Shaldon Festival 21st June-24th June 2007
| Thursday 21st June | |
| THE ACADEMY OF ST MARTIN IN THE FIELDS CHAMBER ENSEMBLE | |
| Kenneth Sillito violin, Harvey de Souza violin [viola in the Mozart], Robert Smissen viola, Stephen Orton cello, Lynda Houghton double bass, Barnaby Robson clarinet, Graham Sheen bassoon, Stephen Stirling horn |
| Enthusiastic applause from a packed audience in St Peter’s Church, Shaldon, greeted the first concert of the four-day Shaldon Festival. The world famous Academy of St Martin in the Fields Chamber Ensemble began their programme with a delightful account of Rossini’s String Sonata No 1 in G major. The charm and wit of the piece was beautifully conveyed with expressive phrasing and a delicate string sound. This was followed by Mozart’s Quintet in E Flat major for Horn and Strings. Stephen Stirling gave a flawless technical performance of this notoriously difficult piece for horn, ably accompanied by violin, two violas and cello. Undoubtedly the highlight of the evening was the performance of Schubert’s Octet, a stunning and exuberant work. From the opening bars of the imposing slow introduction of the first movement the audience knew they were in for a special treat. Brilliantly led by Kenneth Sillito, the playing throughout was exceptional achieving a remarkable ensemble and balance; eight pairs of acute ears obviously attuned to the collective sound they were making together. |
| Friday 22nd June | |
| CHETHAM’S SCHOOL OF MUSIC | |
| Laura Baker mezzo soprano, Rachel Harston flute, Mikhail Nemtsov cello, Sakura Tanaka violin |
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Friday night the accent was on youth with four very talented young musicians from Chetham’s School of Music. They took part in a workshop in the morning with pupils from Shaldon and Inverteign Primary Schools before giving a memorable concert in the evening. Celebrating the centenary of Grieg’s death, the imaginatively constructed programme featured pieces by Grieg for voice, flute, cello and violin alongside other showcase items for these amazingly talented students. Mikhail Nemtsov who comes from St Petersburg gave a very warm and lyrical account of Schubert’s cello Sonata in A minor with beautifully sustained lines in the slow movement. This contrasted well with the intensity and virtuoso playing he brought to Tchaikovsky’s Pezzo Capricioso. Eighteen-year-old Rachel Harston, currently Principal Flute in the National Youth Orchestra, ably demonstrated the variety of sound and style that can be achieved in flute playing and gave a poised and confident performance of Fauré’s Fantasie. Laura Baker, a mezzo soprano and local girl from near Salcombe, gave a beautiful account of three Grieg songs. These were sandwiched between Music for a While by Purcell and the popular Jerome Kern piece Can’t Help Lovin’ That Man. Last but not least, Sakura Tanaka, just 15 years of age born in Tokyo, gave a technically brilliant display of violin playing. He played the 3rd and 4th movements of the Opus 94 Prokofiev Sonata with considerable aplomb, lyrical Andante followed by the heavily accented and rhythmical Allegro. He finished the whole concert with the beautiful tune of Grieg’s Solveig’s Sang arranged by Svendsen followed by the wonderful Wieniawski showpiece Scherzo Tarantella. He dazzled the audience with his nimble finger work in the most rapid passages and fully deserved the rapturous applause. |
| Saturday 23rd June | |
| STEPHEN THRELFALL: CHORAL WORKSHOP AND INFORMAL CONCERT |
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It was the turn of the amateurs on the Saturday with over 120 singers attending an all day Choral Workshop conducted by Stephen Threlfall, Director of Music at Chetham’s School. By dint of expertise, energy, enthusiasm and sheer force of personality he coaxed a very creditable performance from the singers of Grieg’s Ave Maris Stella and selected choruses from Mozart’s ‘Great’ Mass in C Minor. It was with some sense of achievement that the choir finished the performance with the fiendishly difficult eight-part chorus Osanna in excelsis. An added bonus was the beautiful singing of soprano Sara Lian Owen, former pupil of Chetham’s School. She performed the soprano solo items in the Mass, which Mozart had composed for his wife Constanze, including the stunning Et Incarnatus Est, as well as demonstrating her versatility with three Grieg songs. All those taking part in the workshop had agreed it had been a hugely enjoyable and educational day of music making. |
| Sunday 24th June | |
| DIMENSION | |
| Hyung-Ki Joo piano, Rafal Zambrzycki-Payne violin, Thomas Carroll cello |
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The final concert of the 2007 Shaldon Festival on the Sunday lived up to and beyond expectations. Winners of the 2005 Parkhouse International Chamber Music Competition, the exciting and dynamic group of three young musicians collectively known as DIMENSION, Hyung-Ki Joo, piano, Rafal Zambrzycki-Payne, violin and Thomas Carroll, cello, gave a masterful performance of three piano trios. Opening with the Phantasie Trio in C minor by Frank Bridge, the power and attack of their playing was spine tingling. Many consider Ravel’s Piano Trio in A minor to be one of the composer’s finest works. The four movements demonstrated the full dynamic range and musical ability of this trio: the lovely swaying rhythm of the first, technical brilliance in the second, spell binding beauty of the third with some exquisite cello playing and the spectacular and powerful climax of the lively Finale. Introducing Brahm’s Piano Trio No 1 in B major as a much loved and central piece of their repertoire DIMENSION dedicated this performance to Eileen Croxford, the Shaldon Festival President and a founding member of the Parkhouse Award, in recognition of the concert opportunities the Award has given them. The rapport between the three players shone through this work and it was a consummate display of musicianship. The shouts of encore and a standing ovation were well deserved and a fitting end to another very successful Festival. |