Concert
Royal Conservatoire Brass/dir. John Logan
St George’s Basilica

The 17th edition of the Victoria International Arts Festival marches on with daily concerts. Missing one means missing something good, but one of a handful I could attend was the first of two the Royal Conservatoire Brass gave; they had different programmes at different venues.

Director John Logan, who introduced each piece performed, lauded no end the great acoustic qualities of the basilica, so eminently suited to this kind of music. The ensemble seemed to consist of musicians no older than 30 and was formed of four trumpets, horn, three trombones, bass trombone and tuba.

Except for a Giovanni Gabrieli piece, all the works performed were arrangements of original compositions such as the Capriol Suite by Peter Warlock. The suite, inspired by 16th-century works, is a reworking in more ways than one in Warlock’s language, which still conveys the spirit of the original.

The ensemble’s versatility was established from the start. Texture was fine and dynamic contrasts coloured the different natures of the dance movements. The suite sailed smoothly all along until its boisterous conclusion.

For the Gabrieli work, the Sonata pian’ e forte, Ch. 175, the ensemble was divided into two sections placed opposite each other at either side of the high altar, very much à la Gabrieli at St Mark’s Basilica in Venice. The two sides could engage in a wonderful dialogue producing effects which made the interpretation live up to the name of the piece.

Smooth as ever, there was also a sunny brightness to the work. Even more ebullient, almost brash, is Vivaldi’s Double Trumpet Concerto in C, Op. 537. This is a brief and very popular work which had the soloists in continuous dialogue, each trumpeter having some hard virtuoso work of which they made short shrift. Holly Boddice and Ben Hirons deserved the plaudits they received.

Closer to our own time was Morten Lauridsen’s instrumental setting of the well-known motet O Magnum Mysterium, (1994). The arrangement allows different vocal lines to have their say by instrumental means. The atmosphere projected was one of hushed, awestruck devotion, especially as the piece gradually faded out.

Back to the baroque world, the atmosphere changed to one of sunny merry-making in an arrangement for brass of J.S. Bach’s transcription of a concerto by Vivaldi. Bach went further by adding some bars of his own in the concluding allegro of this three-movement work. Its performance was distinguished by its bright outer allegro movements and the expansive and very warm, beautiful central largo.

A very beautiful work was Steven Verhelst’s A Song for Japan (1991), originally written for trombone quartet. It was utterly beautiful and, of course, very cantabile, beginning with a long introduction on Andrew McLean’s horn, followed by another longish statement on Rachel Brown’s tuba, which she rendered amazingly light yet poignant.

It is a haunting style piece which remains with one and in great contrast with the bubbly Overture from Handel’s Music for the Royal Fireworks, which concluded the concert.

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