Endurance 2

It was a short walk to a more exposed hilltop for the ADFA Band (Band of the Royal Military College, Duntroon). We've all seen them often enough. I like them lots. They bravely countered the elements as trained servicemen/women will, in uniform, no gloves. Some of the older audience could sit here but we could also walk around listening to Bach Toccata and fugue Dmin. Our group was late so only came in for the last bars of their other piece. The T+F was introduced as the most popular piece of Bach's repertoire. We were suggested to think of the brass ensemble as an organ in many individually-performed parts. It sounded somewhat like that. Again, I'm sure the cold affected the playing and probably the pitch but this is always a professional outfit. Then on further, mercifully inside, to the Director's Residence for the sonic.art saxophone quartet distributed through the space playing a very modern Berlin composition Stelzenbach Atempause. We were moved through but that little we heard worked really well in such a space, musicians distributed in corners of this residence that was made safe after the 2003 fire but not decorated or even finished inside. So, nice timber floors but open walls and spaces and no ceiling. It's an intriguing space perfectly suited to urban arts. Then again outside, to hear Los Pitutos in the Great Melbourne telescope dome. Again, open and cold; this time spitting rain. They retreated into the Common room (warmest indoors so far) and gave us a series of popular Latin-America songs. Uber-popular songs of the likes of Perhaps perhaps perhaps. They did this well with infectious latin rhythms and sweet vocal harmonies and a nice touch on percussion (even some horn!), but I would have liked to have heard more adventurous choices. I'm told the group is based in Berlin, the singer sings opera professionally and the horn player performs orchestral music and the whole group swaps instruments. All intriguing and the voices and rhythms were lovely. Then I had to leave. The Penny Quartet was setting up to play Widmann string quartet no.4. I caught just a few bars: they started with bowing the instrument's body. Mmm, could have been interesting. So, a cold day but a string of fascinating musical encouters. Nice.

RMC Band, sonic.art sax quartet, Los Pitutos and the Penny Quartet played on Stromlo mountain for the CIMF2019.

Just the thing

Many thing were working in favour of the Yale Concert Band visit to Canberra. They are on tour, to celebrate their 100th anniversary; this is their 6th continent (since the '50s - not this tour; presumably the penguins await their turn); the support was the RMC Band who are in their 50th year; the gig was free with donations to Legacy which is celebrating its 90th year. And Llewellyn was full, with the upstairs open. Conductor Thomas Duffy said this is the best attended concert of the tour so far. Great! And what a sound. Firstly the military professionals performed, led by visiting conductors from the their Music School. Then the Yale band made up of students in various subjects at Yale. We were told that Yale teaches composition and some other music matters but not performance: YCB comprises students of STEM, humanities, arts, whatever. And such different looks: RMC members in service dress military brown; YCB in tux and black dresses. Then all in for a few final numbers in force. I loved the sweet and pure sound of the wind and especially brass. YCB were all wind other then percussion, piano and harp. RMC had double bass, drums and electric guitar. All was instrumental except for one RMC piece where Toni Maxwell, a local Canberra reservist sang As if we never said goodbye, from the musical Sunset Boulevard. That's also the first time I'd heard the new PA, at least for music. I wasn't at an ideal location, but it seemed quite transparent and hugely willing and the sounds spread nicely to the front rows where I was sitting. Thy each played some originals as well as folk tunes. One member of the YCB came forward to conduct his own composition, a fanfare themed on Google's original motto, Don't be evil, and the anniversary of Kubrick's film, 2001:A space odyssey with references to Daisy. There were pieces by Bernstein, Grainger, Vaughan Williams and Eric Whittaker as well as lesser known names that I didn't catch. Director Thomas Duffy conducted one of his tunes, Century shout : urban march that recounts the history of a city with its bricks and industry and waves of immigrants. And finally, my pleasure in hearing Llewellyn so full of sound. Concerts bands fit that space: they are big and loud and satisfying where even a symphony orchestra can get somewhat lost. So I enjoyed this gig. Varied and interesting and aurally satisfying.

Yale Concert Band performed under Thomas Duffy (conductor) with Band of the Royal Military College, Duntroon at Llewellyn Hall.

