Hannah and Viola
A couple of Sundays ago our Highgate Society Sunday lunchtime concert played host to Viola Lenzi on the piano and Hannah Shilvock with her amazing bass clarinet. With many wind instruments the bass version is just a slightly larger and deeper version of the ‘normal’ one – but not so with the clarinet.
As you can see, a bass clarinet is a serious instrument not only with an amazing range but with a very definite personality of its own. I quite expected it on occasion to turn round to Hannah and tell her that it could play the piece by itself and ask her to just let it to get on with it!
To illustrate some of that range here are a few short clips – from Sebastian Tozzola‘s Paisaje Folklorico, followed by Saint Saëns’ Swan from his Carnival of the Animals, arranged by Hannah and finally Vittorio Monti’s Csárdás.
A really lovely concert – and, talking to Viola afterwards, she was telling me that with a friend she plays famous show songs – four hands on one piano! Now that sounds fun for a future Sunday.
Paul Archbold’s 60th birthday concert
I first met Paul through his wife, Bridget Carey who many of you will also know as she is the viola player in Madeleine Mitchell’s London Chamber Ensemble. (In a fully packed life, Bridget also plays with the Britten Sinfonia and in a number of contemporary music ensembles.) In the intervals of various concerts Paul had told me about his music and had sent me a couple of CDs but I had never had the chance to hear his music played live. So it was wonderful to get a ‘feast of Paul’ at the Royal Academy on the 20th at his birthday concert.
Paul’s work focuses on small groups, often only two or three instruments – into which he often incorporates live electronics – and he likes to collaborate with performers. This enables him to ‘explore the detailed intricacies of microtones and multiphonics and integrate them into his music’. Foremost amongst his collaborators are Bridget, his wife, oboist Christopher Redgate and harpist Hugh Webb for all of whom he has composed pieces and who have also commissioned pieces from him.
(By a bizarre coincidence I already knew Hugh who, about year ago, had given a new home to my black and white cat, Arwen. Some of you may remember him. At which time I had no idea that Hugh was even a harpist let alone a close collaborator of Paul’s.)
The concert
The concert intertwined Paul’s works with snatches from Debussy, Ravel, John Casken and Paul’s and Bridget’s daughter Phoenix. Included were:
Oboist Christopher Redgate playing Zechstein, a magically haunting piece that Paul wrote for him in 2015 – and which you can actually hear here on the Composer’s Edition site. And Two Pieces for Oboe and Piano in which, Paul says, he wanted ‘to explore the performance dynamic within the oboe and piano duo’.
After Medusa and After Ondine, two new pieces (world premieres) commissioned by Hugh for viola and harp and cello and harp – one scary – one watery – as the titles would suggest.
Disenchanted Voices for flute, viola and harp, each ‘pursuing their individual paths, sometimes echoing each other’s melodies, sometimes collaborating in rich harmonies.’ This was played by Bridget, Hugh and Nancy Ruffer (who had studied at the Royal Academy with Bridget and Paul) on the flute.
Of Crossed Destinies – inspired by Italo Calvino’s novel, The Castle of Crossed Destinies. A solo harp tale, also commissioned by Hugh, of mute travellers coming together in a remote castle and telling their tales through tarot cards which finally connect to imprison them in the castle…
A really fascinating concert to which I was very happy to have been invited. And we are now talking about the possibility an evening here in Hampstead Lane – watch this space.
Meanwhile, if you want to know more about Paul and his music check in here on the Composers’ Edition site or here on the GSMD site.
Coming up…..
September 4th at 6pm – Our first Rush Hour Recital with…
Zadie Loft is a poet, essayist and novelist and has just finished her debut novel. Zadie is also guitarist Declan Hickey’s girlfriend. And for her birthday last year, Declan commissioned his composer friend Jonty Lefroy Watt to put two of Zadie’s poems to music. So successful were the first two that Jonty went on to set all ten of Zadie’s cycle of poems.
To hear the first ever performance of this cycle, sung by Mia Serracino-Inglott and accompanied by Declan on his guitar – along with other songs by Fauré, South African-British composer Priaulx Rainier and Benjamin Britten arranged folk songs – join us on September 4th.
6pm for a glass of wine and an hour of delightful music for just £15!
To book, go here.
For other happenings in July, at Hampstead Lane and elsewhere – see our Upcoming Events page.
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