On 21 March 2009, in the Dunedin Town Hall, City of Dunedin Choir participated in the Southern Sinfonia's presentation of the Dunedin Heritage Festival concert entitled Southern Stars, Celebrating the Life, Times and Works of Frances Hodgkins. The Choir performed Serenade to Music by Ralph Vaughan Williams, and an extract from Anthony Richie's From the Southern Marches.
"The City of Dunedin Choir joined for Serenade to Music by Vaughan Williams. Excellent balance and gloriously serene harmony passages, including solo violin (Sydney Manowitz), contrasted with well-achieved climaxes."
(Extract from the review by Elizabeth Bouman in the Otago Daily Times of 23 March 2009.)
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label reviews. Show all posts
Saturday, March 21, 2009
Monday, November 24, 2008
Joyous prelude to Christmas
Review by Donald Cullington for the ODT:
For its pre-Christmas concert in the Town Hall on Saturday, the City of Dunedin Choir chose J.S. Bach's Christmas Oratorio - six cantatas written in 1734 for different Christmastide services. It proved an excellent choice, bringing out the best in all those involved.
Bach himself must take first place in the credits. Working within narrow confines — the religious and artistic culture of the Germany of his day - he nevertheless wrote church music of such variety, inventiveness and imagination that it can still astonish and inspire, as the reactions of the large and appreciative Dunedin audience showed.
But meeting Bach's demands is not easy, for he requires virtuoso technique and stamina from both instruments and voices.
The four principal soloists here, however, formed a strong team, impressive in solos and ensembles alike: Nicola Edgecombe a brightly-shining soprano, Kate Spence a warmtoned alto, John Murray a clear and confident tenor, and Chris Bruerton a sensitive and wellmodulated bass. The choir sang with accuracy and assurance throughout, both in the dancelike choruses and in the more reflective chorales, the outnumbered tenors on the whole coping manfully with their soaring lines, the sopranos excelling in their two chorales with bass soloist, and one, Catherine Daly, beautifully echoing the soloist in one item.
The Southern Sinfonia gave splendid and unflagging support, always setting the pace with verve and precision. Special mention must be made of Sydney Manowitz's violin solos and his duet with Sandra Crawshaw, Nicholas Cornish's incredible staying power on the oboe, the stylish continuoplaying of David Murray (cello) and John van Buskirk (chamber organ), and the brilliance of trumpets and horns.
Overseeing and masterfully uniting these forces was David Burchell, who doubled as harpsichordist and conductor. He should feel proud of his achievement, for if the necessary cuts in this long work may have caused some un-Bach-like harmonic jolts, and if the omission of the pastoral sinfonia from Cantata 2 caused particular distress, I am sure that St Cecilia, whose special day November 22 also was, smiled down on his devoted attention to one of her most famous sons.
About the reviewer:
A native of northern England, Donald Cullington graduated in Classics at Cambridge before qualifying as a musician (with a BMus at Durham, a DMus at Edinburgh, etc.). His musical career - as pianist, organist, choirtrainer and teacher - spans four decades so far, and has included four years (1975-78) as Director of Music at St Paul's Cathedral in Dunedin, and twenty-eight years in Northern Ireland as initiator, developer and (for many years) Head of the Music Department at the University of Ulster.
Publication: Otago Daily Times; Date: Nov 24, 2008; Page Number: 4
For its pre-Christmas concert in the Town Hall on Saturday, the City of Dunedin Choir chose J.S. Bach's Christmas Oratorio - six cantatas written in 1734 for different Christmastide services. It proved an excellent choice, bringing out the best in all those involved.
Bach himself must take first place in the credits. Working within narrow confines — the religious and artistic culture of the Germany of his day - he nevertheless wrote church music of such variety, inventiveness and imagination that it can still astonish and inspire, as the reactions of the large and appreciative Dunedin audience showed.
But meeting Bach's demands is not easy, for he requires virtuoso technique and stamina from both instruments and voices.
The four principal soloists here, however, formed a strong team, impressive in solos and ensembles alike: Nicola Edgecombe a brightly-shining soprano, Kate Spence a warmtoned alto, John Murray a clear and confident tenor, and Chris Bruerton a sensitive and wellmodulated bass. The choir sang with accuracy and assurance throughout, both in the dancelike choruses and in the more reflective chorales, the outnumbered tenors on the whole coping manfully with their soaring lines, the sopranos excelling in their two chorales with bass soloist, and one, Catherine Daly, beautifully echoing the soloist in one item.
