BBC National Orchestra of Wales
Category: Music
It was such a delight to hear a full orchestra of such quality in this Marlborough College Concert Series. The acoustics of the building did not let us down and we could hear every nuance and detail with absolute clarity.
The programme opened with the ‘Suite for Lady Caroline’ – a film score which carried all the hallmarks of Richard Rodney Bennett’s exquisite orchestration. Philip Dukes displayed his very best, rich sonorities and his playing was matched by some exceptional solos by the flute and cor anglais. The score wove a clever mix of irony, lover’s sighs, romance and passion and a wonderful moment was the delicate duet between harpsichord and harp, which took us back to the very late 18th century in style!
Schumann’s Cello Concerto continues to receive mixed reactions from audiences but whatever your view on the quality of the music, Natalie Clein brought every moment to life. Her open romantic lyricism carried us through this whimsical score. Her duet with the lead cellist in the second movement was beautifully judged.
After the interval, you could feel the passion and energy of the orchestra moving up a notch! Dvorak’s 8th Symphony is a potent mix of nationalism, folk and pastoral melodies and real earthy grit. Much of the work uses dark, rich, low tessitura strings, mixed with demanding and exposed woodwind solos. The orchestra met the demands of this score in spades and you could see the sheer delight in the player’s faces.
Let us hope that the success of this concert leads to more bookings of large orchestral concerts in the future.
Clare Toomer
Deputy Head of Music