Reviews
Josie Balfour, Edinburgh Evening News, wrote
in reference to Carols by Candlelight, Usher Hall, Wednesday 23rd December 2009
*****
THERE was a sense of pomp at the Usher Hall last night. The performers of Carols By Candlelight not only dressed for the occasion, but quite literally pulled out all the stops with a series of melodies ideally suited to the venue’s 97-year-old organ too.
The second in a double bill of favourite Christmas music presented by theatre promoter Raymond Gubbay, Tuesday evening playing host to a relatively modern ‘White Christmas’ theme, Carols By Candlelight adhered firmly to a very Victorian image of Christmas entertainment and was all the better for it.
Performing a light and engaging set comprised of excerpts of Handel, Bach and Mozart interspersed with festive classics such as O Come All Ye Faithful and Once In Royal David’s City, the ensemble created a warm, jovial atmosphere.
Somewhat more straight laced than Tuesday’s ebullient cast, there was still room for an opening run of truly awful stand-up jokes from conductor Gareth Hancock and a little physical comedy from soloist Gail Pearson as she made space for her immense skirts.
Clad in a burgundy 18th century hooped gown to match the finery of the bewigged and stockinged Mozart Festival Orchestra, Pearson managed her parts with confidence and grace. Her final piece, Handel’s Let The Bright Seraphim, allowed the soprano to show off her voice as she delicately worked through the demands of the score.
Taking the evening firmly in hand, Hancock had a tight reign on the orchestra as well as enticing an excellent performance from amateur choir Cadenza. Following Hancock’s cues remarkably well, Cadenza came into their own with a series of beautifully constructed harmonies, particularly during the better known carols; Walford Davies’ arrangement of The Holly And The Ivy standing out for its intricacy and a delightful solo from one of their number for the beginning of Silent Night.
Working the audience in much the same firm, yet friendly, manner with which he treated the ensemble, Hancock guided the crowd through 11 popular carols with the aid of song sheets and some competitive encouragement, especially during the two-part vocal division of Good King Wenceslas.
The laid-back enthusiasm of the audience, however, rather made Hancock’s early, woeful attempts at Christmas puns rather redundant.
Supporting the production with a cohesive and assured sense of unity, the orchestra provided an outstanding rendition of Corelli’s Allegro and Pastorale from Christmas Concerto led by First Violinist Steven Wilkie. Their seasoned performance formed a firm bedrock for the ensemble to work from, creating a harmonious and well balanced sound. Organist Jonathan Scott’s contribution, on the harpsichord and organ, dovetailed well with the strings and percussion rather than competing for space.
There will always be an argument for the passing down of Silent Night and Hark The Herald Angels, on a dodgy piano over mulled wine in an eccentric relative’s living room, but Carols By Candlelight succeeded in giving a sublime introduction to the original staging of the music as well as providing period context.
Even if it does involve the orchestra putting on the sort of outfit that encourages one to start making sneaky Scarlet Pimpernel jokes during quiet moments.
Marianne Gunn, The Herald, wrote
in reference to Carols by Candlelight, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall, 22nd December 2009
Playing in period costume, the Mozart Festival Orchestra formed in 1991 and has been doing the rounds ever since. Conductor Gareth Hancock was, on first impression, far more suave than the previous evening’s maestro but what he lacked was the festive charisma and captivation, which he replaced with pretty dire jokes. His Subjunctive Clause gag was the nadir of the evening, closely followed by his wry observations about the expenses scandal (Ding Dong Immorally on High) and Tiger Woods (Come All Ye Unfaithful).
Back to the music, it was a typical selection of Christmas tunes, with some familiar classics such as Bach’s Air on the G String and Handel’s Messiah (Christmas sequence) and Zadok the Priest.
Cadenza provided the choral vocals and their very full and rich sound complemented the instrumentation. Dressed in vibrant red robes they were the most festive thing about the concert: their Deck the Halls, Silent Night and The Holly and the Ivy (all sung a cappella) were the musical highlights, with lovely pitch, tone and diction.
