Publicity

Boston Sinfonia chose a smaller venue, the Sam Newsom Centre, to begin their 2009 season and smaller forces provided an opportunity to choose from baroque and earlier classical music. Anniversaries of two composers, Handel and Haydn, were celebrated and there was also a work by Mozart.

Handel who died 250 years ago, he had adopted us, seeking citizenship in mid-life and composing much music to the English taste. When his very successful Italian style of opera began to fail in London, he turned to oratorio, developing the especially English style we know so well through Messiah.  How appropriate to start on Saturday with a piece to welcome the beautiful Queen of Sheba to a masque for her and set into his oratorio Solomon? The string tone and ensemble of the orchestra were immediately impressive. Surely a good omen for the evening!

The other work in this first half was the Mozart Piano Concerto no.17, K.453 with Michael Bell as soloist. Written in 1784, Mozart was at the height of his powers as an innovator of the piano concerto with a hectic performing schedule, and this work was the second he wrote for a gifted pupil, Babette Ployer. An unfortunate blip by the pianist in the first movement, was quickly and unflappably overcome by conductor Nigel Morley. These things do happen and it didn’t seem to dim a good reception by the audience. The second movement is full of interest as the responses to its beautiful and much repeated halting opening so reminiscent of the ‘Et incarnates est’ from the Mass in C minor are harmonically varied. Light-hearted variations, hugely entertaining and full of invention, form the last movement. Given many opportunities for dueting with the piano, the woodwind section well deserved their special recognition at the end..  

Handel often used Concerti Grossi between sections in oratorio performances, to show off his orchestral players. These employ a smaller group, still within the band, to display their special talent amongst a full complement that acts variously as filler, backing or contrast. The op.6 set of 12 took only 32 days to write, and were published for sale in London in 1740. We heard the tenth, played with real style. How enjoyable to hear that strong, incisive string playing so necessary for baroque music. Becky Brown, leader of the orchestra on Saturday and the ’violino primo concertino’ in this piece, seemed particularly to relish playing it! Just a shame there was no harpsichord.

Haydn died in 1809 and a fine performance of his very popular Symphony no.88, full of the usual wit and invention of his later work, obviously enthused the sixty or seventy, who had come out on a bitterly cold but fortunately fine evening. Their appreciation was given in warm and continuing applause and brought forth an encore – the final movement of his no.73 ‘The Hunt’. We must now patiently anticipate their next performance, in June, when they help commemorate another anniversary, that of Boston Stump in its 700^th year.

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