home2008 Course
28th October to 1st November 2008
Cadogan Hall, London
Concert - November 1st 2008
Following the highly successful concert in October 2007, the English Schools' Orchestra and Choir returned to the Cadogan Hall in London on Saturday November 1st 2008 for their annual concert.
This year something approaching 90 young players from schools all over the country assembled at The Haberdashers' Aske's School, Elstree, Hertfordshire for the orchestral course that began on Tuesday 28th October, to begin rehearsals on a challenging but very popular programme. The first play-through of the major work in this year's programme, the Planets Suite (opus 32) by Gustav Holst, caused a few first-timers' jaws to drop somewhat, as they were confronted by some testing passages, especially when the string section met Mercury for the first time, but soon composure was restored and in time, under the expert tuition of the well-established team of experienced professional section tutors, everything began to take shape, with apprehension quickly giving way to increasing confidence as notes fell more easily into place. As the week progressed, all seven movements of the suite were tackled with more and more assurance and the technical difficulties eventually began to be of little consequence. Eventually the character, mood and colour of each movement was gradually drawn out, so much so that in the concert every player was able to give a thoroughly mature and exciting musical interpretation of this hugely imaginative music.
The popular but substantial overture to Rossini's opera, William Tell, opened the concert and here again the orchestra excelled in capturing the musical images of the four separate but continuous sections. The five solo cellos that Rossini demanded for the opening pastoral scene were played with the utmost security, as were the Cor Anglais and Flute solos later in the piece. The final Galop, (AllegroVivace), was despatched with considerable panache. The virtuoso orchestral writing and thrilling up-beat tempo held no fears for any player and there was a considerable amount of youthful joi de vivre in the playing.
The girls’ choirs chosen this year to join the orchestra in the final movement of the Planets Suite (Neptune) were from the Haberdashers' Aske's School for Girls and St. Margaret's School, Bushey, both from Hertfordshire. The design of the Cadogan Hall prohibited the choirs being hidden away unseen as is usually the custom, but nevertheless the high sustained vocal lines were admirably controlled and the choirs' fine contribution, though visible, enabled the movement to end as Anthony Burton wrote in his excellent programme notes, `in mystical contemplation of infinite time and space'.
In addition to their part in the Planets, the Haberdashers Girls' Choir, who in 2003 won the title of BBC Radio3 Choir of the Year, sang Holst's Third Group of Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda. This fascinating set of four pieces, often with unusual time signatures (e.g. 7/4 and 5/4) and forward-looking harmonic content, proved a perfect small-scale companion to contrast with the large-scale Planets Suite, and was sung with assured intonation and fine tonal quality.
Of the many highlights in this splendid concert, one that everyone will remember for a long time to come, was the brilliant trumpet playing of the virtuoso soloist Alison Balsom in Hummel's Trumpet Concerto in Eb. Her visit to Elstree, prior to concert day, to meet the orchestra and to rehearse the concerto was eagerly awaited and no one was disappointed. On hearing her play the very first notes, everyone in the orchestra was aware of what a privilege and honour it was to be accompanying and working with such an outstanding instrumentalist. The trumpet section especially, listened with incredulity to the way the phrases were shaped and the technical brilliance that she exhibited in the more florid passages. At the concert, her expertise again inspired the accompanying instrumentalists to further heights of sensitive musicianship and technical accomplishment, which produced an unforgettable performance from all involved and a prolonged ovation from the audience.
All present in Cadogan Hall fully appreciated the excellent performances of all the pieces in this challenging programme, and next year’s concert in Southwark Cathedral is already being looked forward to with great anticipation, especially as many younger players in the orchestra can look forward to several more years of membership and exciting music making. On the evidence of this concert, the English Schools' Orchestra and Choir, year by year, go from strength to strength, and their courses and concerts are fast becoming events not to be missed by young instrumentalists and concert-goers alike.
Alan Taylor,
Course Director, English Schools' Orchestra and Choir