Bathed in candlelight, soloist Gail Pearson took to the stage in a russet corseted number to sing Mozart’s Alleluia from Exsultate, Jubilate, which wasn’t sung with as light a touch as Let the Bright Seraphim later in the programme; this was in turn lifted by Neil Fulton’s contrapuntal trumpet playing. Orchestra leader Steven Wilkie also deserved a mention for his first violin performance in Corelli’s Allegro and Pastorale (Christmas Concerto) which had a lovely balance with the harpsichord counterpoint.
The biggest shortcoming however was, again, the lack of crowd and carolling participation (although the former may have been due to the inclement weather and the latter was hindered by the candlelight adjustment itself).
Conrad Wilson, The Herald, wrote
in reference to the concert in Greyfriars Kirk on 19.8.06:
A cadenza is a solo spot, small or large, in a concerto or vocal work. From it, Edinburgh’s Cadenza – a smallish choir with large ideas – has attractively derived its name, contributing to the Festival Fringe in ways that are not only genuinely interesting but require few allowances to be made. Saturday’s packed-out concert, in the resonance of Greyfriars Kirk, coupled the remains of a mass by the gifted Jan Dismas Zelenka with Mozart’s unfinished Requiem, an inspired juxtaposition from which each work benefited.
Zelenka, born just before Bach, was a quirky Bohemian whose Missa dei Filla (Mass for the Son of God) was receiving its Edinburgh premiere. Based mainly on a massive, multi-faceted Gloria, the music possessed a contrapuntal elan and often startling expressiveness, vigorously conveyed by Jenny Sumerling’s sterling vocal and orchestral forces.
To the Mozart, too, they brought notable freshness, particularly because they performed it in Richard Maunder’s starker, tighter version of the 1980s, which deleted the familiar Sussmayr Sanctus and Benedictus in order to concentrate as far as possible on Mozart himself.
Wilma McDougall, Louise Innes, Jamie MacDougall and Edward Caswell were the well-balanced solo quartet.
Conrad Wilson, The Herald, wrote (on 23.8.05)
(in reference the concert in Greyfriars Kirk on 20.8.05)
Rossini’s Petite Messe Solonnelle
There are times when a dedicated fringe performance can surpass a routine official one, and here was something which rose to the occasion. Rossini’s Little Solemn Mass, as the saying goes, is not so small and not so solemn. But it is worth treating seriously, as it was by Jenny Sumerling and the Scottish choristers she assembles each year under the name of Cadenza.
Voiced at sunset in the atmospheric surroundings of Greyfriars, the music made an intimate but ardent impression, not at all eccentric or whimsical, as some people think it to be, but eloquent and strangely obsessive, an inspired product of the composer’s last years, when he had turned his back on opera.
Coming as close as she could to Rossini’s original intentions, Sumerling shunned the soupy orchestral version in favour of assorted keyboards, with Philip Sawyer as the wonderfully sonorous harmonium player and Margaret Wakeford a sympathetic pianist.
As light faded behind the blue stained glass window, the performance gained in intensity, with Louise Innes, among the quartet of soloists, bringing the Agnus Dei to a moving close.
The inclusion of Peter Maxwell Davies’s The Kestrel Road, commissioned by 47 British choirs in celebration of his 70th birthday, was a beautiful bonus.
Alasdair Maclean, Scots Magazine wrote (in February 2005)
(In reference to Voices of Joy)
Voices of Joy
Voices of Joy is a CD that “does exactly what it says on the tin”. Cadenza is a choir based in Scotland’s Home Counties, i.e., round Edinburgh and Lothians way, who do their thing for a variety of charitable causes, as well as participating in the Festival Fringe, touring extensively, and gaining renown at choral competitions.
