THE Edinburgh Festival Chorus (EFC) has existed for more than 50 years. It has been conducted in performances by many of the great conductors of the second half of the 20th century, and for almost a quarter of this century. It has a wide repertoire. It is simply world-class.
Its performance of Alexander Grechaninov’s Passion Week during this summer’s Edinburgh International Festival forged that reputation anew. It is an unaccompanied work sung in Church Slavonic, and written in 1912, but was largely unknown before it was first recorded in the 1990s. There are now several recordings. It is Russian, but it is informed by compositions of mainstream Europe.
It runs for almost an hour. It offered opportunities for solo parts and a sub-choir. The rehearsals had been put to good use. The singing sounded Russian and was unerringly fluid, the texts being laid out plainly before being repeated and modulated through the sections of the chorus.
James Grossmith, the chorus director, ably conducted his chorus with subtle techniques, such as the singing of the text “The Lord is God . . .” with the chorus seated; and solos were performed by singers who stepped forward on either side of Grossmith, while the sub-choir was positioned at the left front of stage for its one contribution.
This was the single most accomplished performance I have heard from the chorus. Grossmith must be praised for having put his faith, and his personal effort, into crafting this performance with them.
MY ATTENDANCE at a Queen’s Hall morning concert held expectations that were unfulfilled. It was advertised as “Exploring Rossini with James Baillieu”. I knew I would hear a performance of the Petite Messe Solennelle.
I was expecting some kind of contextual introduction to the piece, referencing the long time during which Rossini had not written anything — and then suddenly this. All that was on offer was a performance of the piece in an arrangement for two pianos and an accordion.
It was, however, a glorious performance, sung by 12 singers, three each of sopranos, altos, tenors and basses, while the pianos were mostly at a brisk canter, and the accordion occasionally provided a “musical thread”. The singing was of a high standard throughout, none of the singers standing out. They sang as one. The various solo combinations were well matched in tone and volume.
The opening Kyrie, with unaccompanied “Christe”, proved to be a fine introduction to the overall performance. Both the Gloria and Credo provided multiple solos. The tenor solo Domine Deus had a spacious elegance. The Sanctus gave the impression of a midnight blue velvet sky with twinkling stars. The Agnus Dei was a well paced tour de force for the entire cast.
This was a collective effort by the singers, the pianists, James Baillieu, director, and Mark Austin, coach. The accordionist, Sofía Ros González, made her presence felt lightly and evenly. The chorus often sang loudly and with power, but never sounded forced or raw. It was a great communal achievement.
© maxime ragniRising Stars of Brass
I DID receive some exploratory tuition at a performance entitled “Emerging Talent: Rising Stars of Brass”. A brass quintet had been selected, by video interview, from final-year and recent graduate musicians.
Emma Close, trombone, and Rachel Wood, horn, both studied at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. Peter Richards, bass trombone, studied at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama and also at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. Cameron Chin-See, trumpet, studied at the Royal Northern College of Music, and Lucas Houldcroft, trumpet studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.
They were selected and tutored by Aaron Akugbo and Chris Hart for only two days to learn the repertoire for this performance.
They began with the first movement of a concerto for two trumpets by Vivaldi arranged for the brass quintet. The trumpet solos played by Akugbo and Hart were not spaced far enough away from the quintet. They were not distinct or spacially animated: not bad, but sub-optimal. Akugbo and Hart opened the second part of the concert with a fanfare by Stravinsky. It was written for a new theatre. This was relevant, because the main space of The Hub (a redundant church, now the home of the Edinburgh International Festival) has recently been fitted out with new terraced seating. It was brutal, but was only one minute and a half in duration. It served the purpose of calling the audience to their seats for the second part of the performance rather well.
The quintet played music from different centuries and styles. Their first piece was by Raffaella Aleotta, who became a nun and continued composing music for the convent.
Next up was the Quintet No. 3 by Victor Ewald. The remaining pieces were by Rachmaninov, his “Bogoroditse Devo”, and Enrique Crespo, movements from his Suite Americana.
The selection of works displayed the development of the brass repertoire over the centuries, showcasing the ability of the various members of this scratch quintet to play well together, and also their confidence and skill in rising to the challenges of solo parts.
The works by Rachmaninov and Crespo were quintessential brass repertoire in style and structure. The concert was well received and continued as a question-and-answer session, in which the musicians explained how they needed to fit in with the breathing and techniques of the other players to create well-blended performances.
This had been a successful workshop experience for their ongoing development.