slur and more. "Phrasing marks duplicate speech". Start with the traditional approach of first beat as dominant if there's no other notation. Your Steinway is "much stronger than anything Mozart had", "think of lightening up", use "lightness of touch" [for Mozart's music]. A repeated note probably means it's more insistent. "Trills serve three functions: add tension, remove tension, or decorative". [In the duet,] the piano is the harmonic instrument: "hear ... the most wonderful blackboard" [did I hear this right?]. When phrasing, "keep tension in the silence". "Be aware of function [contours]": in a duet, who's leading, who's following and when. "Read what people say of G major and any key". Practice playing a lighter sound; strength will come in performance. In the Romantic period, pianists almost always played arpeggiations [in place of chords?]; it's more vibrant. Crescendo with slight acceleration gives energy. "Use imagination to give shape". "Pace the energy" [leave have room to increase volume, etc]. The Romantic period used "lots of markings"; ask why. Scarlatti sonatas are "often from some form of dance"; his chords are "fantastic ... make sure we hear them". Music may be metronomic but still needs "energising". "Early music tries to make difficult [passages] sound difficult; new music tries to make difficult sound easy". "Often, if technically we need time, the music also needs time". "The bass line is the driving force" and "look to the rhythm of the bass line". "They didn't write slurs in the [Scarlatti's] time, because players would have played this way". "There are only four tools of expression in music". [I struggled to catch the four tools. I think they were: weight, articulation, colour, speed]. "Dance is about going and stopping". There was more, especially in the context of each piece. My main takeaway was think of the form and how to play each note or phrase. Also, think speech; imagine the conversation. This was a fascinating two hours. You get the picture.

Marc Destrubé (violin) and Neal Peres da Costa (piano) gave a masterclass to students at the ANU School of Music. The students were Yan Tse (violin) with accompanist (name not on program) played Mozart Violin Concerto no.5, 1st movement. Clara Barrs (violin) and Lauren Giddy (piano) played Mozart Sonata in G, K.301. Ellen Falconer (piano) played Smetana On the sea shore. Andrew Blanch (guitar) played Scarlatti Sonata in Amin, K.175. Amelia Noble (cello) played Bach Cello suite no.3, Courante.