The modern Army

How unexpected was this and what a great pleasure. I've seen the Duntroon band but this was different. The other times, they were around 20 players, big band style, popular music. Always competent if an odd sight in their uniforms. But a pleasure. This, today, was the full band: symphonic in extent and in complexity and repertoire. But a wind ensemble, so no strings other than one lone double bass (Barnaby Briggs looking decidedly more military than in his other incarnations). It was obvious from the first glance at the program: Puccini, Grainer, Grieg, Bernstein, and two lesser recognised, Sheldon and Tosti. Tosti and Puccini were operatic with a soprano up front. Another proof of this outfit's flexibility. (Apparently Fiona Wilkins, soprano, had been singing rock and pop to 2am a few days before). The Sheldon was busy and rhythmic with layered melodies and changing bar lengths. The Puccini was the lovely O mio babbino caro from Gianni Schicchi. How lovely is that? The Grainger was his Colonial song. The Grieg was his piano concerto A minor, no less (just the first movement). And the peak, for me, one of my faves of the musical genre, Bernstein Symphonic dances from West Side Story. Just fabulous and exciting and tear-jerking. Three different conductors. One soprano singer. 40 other musos. Three tubas; lots of clarinets. It's fun to identify players you know from the jazz scene: Baba, Barney, Julian. Others? But how unexpected. They are playing a few gigs next week but in the more light vein. Just another take on the Army band.

The Band of the Royal Military College, Duntroon, performed at Llewellyn Hall. Conductors were Andrea McMahon, David Bird and Matthew O'Keefe. Soloists were Fiona Wilkins (soprano voice) and Sean Henderson (piano).

Canberra cantata (Sat 1)

First of a double bill for this Saturday was the Canberra Cantata. It’s a new work in cabaret style. Not a serious, staid cantata with glorious rising choral work, but a joyful, tongue in cheek look at Canberra from a local cabaret star, and featuring some well-known local names. Peter J Casey was the composer and presenter, and a pianist and singer for several tunes. The other performers ranged widely indeed.

The show started with the Royal Military College (acronym: RMC) All Stars Big Band and continued with 13 tunes played by a rich range of artists. The Canberra Youth Choir sang a tune composed to the words of a local primary school student, Keean Walton, a paen to Canberra life called “I love where I live”. Natalie Magee teamed with Peter J Casey and the RMC band for a skit on Northside/Southside rivalries. The Singing Ambassadors (as far as I know, these were 12 real, honest ambassadors) sang about their appointments to Canberra in a song called “Tiger look at this”. They obviously enjoyed their unison singalong, and carried it off with aplomb. A classical trio (Suzanne Powell, piano; Anne Ewing, cello; Nicole Canham, clarinet) played the “Roundabout rondo”, dedicated to roundabouts on Canberra roads: nice one. The Gay and Lesbian Qwuire sang a deliciously beautiful love song written for same-sex marriages called “For all of us”. The RMC Band played a rousing big band tune with shouts of Canberra acronyms, appropriately called “TLA” (=Three Letter Acronym). John Shortis and Moya Simpson performed a tune dedicated to “Stasia the Soup Lady”, an institution in Canberra for many years. Lucy Bermingham, Moya Simpson and classical soprano Louise Page jokingly sang “Don’t make me choose” (between the Brumbies and the Raiders). Peter J Casey himself sang a tune about writing and performing the cantata, complete with a topical reference. Louise Page teamed again with Suzanne Powell and Nicole Canham on a tender piece (“Beautiful”) that spoke of the cockies that appeared in Canberra after the fires of a few years back. Four names were memorialised (Alison, Peter, Douglas, Dorothy), presumably the four lost in our local disaster. More happily, Queenie Van de Zandt sang with the RMC band about Canberrans making their names overseas but returning (We move back home). The show ended with a lively bash from the Big Band, with a string of solos, including Reuben Lewis who was sitting in on trumpet, and a wonderful, rolling drum solo from Amanda Waite, who I reported playing with Zip in my first post on CJBlog.

The other star of the show was the Llewelyn Hall. It’s been refurbished after a lengthy repair and restoration following a damaging hailstorm over a year ago. The new hall is decked with soft timbers and raked seating, to give improved wood infected acoustic and better audience ambience. It sounded rich and sweet to me, although there was a good bit obviously passing through the PA on the day. Being free and part of the Canberra International Music Festival, it was well attended by families young and old, again typically Canberran. I had a nursing mother on one side with a cute 12 week old girl and a toddler behind me continuingly observing the bebe (=baby), bebe, bebe, bebe…. A very pleasant event, and an opportunity to hear these singers and musicians I miss in the core jazz scene. Much enjoyed.