Musical bon-bons

Joyce Guillaumier finds that the popular classics chosen by the Malta Youth Orchestra for their al fresco concert were just the ideal summer fare.

The word bon-bons, which comes from 17th-century France, refers to a wide variety of sweets usually wrapped in chocolate, much loved by people everywhere. They satisfy the taste buds and provide a joy to the palette.

Philip Walsh, the British conductor, kept a tight grip on the large orchestra- Joyce Guillaumier

Musical bon-bons, although a different category altogether, give as much pleasure as their sugary equivalents and the repertoire presented at the concert recently given by the Malta Philharmonic Orchestra and the Malta Youth Orchestra in Valletta was made up of very popular works which went down extremely well with the crowd that filled St George’s Square.

The concert started with Aaron Copland’s short Fanfare For the Common Man, heralded in by the trumpets, horns, trombones, tuba, timpani and drums. This is an extremely well-known work which the brass and percussion performed with gusto.

Copland’s Fanfare was followed by Rossini’s overture to La Gazza Ladra, full of delicious melodies and sporting the effervescent crescendo that one associates with this composer from Pesaro.

The pace throughout was very good and Philip Walsh, the British conductor, kept a tight grip on the large orchestra. However, at times, the sound was overwhelming.

And this brings me to the eternal problem: should the orchestra be amplified or not? I believe that nothing beats the sound of a ‘live’ orchestra with no electric or electronic interventions, and although the balancing engineer did a marvellous job, the effect was quite artificial.

I know that the venue was large and the organisers had to make sure that the sound arrived at every corner on the square, however nothing can make me change my mind.

This concert showed that hard work and attention to detail can transform well-known standard works into small masterpieces. This was the case with the three Hungarian Dances by Brahms and with von Suppe`s Light Cavalry Overture. The Dances were a study in time management. I especially liked No. 6, which explored different aspects of light and shade, soft and loud and fast and slow with beautiful ritardandi.

The last two works were very different. First we were presented with Karl Jenkins’ Palladio which followed the composer’s writing faithfully, while the last work was George Gershwin’s An American in Paris. This is a complex work in different sections transmitting the composer’s desire to illustrate his impressions of Paris. Thus we encounter different scenarios which take us from Debussy to blues and jazz.

Syncopated rhythms and blues melodies were delivered by various sections of the augmented orchestra featuring more instruments. The trumpet, flute, oboe and clarinet all gave their utmost as did the first violin, who had diverse solos even in the Jenkins piece.