Page 319 - Guildhall Coverage Book 2020-21

haunting Lullaby by Szymanowksi. This was followed by his Violin Sonata, which was more formal
than the Lullaby, yet still richly romantic with some lyrical, impressionistic textures. Pike produced
some lovely singing tone in the slow movement, and both performers collaborated throughout ending
with a passionately vivid Allegro molto presto. Szymanowski's arrangement of Paganini's Caprice No.
20 came next, a really gorgeous piece. Finally, the Meditation from Massenet's Thais. This was
beautifully filmed, and it made it a real film rather than a filmed concert. [Polyphonic Concert Club]

There were some terrific concerts from the Wigmore Hall this week. I interviewed soprano Claire
Booth in December last year to chat about her performances as Elle in Poulenc's La voix humaine so
even though we caught Claire in the role for Grange Park Opera in July 2020, it was great to be able
to see her performance again with Christopher Glynn at Wigmore Hall. Booth performed Richard
Stokes' imaginative translation (all of Elle's interactions with the telephone operators and others are in
French, only her conversation with Lui is in English).

This is very much a work for our time, about the fragility of communications and our inability to do so.
Booth performed it without any props, simply emoting to camera which made it all the more intense
and compelling. This was a stylish yet visceral 50 minutes, and whilst I will always prefer the
orchestral version having Booth and Glynn performing it together was mesmerising. [Wigmore Hall]

Then on Friday we were back at the Wigmore Hall to celebrate pianist Steven Osborne's 50th
birthday. Rather than give a solo recital, Osborne had put together a lovely programme of
collaborations with friends and family. First off was Schubert's Shepherd on the Rock with clarinettist
Jean Johnson (Osborne's wife) and soprano Ailish Tynan. This was a lovely subtle performance, with
all three performers making it more chamber music than a showy soprano cantata. Then came
Schubert's glorious Fantasie in F minor which Osborne played with pianist Paul Lewis. The final two
works were both by Ravel, first a sophisticated and subtle account of 'La vallée des cloches'
from Miroirs and then the hauntingly hypnotic Piano Trio with violinist Alina Ibragimova and cellist
Bjørg Lewis (Paul Lewis is her husband). [Wigmore Hall]

One of the fruits of lockdown (I think) is BBC Radio 3's increasing willingness to put films of concerts
on BBC iPlayer when the concerts are played on BBC Radio 3. So it was lovely to be able to see
cellist Sheku Kanneh-Mason in Dvorak's Cello Concerto with Martyn Brabbins and the BBC Scottish
Symphony Orchestra from Glasgow City Halls. The work was played in a somewhat reduced
orchestration by George Morton, which benefitted Kanneh-Mason's collegial approach to the work.
And he seemed to be able to sing effortlessly yet give us plenty of sprung rhythms too. An imaginative
programme paired this with a striking piece by Augusta Read Thomas Plea for Peace for flute, oboe,
trumpet and string and James Macmillan's early orchestral piece, Tryst a real tour de force which
orchestra and conductor certainly enjoyed (as did we). [BBC Radio 3]

Opera company podcasts are back. Opera North's Thinking with Opera (a collaboration between
Opera North and the University of Leeds) has a fascinating episode in which Poet Laureate and
Professor of Poetry at the University of Leeds, Simon Armitage and composer Gavin Bryars consider
the fraught question what happens when their respective art forms are brought together, [Thinking
with Opera] Welsh National Opera's O Word (available in Welsh or English) returned with an episode
in which soprano Natalya Romaniw explores how the early experiences of classical music in youth
can shape the perspective of an artist, and she is joined by soprano Rhian Lois, Abigail Kelly (WNO
Youth Opera Leader in Birmingham) and Ruth Rosales (Bassoonist & Animateur). [O Word]

Violinist and all-round creative performer Jorge Jimenez has launched an on-line series, Re-thinking
Bach which looks at Bach's Goldberg Variations and Jimenez' journey towards the work with his own
transcription of it for violin. [Rethinking Bach] The Horniman Museum has a stunning collection of
musical instruments and in normal times they run a series with musicians playing instruments from the
collection. This has now gone on-line, and I enjoyed catching Katarzyna Kowalik on a square piano,
and Marilyn Harper on an 18th century organ. Both artists playing music suitable for the instrument
and also talking about playing it. The square piano has a narrow compass, a remarkable lively bright
tone and a selection of stops, plus the ability to apply dampening pedal to only half the keyboard,
whilst the organ requires the player to pump it themselves, via their right foot. [Horniman Museum]