This collection was recorded in St Mary’s Church, Haddington, and items range from Poulenc to Burns and Cole Porter.
The whole album is beautifully executed, and it’s also nice to note the “happy sound”, demonstrating that you can still enjoy something you take seriously and excel in. And talking of taking things seriously, one wonders what Haddington’s most famous son, Maister John Knox, would have thought of the rather “high church” opening tracks and the evocation of saints’ names…
Charlie Napier, www.edinburghguide.com wrote (on 18-08-2003)
(In reference to Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh)
Cadenza (page 84) World Premiere
Drams 0 = excellent
Music Ken Johnston: Song for St Cecilia; O Columba (World premiere); Fauré: Cantique de Jean Racine, Ave Verum (Op.65 No.1), Tantum Ergo (Op.65 No.2); Requiem
Musicians Cadenza (Mixed voices choir); Philomusica with Daphne Godson (violin); Clair Debono (soprano), Jared Holt (baritone), Stephen Doughty (organ), Jenny Sumerling (Conductor).
Venue Greyfriars Kirk (Venue 131).
Address Greyfriars Place, Candlemaker Row
Reviewer Charlie Napier
This was an event full of quietness, serenity. spirituality, the sadness of death and yet the hope of the life hereafter. Although officially listed as a “concert”, which suggests a staged performance (as, of course, it really was), it did not come over as such, it came over more as a contemplation on the power of music over the soul, a prayer for help in getting through life, and, to quote Fauré himself, “Death as a happy deliverance, an aspiration towards happiness above, rather than a painful experience.” This was one time when the music said it all, complemented, of course, by the accompanying words.
The outstanding feature of this event was the music itself, which was beautifully presented by the mixed voice choir, Cadenza, under the excellent leadership of Jenny Sumerling, and ably accompanied for a greater part of the event by Stephen Doughty on the magnificent organ. Jenny controlled the choir with great sensitivity and Stephen’s accompaniment was controlled, balanced and supportive – there, but not intrusive. Where Philomusica was involved, it too added its voice to the songs of prayer and praise without being intrusive or too obvious. The soloists, Daphne Godson (violin), Claire Debono (soprano) and Jared Holt (baritone), although they did not play major parts, provided significant and sensitive contributions which all added to the overall sound picture.
The event opened with the original version, for double choir and organ, of Ken Johnston’s Song for St Cecilia. This was written in 1998 and later orchestrated for an East Lothian Millennium concert. It uses the words of a poem by John Dryden, written in 1687, that celebrates the power of music and praises the patron saint of music, St Cecilia. With its melodic lines and gentle harmonies, this was a beautiful prelude to the other works that followed.
Philomusica joined the choir for the first of the three Fauré works that followed. The Cantique de Jean Racine uses the words of one of Racine’s Cantiques spirituels that he wrote in later life when he had abandoned the theatre for a more austere and spiritual life. This is a prayer to Jesus Christ for mercy, help, and guidance as well as being a hymn of praise. It was the latter aspect that Fauré concentrated on. The two works that form Fauré’s Opus 65 are standard prayers, set to suitable music. The Ave Verum was sung by the ladies of the Choir with organ accompaniment, and the Tantum Ergo by the whole choir.
The world premiere of Ken Johnston’s new work O Columba, completed the first half. This is a work for unaccompanied mixed voice chorus, based on plainsong chants and words discovered in a manuscript, now in Edinburgh University Library, that was written on the island of Inchcolme about the end of the 13th century. These appear to be unique chants, and Ken has used these to produce the stunning choral work which is a hymn of praise to St Columba as well as a prayer for his assistance to the Scots people.