The Southern Sinfonia gave splendid and unflagging support, always setting the pace with verve and precision. Special mention must be made of Sydney Manowitz's violin solos and his duet with Sandra Crawshaw, Nicholas Cornish's incredible staying power on the oboe, the stylish continuoplaying of David Murray (cello) and John van Buskirk (chamber organ), and the brilliance of trumpets and horns.
Overseeing and masterfully uniting these forces was David Burchell, who doubled as harpsichordist and conductor. He should feel proud of his achievement, for if the necessary cuts in this long work may have caused some un-Bach-like harmonic jolts, and if the omission of the pastoral sinfonia from Cantata 2 caused particular distress, I am sure that St Cecilia, whose special day November 22 also was, smiled down on his devoted attention to one of her most famous sons.
About the reviewer:
A native of northern England, Donald Cullington graduated in Classics at Cambridge before qualifying as a musician (with a BMus at Durham, a DMus at Edinburgh, etc.). His musical career - as pianist, organist, choirtrainer and teacher - spans four decades so far, and has included four years (1975-78) as Director of Music at St Paul's Cathedral in Dunedin, and twenty-eight years in Northern Ireland as initiator, developer and (for many years) Head of the Music Department at the University of Ulster.
Publication: Otago Daily Times; Date: Nov 24, 2008; Page Number: 4
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Review of Dream of Gerontius in The Press
David Sell wrote the review of the 13 September performance of Elgar's Dream of Gerontius in Christchurch for The Press. On the whole he concurred with the views of Tony Ryan (review on Upbeat).
He goes on to say this about the choir:
Gerontius is a challenge to any conductor, and Brian Law shaped the work convincingly. He had trained his choir thoroughly, and the massive climaxes were spine-tingling.
Elgar did his best to make the demons' chorus fiendishly difficult, but the choir beat him.
My last word, however, must go to the Cathedral boy choristers, whose pure bright tone added a brilliance to the peak choruses, yet could be as ethereal as the angel, or Elgar, would want.
He goes on to say this about the choir:
Gerontius is a challenge to any conductor, and Brian Law shaped the work convincingly. He had trained his choir thoroughly, and the massive climaxes were spine-tingling.
Elgar did his best to make the demons' chorus fiendishly difficult, but the choir beat him.
My last word, however, must go to the Cathedral boy choristers, whose pure bright tone added a brilliance to the peak choruses, yet could be as ethereal as the angel, or Elgar, would want.
Monday, August 11, 2008
Performances give large audience plenty to relish
Carmina Burana, Dunedin Town Hall, Saturday 9 August 2008
Review for the Otago Daily Times by Elizabeth Bouman
"Dunedin Town Hall was packed on Saturday night with the largest audience in 15 years for a Southern Sinfonia subscription concert. Performing with the orchestra, conducted by Werner Andreas Albert, were City of Dunedin Choir, St Paul’s choristers, Southern Children’s Youth Choir and three guest soloists.
The evening began with a Shostakovich work Pirogov - the commissioned arrangement by Wellington composer John Spathas for the 2004 Athens Olympics opening ceremony. A rather long build-up suddenly boiled with anticipation, to culminate as the Olympic flame ignites the cauldron, and the Sinfonia succeeded in portraying tension and excitement for these climactic passages.
Respighi’s orchestration of Cinq Etudes-Tableaux Orch, by Rachmaninov, created a highly programmatic set of of pieces traversing a kaleidoscope of musical images. This demanding work occasionally lost a little evenness and intonation, but nevertheless it was a convincing colourful portrayal of five contrasting “scenes”.
Carl Orff’s robust cantata Carmina Burana filled the second half of the programme with big sound and pace. This 1937 work has ancient lyrical text, outrageously pagan and sensual in content, with many declamatory passages demanding spirited delivery from all. On Saturday over 200 performers triumphed with vigour and energy. A particularly zealous men’s chorus (the strongest in this choir for some time) maintained pace and drive throughout - perhaps the meaningful text appealed? Other sections caught the atmosphere and the work never flagged.
Jared Holt, one of this country’s best young singers, displayed great versatility, slipping effortlessly from his lyrical baritone to stunning upper register tenor resonance, plus falsetto and counter-tenor quality as required for Dies nox et omnia. Wellington soprano Barbara Graham (2008 Dame Malvina Major emerging artist) will go far with her elegant delivery, purity of tone and intonation. Her Amor volat undique balanced perfectly with the children, who phrased and enunciated clearly, directed by David Burchell, Anthony Richie and Holly Mathieson. International tenor New Zealander John Murray was also in excellent voice."
