BY SAMUEL COTTELL
‘Les Chants du Saxophone’
Works by Bozza, Castles, Ibert, Weill and Eisler
Nexas Saxophone Quartet with Peter Coleman-Wright AO
Glebe Justice Centre Saturday, 1 August
I was racking my brain trying to think of occasions where an opera singer had joined forces with a saxophone quartet .The closest instance of this occurring was in Schoenberg’s second string quartet, in which a soprano enters in the final movement. Schoenberg’s string quartet was an innovation in 20th Century music and set a tone of change in the history of music. I certainly think Nexas Saxophone Quartet is onto something with the addition of voices and the choice of repertoire was perfect for the theme of the evening.
The program commenced with a sparkling rendition Bozza’s ‘Nuages’. This opening showed that this an ensemble that takes no time in warming up, already blazing with energy and spark after the first few notes. Andrew Smith led the quartet with eager anticipation and excitement from the alto saxophone. The group demonstrated its tight ensemble work and took us on a romp of colourations, each as exiting as the next. The musicians performed this piece with a sense of whimsical bravado, which set the tone for the rest of the evening.
The quartet was soon joined by Peter Coleman-Wright. A baritone of acclaim both overseas and in Australia, he was the perfect addition to Nexas Saxophone Quartet. His velvety, clear and authoritative tone fit well with four saxophones. They performed the world premiere of Paul Castle’s ‘Unknown Land’. This was a moving piece and contained moments of classical influenced music, which suddenly launched into a music theatre-esque style. The piece begin with a chorale-like theme, which then developed into a somewhat canon-like device with cross rhythms infused with jazz overtones. Here, Nexas Saxophone quartet demonstrated their ability to sound like a symphony orchestra, delving through a vast array of colours and tonal constellations. While at times it was difficult to discern the lyrics, the melodic line wove between the four part harmony of the saxophones effortlessly, the gentle phrases deeply considered by Coleman-Wright. The voice and quartet matched each other perfectly and investigated the subtle nuances of this piece.
Ibert’s ‘Histoires’ (stories) were originally composed for piano. Fittingly, Ibert – who wrote the most famous of all classical saxophone works in the form of a concerto – also scored ‘Histoires’ for saxophone quartet. The first movement, ‘La Menuese de Tortues D’or’ (The Golden Tortoise) had Nathan and Henshaw and Jay Byrnes (on tenor and baritone saxophone) keenly set the scene of a plodding turtle. The quartet captured the picturesque image of a slow turtle, plodding along. Michael Duke’s command of the soprano saxophone was other worldly and captivating as he clearly outlined the slinking melody. The second movement ‘A Giddy Girl.’ The final movement, ‘Bajo la Mesa’ (under the table) was perfectly rendered by the quartet.
The crème-de la crème of the concert was the song selections of Kurt Weill and Hanns Eisler. Cast in the form of a suite, the songs were separated by instrumental excerpts from Weill’s ‘The Threepenny Opera,’ which added a wonderful narrative thread that provided links to each of the songs. Coleman-Wright engaged with the audience on several levels; firstly giving a history lesson on Kurt Weill and the surrounding circumstances of his writing, and explaining the connection to Hanns Eisler. Throughout the course of the suite he explained the origin of each piece – this provided an insightful context and gave added weight to the performance.
Coleman-Wright appeared extremely comfortable and happy in singing these songs displaying his enthusiasm, fun and whimsy. His theatrical approach to each of the songs enhanced their impact tenfold and created a great sense of comeradery with the eager audience. Coleman-Wright explored each nuance of the songs – the more serious overtones were contrasted with humourous songs such as Weill’s ‘Tschaikowsky (and other Russians)’ with lyrics by Ira Gershwin. This was a comedic list song in which many great Russian composers are named (Prokofiev, Rachmaninoff et.al, ). This had the audience in stitches and also displayed the flair of the quartet.
Nexas Saxophone is the perfect ensemble to capture the spirit of these songs, and the arrangements for saxophone quartet were perfectly performed. Their sense of buoyance and humour, tinged with overtones of irony (particularly in ‘Song of the Free’) and sarcasm all were displayed with a sense of delight by Nexas Saxophone Quartet and Peter Coleman-Wright, who transported the audience to a smaller cabaret club. An encore of the best known Kurt Weill song, ‘Mack the Knife’ (made famous by Frank Sinatra) ensued. The quartet here showed some tidy work with its jazz skills, providing the perfect backdrop for Cole-Wright to tell the tale of the gangster, Mack. Rarely hearing this work in German it was a treat, particularly when Cole-Wright switched to the English version for the second verse.
Some highlights from the suite included ‘September Song’ and ‘There’ll be Life, Love and Laughter’, with Coleman-Wright exploring the tender emotional side of Weill’s writing. Nexas Saxophone was the perfect partner for these songs and its rendition created a mood of a different era, yet the music is still relevant today. Whoever thought to pair saxophone quartet with voice and this particular repertoire has made a very clever choice. I hope they record these works in the near future.
The addition of the voice was the perfect combination for this repertoire, particularly the Kurt Weill. The great thing about this group is that they are able to draw large sound worlds and orchestral palette’s from their quartet. The saxophone quartet is one of the most ingenious ensembles of the 21st Century. It has the full range of notes (from top to bottom) and a wide variety of moods and nuances. Mix that together with some of Sydney’s, if not Australia’s best performers of these instruments and you have a sure fire recipe for success. I look forward to their next concert.
Image supplied.
