BY MIRANDA ILCHEF, LEAD WRITER (NSW)
Live At Yours
Harpist Emily Granger and flautist Joshua Batty
Ken Done Gallery, 31 March
I recently had the pleasure of attending an evening of music with flautist Joshua Batty and harpist Emily Granger as a part of the concert series Live At Yours. Born out of the conditions demanded of musicians by COVID-19, Vladimir Fanshil and Eleanor Lyons formed Live At Yours to revive the intimate salon-style small-venue concert once so popular in the classical music world.
And you can see why. As Vladimir explains in the concert preamble, settings away from the concert hall take some of the formal edge off an encounter with classical music. There is a feeling of spontaneity, of improvisation, and a genuine connection between audience and performers. This wasn’t just talk: the program really was changed to include an impromptu Puccini aria as well as a piece by American harpist and composer Laura Zaerr to promote Emily Granger’s upcoming solo album. There was laughter and conversation during opportunities for the audience to ask the musicians questions. I was really impressed with the overall demystifying effect that this had; people asked everything from how the harp works to, somewhat cheekily, whether Josh’s facial hair impacted his flute playing.
Although the Live at Yours concerts can be anywhere from cafes to private homes, the flute and harp duo performed at Sydney’s Ken Done gallery, which added a multi-sensory element to the experience. As the first piece of the evening began, I was instantly struck by the realisation that I had never heard the harp up so close before – less than two metres away – and it was a more powerful instrument than I had previously realised. The piece, In Ireland by Hamilton Harty, had a joyful sincerity to it with influences from Irish dance music. The harp performed mainly chordal/harmonic functions to underpin a graceful flute line, but both players exuded equal amounts of heartfelt awareness.
Just as I was beginning to think that this floating, dreamlike repertoire was an excellent choice to match the whimsical otherworldly art surrounding us, we moved on to the second piece. The formal sincerity of a Bach G minor sonata was in such contrast to the dreamlike underwater scene on the canvas behind the musicians that it actually felt quite jarring. The third piece was again another compete turn of mood: two scenes from Piazzolla’s Histoire du Tango. I was unsure how it would sound without the grittiness of the guitar more typically used for this piece. However, I was pleasantly surprised at how characterfully bawdy Josh and Emily managed to make this sound, particularly in the raunchier Bordello movement. Although I think it could’ve been slightly cheekier and less seriously executed, overall I was really impressed by their interpretation of the piece.
The duo ended on Naiades, by William Alwyn, named after the female water spirits found in Greek mythology. Languid, brightly coloured and somewhat impressionistic, it was the clear winner in terms of suitability to the wild childlike splashes of colour that decorated the walls. It was a fairly intense piece, and I felt an aura of great concentration between both musicians. Being up so close meant we were able to watch the pair communicate, which was a highlight of the evening for me.
It was a delightful albeit eclectic journey, and I was impressed with the obvious artistry of both musicians, but also of the vision behind Live At Yours. In the quest to make classical music relevant and approachable, the rest of the industry would do well to take influence from this concert model.
Images supplied.