Wow, wasn't that an awesome performance! What a thrill to be part of such a huge production. The audience clearly loved it - it seemed they were not going to let us go home! Our heart-felt thanks to David, Anthony and Holly for so expertly preparing the singers for Werner's final moulding for the performance. Good on you, men! You did us proud.
Review for the Otago Daily Times by Elizabeth Bouman
"Dunedin Town Hall was packed on Saturday night with the largest audience in 15 years for a Southern Sinfonia subscription concert. Performing with the orchestra, conducted by Werner Andreas Albert, were City of Dunedin Choir, St Paul’s choristers, Southern Children’s Youth Choir and three guest soloists.
The evening began with a Shostakovich work Pirogov - the commissioned arrangement by Wellington composer John Spathas for the 2004 Athens Olympics opening ceremony. A rather long build-up suddenly boiled with anticipation, to culminate as the Olympic flame ignites the cauldron, and the Sinfonia succeeded in portraying tension and excitement for these climactic passages.
Respighi’s orchestration of Cinq Etudes-Tableaux Orch, by Rachmaninov, created a highly programmatic set of of pieces traversing a kaleidoscope of musical images. This demanding work occasionally lost a little evenness and intonation, but nevertheless it was a convincing colourful portrayal of five contrasting “scenes”.
Carl Orff’s robust cantata Carmina Burana filled the second half of the programme with big sound and pace. This 1937 work has ancient lyrical text, outrageously pagan and sensual in content, with many declamatory passages demanding spirited delivery from all. On Saturday over 200 performers triumphed with vigour and energy. A particularly zealous men’s chorus (the strongest in this choir for some time) maintained pace and drive throughout - perhaps the meaningful text appealed? Other sections caught the atmosphere and the work never flagged.
Jared Holt, one of this country’s best young singers, displayed great versatility, slipping effortlessly from his lyrical baritone to stunning upper register tenor resonance, plus falsetto and counter-tenor quality as required for Dies nox et omnia. Wellington soprano Barbara Graham (2008 Dame Malvina Major emerging artist) will go far with her elegant delivery, purity of tone and intonation. Her Amor volat undique balanced perfectly with the children, who phrased and enunciated clearly, directed by David Burchell, Anthony Richie and Holly Mathieson. International tenor New Zealander John Murray was also in excellent voice."
Wow, wasn't that an awesome performance! What a thrill to be part of such a huge production. The audience clearly loved it - it seemed they were not going to let us go home! Our heart-felt thanks to David, Anthony and Holly for so expertly preparing the singers for Werner's final moulding for the performance. Good on you, men! You did us proud.
Sunday, July 13, 2008
Schubert in May 2008
Accolades for orchestra, choir
"Despite the holiday weekend and sport on TV, an extremely good-sized audience attended the town hall on Saturday evening to hear the Dunedin Youth Orchestra and the City of Dunedin Choir, conducted by David Burchell.It was a great performance and accolades flowed, particularly for the DYO... The length and difficulty of the programme was a huge ask for these young players, who achieved an extremely commendable standard overall.
The choir, of well over 130 singers, was in good form, delivering a beautiful interpretation, despite there appearing to be insufficient male voices for a satisfactory blend. High register soprano clarity and intonation were particularly commendable.
Soloists... Lois Johnson.. Claire Barton... Andrew Grenon... Chris Bruerton... their frequent harmonic passages were perfectly balanced, refreshingly light and appealing."
(Extract from the review by Elizabeth Bouman in the Otago Daily Times of 1 June 2008.)
Performance: Franz Schubert's Mass No. 5 in A Flat, Dunedin Town Hall, 31 May 2008
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
Messiah 2007 with Anna Leese
The following is an extract from the review of this performance, by Elizabeth Bouman in the Otago Daily Times:
"Both the Choir and the Sinfonia are a credit to a city of this size and excelled in conquering the demands of this three-hour Baroque marathon.
The 110-strong choir gave energy and full resonant sound for Burchell to draw upon for the big choruses. Setting their sights early in "And the Glory" and "Glory to God", phrasing and articulation were generally good, with passionate voicing. As to be expected the "Hallelujah" chorus was a highlight, rising to a thrilling climax...
I thought the choir was fantastic.
Soloists add the gilding to any oratorio and having Dunedin-trained Anna Leese in the country for a short visit of recitals was a real bonus.
Prolonged applause and footstamping followed the resounding "Amens", and tired but jubilant musicians felt the buzz of completing yet another outstanding delivery of this 1742 masterpiece."
