Reviews: Ryedale Festival

The Saloon, Duncombe Park, Helmsley

IN THE pre-concert talk, the first of three, musician and writer Katy Hamilton introduced and outlined the sounds, harmonies, chords, pizzicatos and harmonics which form the features of Bartok and Haydn’s works for string quartets.

This first evening focused on the work of the two Hungarian composers who, though historically distant from each other, Haydn 18th century and Bartok 20th century, both explored and developed music for the string quartet, a form which seemed best able to fully express their creative spirits. Apparently the great Goethe described the string quartet as a conversation between four civilised people.

The concert in the saloon at Duncombe Park featured very fine exponents of this music, the Doric and Heath String Quartets, who are in residence for a festival series.

The Doric Quartet opened with Haydn’s String Quartet in G major (op.76 no.1). It was a revelation to see these excellent musicians playing at their most intense, and the music got off to an impressive start with a fine cello part enriching the sound. This piece, which is strongly varied in mood and tempo, is said to have been composed with Haydn’s lost love in mind, and the Adagio sostenuto captures that sad state perfectly.

The Heath Quartet followed with Bartok’s String Quartet no.1 providing a complete contrast to the "Haydn sound". Sad and ranging in its scope, it is deeply, almost physically affecting and very, very beautiful.

Duncombe Park is approached by a long avenue and some cars were parked a considerable distance from the building. For some concert-goers this necessitated a fairly long walk over grass or rough-surfaced paths, culminating in a flight of steps, and of course a reverse process in the dark. There is, however, parking for disabled drivers near the hall. The saloon is a comfortable venue, ideal for chamber music. Wine, soft drinks and canapes were offered at the interval, and helpful volunteers and officials ensured a pleasant experience.

Irene MacDonald

Celebrity Coffee Concert

Pickering Parish Church

A CAPACITY audience filled the magnificent old parish church for the opening concert of Ryedale Festival.

This splendid example of Romanesque architecture was built on a Saxon site and has an impressive range of mediaeval paintings running horizontally around the upper walls connecting pillars and arches.

They are so clear and fresh it is almost unbelievable to contemplate the passage of time since their creation.

The beautiful venue, coupled with a programme of outstanding music, was a feast for eyes, ears and spirit.

This coffee concert, one of a series which Ryedale organisers and helpers manage so well, featured Sir Thomas Allen, the famous baritone, who is also vice-chairman of the festival and the celebrity of the title.

An impressive figure, with a voice of tremendous richness and power, he performed the final item in the programme, the Coffee Cantata BWV211 by J S Bach with new, and I have to say vacuous, lyrics in a translation by John Warrack.

However, the music was great and the singing outstanding. Other roles featured first-class performances from Rowan Pierce, soprano, tenor Nick Pritchard and a string ensemble with recorder player Charlotte Barber-Condini.

Rowan Pierce performed the whole piece perched on a high bar stool and managed to express the seemingly endless repetition of the words "‘a delicious cup of coffee" with musical credibility.

There was a degree of dumb show by Allen, waving a teapot and grimacing at the praise of coffee, but all ended with a splendid trio of voices which enabled one to overlook the inane lyrics.

The really unexpected, and I have to say outstanding, treat of the event came from the youthful recorder soloist, Charlotte Barbour-Condini, who performed this world premiere of David Gordon’s Romanesque Concerto for recorder, strings, harpsichord and percussion, inspired by architecture of a French abbey.

Gordon conducted this delightfully innovative and exciting piece and the spellbinding performance from the young soloist almost brought the house down.

Irene MacDonald

H M Sagbutts & Cornetts

Durham Cathedral

HAVING had a more supportive role in the previous evening’s performance of Monteverdi’s Vespers, it was good to have an opportunity to hear His Majesties Sagbutts and Cornetts featured in a concert of their own, also part of Durham: Brass.

Arriving earlier for this concert, I was able to sit much closer where the cathedral acoustic was more sympathetic to these softer-toned predecessors of the contemporary trombones and trumpets.

