Bach by Candlelight, Perth Chamber Orchestra. Photograph by Richard Jefferson.
Perth Symphony Orchestra has had a baby! This fine ensemble, made up of string, wind and keyboard players from Perth Symphony Orchestra, proved yet again what depth and breadth of talent is to be found in the world’s most isolated city.
Chamber Music, they say, does not sell. It is, perhaps, a truth universally acknowledged that chamber music ensembles must always be in want of an audience. I have been to performances by string quartets in which, sadly, the house appeared to be populated by the performers’ parents and a few friends. No so here: St George’s Cathedral, which, like most such buildings, was built to hold many hundreds of worshippers, was packed with eager concert-goers. Who says chamber music doesn’t sell?
It was a stroke of genius to invite the composer to be present in person. Heaven being a step too far, even for a genius such as JS Bach, we had local actor James Hagan to represent him. In wig and period clothing, Hagan made a fine job of compering the program and giving us snippets of Bach’s life story along the way.
The opening item, the well-known Toccata and Fugue in D Minor, sounded over-amplified. However, it was apparently due to the power of the cathedral’s organ, not to modern technology, and was brilliantly played. The allegro from Brandenburg Concerto #4 in G major had toes tapping, and a fine rendition of the largo from Concerto for two violins in D minor, featuring Paul Wright and Susannah Williams, proved a nice contrast. I’d like to see these two develop their musical partnership: the work could not be faulted, but it did have a slight tentativeness, as if, perhaps, the players were not quite confident in working together. However, the lovely son et lumière show, depicting fluttering birds on the wall beside the sanctuary, was an added delight. That ended the first section, and Hagan, still in character as the composer, crossed himself in relief from behind the cathedral’s magnificent rood screen.
A short interval followed, during which we were served a potato, onion and red cabbage bake, topped with crisp bacon and chives. PSO certainly knows how to please an audience, in more ways than one!
The inner gourmet being satisfied, we settled down to hear the Prelude for Cello in D minor. This was a five-star effort, and a highlight of the evening. The following item, a solo from St Matthew Passion by soprano Veronique Willing, really needed amplification: like many sopranos, Willing tended to lose volume in the lower register although in other ways her singing was flawless. The fugue from Sinfonia in D minor closed the bracket, and we took a break to enjoy Baked Ginger Chocolate Apples!
The final bracket opened with the ubiquitous Air on the G-string – but in a most unusual arrangement! Saxophonist Jamie Oehlers fronted the orchestra for this one, proving that Bach can be transposed, transcribed and translated in many ways and still remain magnificent. This item could only be capped by another very popular work –Brandenburg Concerto #3, featuring the talented Sophie Curtis on cello. Mention must also be made of Sacha McCulloch, who provided an extra cello to the Brandenburg #3. The directors are to be complimented on their choice of soloists. Each of them contributed something unique to what was, overall, an excellent program.
Rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
Bach by Candlelight Perth Chamber Orchestra
Artistic Directors: Paul Wright and Jessica Gethin
Producer: Bourby Webster
Concertmaster: Paul Wright
Second Violin: Susannah Williams
Solo Cello: Sophie Curtis
Harpsichord/Organ: James Huntingford
Saxophone: Jamie Oehlers
JS Bach’s ghost: James Hagan
St Andrews Cathedral, Perth
31 August 2016
