BY STEPHANIE ESLAKE
Bach to the Future
Works by Kats-Chernin, Haydn, Mozart, and Barber
Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra with Genevieve Lacey
Federation Concert Hall, 9 April
The Tasmanian Symphony Orchestra paid homage to the master of Baroque in its Bach to the Future concert. Works both classical and contemporary were performed – though nothing on the program could surpass the headliner delivered by Genevieve Lacey.
But we’ll get to that soon.
After an oddly quiet pre-concert atmosphere, conductor Marko Letonja kicked us off with Haydn’s Symphony no. 31 in D Hornsignal. The approach was, for the most part, refreshingly precise. But as it revolved around the French horn, it was most disappointing to hear (not one, but) two dodgy entries from the instrument. Further, there were issues with intonation and the cello solo in the fourth movement seemed to handle the ornamentation untidily – but a delectable flute solo put everything back as it should be. Letonja’s movements were graceful and produced a conservative take on the work.
Now – the exciting part. Elena Kats-Chernin’s Re-inventions were performed by Genevieve Lacey, the recorder player for whom the work was originally composed. The music was written when Kats-Chernin improvised over the ideas in Bach’s Two-part Inventions, and four of her six little pieces were performed here. In between them were movements from Bach’s St Matthew Passion and Mendelssohn’s Elijah.
Kats-Chernin’s first movement was a work based on Bach’s Invention no. 8 in F. The composer herself describes the key as ‘bubbly’ and though Lacey brought a brightness into the hall, it was intense nonetheless and I embraced every note with wonder.
The overwhelmingly talented artistic coupling of Lacey and Kats-Chernin is hard to rival. From the moment this movement began, it was as though the entire orchestra was lifted into another realm of performance – no, the entire concert hall. A magical world was spun and accentuated by the dimming of the lights at the end of the movement, when the TSO Chorus quickly went on to sing one of Bach’s chorales in the darkness. They were high up – above all of the audience and out of sight. The sound was thoroughly immersive and I wondered if it would be more acoustically suitable for the orchestra itself to perform from this upper deck, near the roof of the concert hall (if not particularly practical).
The second Re-invention followed, Lacey weaving mystery on a low recorder. Singers continued to interject between movements, their performance sombre and sacred but for the brighter ‘Lift thine eyes’ from Elijah – a work in which Mendelssohn drew from Baroque influences. The awe-inspiring Lacey concluded her performance with a reprise of the first Re-invention, bringing us full circle as she communicated her lines with abandon.
Re-inventions a tough act to follow, it was understandable that poor Barber’s Mutations from Bach functioned as a way to bring us down from an incredible high. The work was for brass and timp and featured bell-like descending lines. Higher tones – and especially longer ones – wavered with unsteady intonation.
The afternoon wrapped up with Mozart’s Symphony no. 29 in A – taken at a surprisingly relaxed pace and somehow overriding the usual wittiness of Mozart’s major works. The angular nature of this piece fit well into the Baroque-inspired program. The Allegro moderato’s theme is one that seemingly wished to rush with delight, but giving it some subtle room to breathe really allowed for some warmth. Higher strings leant into their notes while the lower marched along. The Allegro con spirito led to a sensible finish – it was entirely different to the first half of the program but a sophisticated presentation of this work.
Image supplied. Credit: Keith Saunders.