The group’s line-up consisted of alto, tenor and bass sackbuts and three cornetts, mostly alto and tenor, played in varying combinations.

The music, from the 16th and 17th centuries, reflected the sort that would have been heard by a young gentleman taking the Grand Tour through England, Germany, Spain and Venice, although they opened with Matthew Locke’s Suite for His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts, from which their own name comes, a piece possibly written for the for the coronation of King Charles II.

Their programme was interspersed with a number of chamber organ solos by guest accompanist, Davitt Moroney, including a William Byrd Fantasia and a gentle and soothing Toccata by Giovanni Gabrieli.

Much of their repertoire was unfamiliar but in a consistently beguiling performance I particularly enjoyed Peter Phillips’ Pavane and Galliard "Dolorosa", Samuel Scheidt’s wonderfully dynamic Canzon a 5 and Gioseffo Guami’s In die tribulationis a 6 with its effectively sombre and controlled ending.

Best of all, perhaps, with both solo and ensemble featured in a hauntingly beautiful tune, was Diego Ortiz’ Recercadas.

Peter Bevan

Monteverdi: Vespers of 1610

Durham Cathedral

ONE of the highlights of this year’s Durham: Brass festival was this performance of Monteverdi’s famous Vespers given in the appropriate setting – both musically and spiritually – of Durham Cathedral.

What particularly attracted me was that this was performed by one of today’s most eminent early music specialists, the Edinburgh-based Dunedin Consort, with additional instrumental backing by His Majestie’s Sagbutts and Cornetts, all conducted by John Butt who also played chamber organ.

With ten singers available, performing in various combinations and numbers, the emphasis was soloistic rather than choral, which I tend to prefer and which helped clarify the meaning (the detailed and helpful programme notes also included full Latin texts and translations).

With this smaller choir, the softer-toned sackbuts and cornetts and additional instrumental support including viola da gamba, violone and theorbo this was a gentler, more subtle performance which I found very convincing and sincere.

There was too considerable contrast from the start with a single voice singing the opening Introit: Deus in adiutorium followed by the first wonderful brass fanfare.

In a piece which was consistently beautiful with interest sustained by the variety of textures it may not be fair to pick out highlights but inevitably pieces like the Motet: Audi, coelum with its deeply moving off stage echo is one that remains in the memory long afterwards.

Perhaps the hard pews were the strongest reminder that at an hour and 45 minutes this is a lengthy work but, that apart, this was a moving experience.

Peter Bevan

Big Summer Sing

Christ Church, Great Ayton

FOUR choirs comprising 100 voices performed before an audience of more than 200 in this concert organised by Jeanette Wainwright, a professional opera singer who runs singing groups in Cleveland.

Last year she decided to expand from Saltburn and set up Great Broughton groups. They came together for this uplifting concert of songs and harmonies that delighted the audience.

A South African war chant, Ke arona, which means the power is ours, made a strong beginning as each group gradually joined in with its own harmonies, building the sound to a terrific crescendo.

Burt Bacharach’s What the World Needs Now was a strong contrast. Each choir had is own moment as well as solos and duets. The Men’s Group and Saltburn’s Day Group gave a memorable rendition of Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah.

Broughton Ladies successfully ventured into opera with a powerful interpretation of Ennio Marricone’s Nella Fantasia.

Nada te Turbe, a monastic chant, was one of the most popular songs, sung by all the choirs and begun by two of Jeanette’s young pupils. The full choir gradually joined in establishing the main four-part chant, with individual groups harmonising with counter tunes.

The first half ended with The Nun’s Chorus by Johann Strass sung by Saltburn Ladies’ Group. The second ranged across a Columbian folk song, a Maori song, a spiritual, Glenn Miller, Sage and Foster’s The Prayer, and ended with the whole group singing a medley from Fiddler on the Roof.

Conductor Jeanette Wainwright paid tribute to pianist Nick Butters. Proceeds from the concert are for a charity started by Helen Jones, who helped to build Roseberry School in the Himalayas. Money raised will help pay salaries and for uniforms and equipment.

Jan Hunter