This work lasted about 20 minutes and is sheer musical joy from beginning to end. Although based on plainsong chants, which appear throughout the work in one form or another, they are not immediately obvious and they do not sound as one would expect plainchant to sound. Using traditional four-part harmonies, a quiet opening section leads into a contrapuntal section and then a louder section that, after reaching a climax, returns to the opening musical ideas, set to the Latin words which translate as “Columba, hope of the Scots, make us consorts of the blessed angels by the assistance of your services.” What a fitting way to close this prayer, especially in the setting of the Kirk of the Greyfriars. This is certainly going to be a significant addition to the choral repertoire and I hope that it will be repeated very soon, and recorded.
The second half was taken up with a presentation of the 1893 version of Fauré’s Requiem, one of the most spiritual and beautiful pieces of music ever written. Sensitively presented by all participants, words are really inadequate to describe the effect on the packed audience.
© Charlie Napier, 16 August 2003. Published on www.edinburghguide.com
www.threeweeks.co.uk wrote (on 21-08-2003)
(In reference to Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh)
Cadenza
This popular Edinburgh amateur choir would not have been disappointed with the turnout for this programme of music by Fauré and local composer KenJohnston, including the first performance of the newly commissioned work ‘O Columba’.We started with Johnston’s ‘Song for St. Cecilia’ which brought out some beautiful colours and fruity suspensions. Scored for double choir, the 40-strong chorus was perhaps overwhelmed by the organ in the first movement but was perfectly balanced in the a capella third. In the ‘Cantique de Jean Racine’ I would have preferred staggered breathing in order to propel forward the continuous flowing base line. Based on manuscripts found at Inchcolm Abbey on the Firth of Forth island, the premiere used the choir gently with simple melodies from the plainchant layered on top of each other to good effect. The performance of Fauré’s Requiem was competent but standard and featured solos from Claire DeBono and Jared Holt, although Daphne Godson did not sparkle in the ethereal solo violin part..
Greyfriars Kirk, 16 Aug, 8.00pm (10:00pm), £12.00 (9.00), fpp 844
twrating: 3/5 [ggwe]
www.threeweeks.co.uk
Teesdale Mercury wrote (on 06-03-2002)
(In reference to Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, Co. Durham)
The debut concert in the first season of Music at the Bowes, was greeted with enthusiastic applause from a capacity audience in the Spanish Room at the museum on Sunday, 24 February.
The Edinburgh-based Cadenza mixed voice choir – 1998 Scottish Choir of the Year – presented a programme of musical variety and rare charm. The choir demonstrated its versatility and vitality in five groups of songs that included madrigals, traditional folk songs, Scottish ballads and Rachmaninov’s Ave Maria, sung with feeling in accurately-pronounced Russian. Indeed, the diction of the choir was immaculate and the musicality of its energetic conductor, Jenny Sumerling, remarkable. By including Gibbons’ The Silver Swan in the opening group of songs, the choir paid a much-appreciated tribute to the venue.
Unfortunately, due to pressure of time, the choir had to shorten its final group of 20th century ‘songs with a swing’; their rendition of Cole Porter’s Let’s Do It, however, left the audience in no doubt that their excellent repertoire more than competently encompasses modern as well as early music.
M S, Darlington & Stockton Times wrote (on 01-03-2002)
(In reference to Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, Co. Durham)
The concert began with a memorable performance from Cadenza, a mixed voice choir based in Edinburgh, who sang a well-balanced selection of songs, madrigals and Scottish airs, ranging from Gibbons to Cole Porter, all interestingly arranged and beautifully sung. Delicate interplay between the piano and forte sections of each song had the kind of magical quality and finish usually experienced only with professional choirs.
Though amateur in status, Cadenza is without any doubt professional in talent and achievement, endorsed by its winning the Scottish Choir of the Year award in 1998. One can only hope for a return visit so those who missed them first time round will have a chance to experience the pleasure and sheer joy of listening to them.
Susan Forest, a member of the choir, is also a talented clarinet player. Accompanied by Stephen Doughty, she played the 2nd movement from the Concerto No 1 in F by Max Weber, bringing out well the liquid tones of this instrument and expertly managing the challenging arpeggios towards the end of the movement.