Performance: Handel's Messiah, Dunedin Town Hall, 11 December 2007
"Both the Choir and the Sinfonia are a credit to a city of this size and excelled in conquering the demands of this three-hour Baroque marathon.
The 110-strong choir gave energy and full resonant sound for Burchell to draw upon for the big choruses. Setting their sights early in "And the Glory" and "Glory to God", phrasing and articulation were generally good, with passionate voicing. As to be expected the "Hallelujah" chorus was a highlight, rising to a thrilling climax...
I thought the choir was fantastic.
Soloists add the gilding to any oratorio and having Dunedin-trained Anna Leese in the country for a short visit of recitals was a real bonus.
Prolonged applause and footstamping followed the resounding "Amens", and tired but jubilant musicians felt the buzz of completing yet another outstanding delivery of this 1742 masterpiece."
Performance: Handel's Messiah, Dunedin Town Hall, 11 December 2007
Saturday, September 8, 2007
Sublime performance
Performance: Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, Dunedin Town Hall, 8 September 2007
The City of Dunedin Choir with members of the Southern Consort of Voices and the St Paul's Cathedral Choir, the Southern Sinfonia, tenor David Hamilton, mezzo-soprano Helen Medlyn and bass David Griffiths, with conductor David Burchell, Dunedin Town Hall. Extract from the review by Elizabeth Bouman in the Otago Daily Times:
"This late Romantic oratorio, written by Edward Elgar in 1900, is challenging for any choir. Saturday's performance was sublime and all credit to organisers for presenting such a grand work in our city."
"Stunning choral sound lifted Praise in the Holiest to great heights, contrasting with subtle shading of the many gentle more restrained passages. The Demon's Chorus was a highlight - rythmically taut and contrastingly vibrant."
"Conductor David Burchell is to be complimented on leading both Choir and Sinfonia successfully through this two-hour journey with unflagging energy, an impressive sense of drama, and sensitivity."
The City of Dunedin Choir with members of the Southern Consort of Voices and the St Paul's Cathedral Choir, the Southern Sinfonia, tenor David Hamilton, mezzo-soprano Helen Medlyn and bass David Griffiths, with conductor David Burchell, Dunedin Town Hall. Extract from the review by Elizabeth Bouman in the Otago Daily Times:
"This late Romantic oratorio, written by Edward Elgar in 1900, is challenging for any choir. Saturday's performance was sublime and all credit to organisers for presenting such a grand work in our city."
"Stunning choral sound lifted Praise in the Holiest to great heights, contrasting with subtle shading of the many gentle more restrained passages. The Demon's Chorus was a highlight - rythmically taut and contrastingly vibrant."
"Conductor David Burchell is to be complimented on leading both Choir and Sinfonia successfully through this two-hour journey with unflagging energy, an impressive sense of drama, and sensitivity."
Saturday, May 26, 2007
Enthusiastic audience enjoys performance
The City of Dunedin Choir teams up with the Invercargill A Capella Singers to perform Gloria by Francis Poulenc (1899-1963), in a concert presented by the Southern Sinfonia with Tecwyn Evans, Conductor, and Emma Fraser, Soprano, in the Dunedin Town Hall on 26 May 2007.
Extract from the review by Abbey Smith in the Otago Daily Times:
"The concert was well attended by a warmly enthusiastic audience, who clearly enjoyed the diversity and range of the music on offer."
Of Poulenc's Gloria she says: "At first it was not clear whether the choir could match the volume and clarity of the orchestra, but after a few nervous moments the singers lifted their heads and sang really well. Antiphonal sections, in particular, were well done with precise entries and exits. Emma Fraser sang the soprano solos with a pure tone that suited the music. The balance between soloist, choir and orchestra was particularly good towards the end of the piece."
[This is a repeat of the performance on 19 May 2007 in the Civic Theatre, Invercargill.]
Extract from the review by Abbey Smith in the Otago Daily Times:
"The concert was well attended by a warmly enthusiastic audience, who clearly enjoyed the diversity and range of the music on offer."
Of Poulenc's Gloria she says: "At first it was not clear whether the choir could match the volume and clarity of the orchestra, but after a few nervous moments the singers lifted their heads and sang really well. Antiphonal sections, in particular, were well done with precise entries and exits. Emma Fraser sang the soprano solos with a pure tone that suited the music. The balance between soloist, choir and orchestra was particularly good towards the end of the piece."
[This is a repeat of the performance on 19 May 2007 in the Civic Theatre, Invercargill.]
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