Concert Reviews 2009
Ballroom blitz a classic
CD Review
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IT is 20 years since the Tasmanian Symphony Chamber Players released their award-winning CD of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. Renamed Virtuosi Tasmania, these musicians, drawn mainly from the TSO, have established a considerable reputation in recent times for their imaginative and high-quality performances at various venues around the state. This recording was made in the glowing acoustic of the Ballroom of Government House, Hobart, in August last year. The opening, Corelli's Concerto Grosso Op 6 No. 24 brings fresh, |
alert playing that, along with Mozart's Divertimento K 1374, is the highlight of the disc. The timbre of Annalisa Kerrigan's voice wil not appeal to everyone. Her clear but cool delivery applied intelligently to a selection of popular arias by Purcell, Handel, Paisiello and Mozart is especially effective in a beautiful rendition of Purcell's Music for a While. The inclusion of Puccini's O mio babbino caro seems curiously out of place, given the other repertoire choices. Overall an enjoyable collection. Peter Donnelly Mercury Magazine 12/12/09 page 7 |
November Concerts: Baroque and More
Suite caps off performance | |
| Virtuosi Tasmania Cascades Koonya The rain poured down outside and a log fire warmed the mess hall of the Convict Station at Cascades, Koonya, as the musicians of Virtuosi Tasmania played to a large and appreciative audience in one of the final concerts of their 2009 series. Elgar's Sreneade for Strings in E minor Op 20 from 1892, his earliest work to retain a place in the standard repertoire, was given fluent and sensitive treatment with three violins, a viola, cello and bass. The touching "largheto" second movement was particularly effective in this scaled-back instrumentation. |
Yoram Levy took on the treacherously high picolo trumpet part with aplomb in J S Bach's 2nd Brandenburg Concerto BWV 1047. The string group was also joined by Lloyd Hudson (flute) and Dinah Woods (oboe) for this performance. It was only here that the otherwise superb intimate acoustic provided a slight problem with the trumpet being too dominent. Best of all was the Suite for Strings by Leo Janácek with its delightful Czech folk influences. There was some beautifully refined playing, especially in the Allemande and Air. Peter Donnelly Mercury Monday 30/11/09 |
August Concerts: Vibrant Viola & Passionate Piano
Viola beauty explored | |
| Virtuosi Tasmania Inc Janet Rutherford, viola Lynette Smith, piano Meadowbank Estate Cambridge VIRTUOSI Tasmania presented four attractive works for viola and piano. The arpeggione, an unusual six-string instrument with frets, was in vogue for a short time and is remembered today mainly for a sonata (D 821) Schubert wrote for it in 1824. Its range was wider than that of the viola and the cello and some arrangement of the original is required for performance on those instruments. While this music remains difficult to play, and was not always immaculate technically, Janet Rutherford gave a generally fine account, especially in the serene Adagio third movement. |
Schumann's Marchen-bilder (Fairy Tales) Qg 113, rarely heard, is unusually structured with two slow outer movements framing two fast inner ones. The music itself is vintage Schumann and was played with warmth and beauty by these artists. Piazzolla's Le Grand Tango is one of the composer's few classical works, written for master cellist Mstislav Rostropovich in 1982 and later arranged for viola. The music is very appealing with its wide contrasts and flowing tango rhythms. The tango and the concluding Waltz for Betz by James Grant are quite memorable pieces and were excellently played on this occasion by Rutherford and Lynette Smith. Peter Donnelly Mercury Monday 10/08/09 |
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