 Splendid Prelude an Ideal Launchpad
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| Members of the City Choir rehearsing in
Symphony Hall |
Last weekend's marathon trawl through Elgar's three major choral
works has revealed several interesting factors, not the least of
which has been the amazing stamina of Simon Halsey's CBS Chorus,
the unflinching artistry of a very hard-worked CBSO, and the
unstinting commitment and integrity of their conductor, Sakari
Oramo.
It has also taught us how integrated with each other all three
works are, The Apostles pivotal as its thematic material
looks back a little to The Dream of Gerontius and prepares
material in great measure for The Kingdom yet to come.
And everything seems to be paving the way for the Lord's Prayer
at the end of The Kingdom, it's "Our Father"
set to exactly the same notes as the opening of Gerontius,
the "Judgement" theme - and the oratorio Elgar never
got round to writing would have been The Last Judgement.
Like Gerontius, The Kingdom has a splendid Prelude,
magnificently rendered by the CBSO under Oramo to launch Sunday
afternoon's performance.
The whole orchestral contribution seemed captured and encapsulated
in what can be a mawkish "The sun goeth down", but
here movingly understated in an eloquent partnership between
leader Laurence Jackson's solo violin and soprano Amanda
Roocroft, as affecting as ever. Jane Irwin and John Daszak
continued from The Apostles in their wonderful portrayals
of Mary Magdalene and John, respectively, and James Rutherford
came into tremendous voice as Peter, certainly rock-like, but
also poignantly human.
And through all this enterprise has been the CBS Chorus,
joined here by the equally excellent City of Birmingham Choir,
producing a palette of tone ranging from the intimately
confiding to the blazingly assertive, and always delivered
with supreme clarity and response to the text.
Christopher Morley in
The Birmingham Post,
Monday 4 June 2007
Previous review |
... superb clarity and wonderful dynamics.
