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News & Events:Music For Maytime Concert 5th May 2008Presented by the Friends of St. Giles An article written by Alison Reynolds This year’s concert featured music from Purcell to Irving Berlin, performed by three elegant singers, and on instruments ranging from tubas to harps. Elizabeth Mace, clarinet, returned to St. Giles, accompanied by John Castle. Two lovely Mozart arias, beautifully arranged by Benoy and Boyce, were soulful and poignant. In contrast Elizabeth conjured up England’s countryside, with the wonderful tone and atmosphere of Finzi’s ‘Romance’, one of his ‘Five Bagatelles’, followed by another, the much jollier, energetic ‘Fughetta’. Making their first appearance here, The Luard Trio entertained with eight contrasting works, and a costume change after the interval. Their operatic choices included Offenbach’s rich ‘Barcarole’ from ‘The Tales of Hoffman’, gentle, but then powerful. We also heard ‘Dance to your Daddy’ and an acappella version of Prince’s ‘Boogie Woogie’ for all three singers. With Julie Dance, contralto, back at the piano, Caroline Luard, soprano, and Valerie Wright, mezzo soprano, finished their well received set with the very polished ‘Dance a Cachucha’ from G and S’s ‘The Gondoliers’, complete with the appropriate steps. Vicky Lester demonstrated how well the harp sounds in St. Giles, beginning with Glinka’s variations on a Mozart theme, and then giving us French music from ‘The Golden Age of Twentieth Century Harp’ with Tournier’s ‘Au Matin’ and ‘Clair de Lune’, where a French born harpist had been given Debussy’s explicit permission, for the transcription. Having evoked the piano, Vicky next emulated the mandolin. Elias Parish Alvars, (described by Berlioz as the Liszt of the harp) born two hundred years ago, described his ‘Mandoline’ as a grand study in the style of the mandolin, and this intricate piece certainly showcased the range of the harp, while bringing to mind the sound of the earlier instrument. St. Giles Brass Ensemble were in robust form. Led by Ray Jewkes, the thirteen players gave us the roistering ‘Seventy Six Trombones’ and Fucik’s ‘Entry of the Gladiators’. We also heard what Ray described as “the best piece of music to come out of Denmark”, Gade’s sinuous tango ‘Jealousy’, with its sense of awful foreboding, and our concert was finished in fine style as each section of the Ensemble in turn led a splendid arrangement of Berlin’s ‘Putting on the Ritz’. Many thanks to all concerned for another selection of fine music in a fine old Church. |
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