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Adelaide Chamber Singers 'Late At Night...' St Peters Cathedral Sat 11 March Although there were some changes from the advertised programme (where were the Josquin and William Byrd?) 'Late At Night' certainly provided a celebration of Adelaide's finest chamber choir. In a fine and varied programme that chartered the centuries from the English Renaissance to the present, this fine choir displayed sheer mastery. Commencing with Ross Edwards' Dance Mantras, and accompanied by the ASO's Steven Peterka, the choir walked down the central aisle to the altar where they were indeed lit by candlelight. As always Edwards writes fine work that is highly approachable and informed by Eastern harmonies, although in this cased the work sounds more informed by the Near East and the joyous exultation of Leonard Bernstein's sacred works in particular. From here it was back to the Renaissance music of Guerrero and Sheppard and it was this music that I must admit to finding the most personally moving in a highly professional concert. The sopranos thrilled with the purity of their tone and the way in which Crossin positioned the singers on the stage aided in clarity of contrapuntal voices and antiphonal effects. As always the Choir thrilled with their consummate way in Arvo Part's Deutero-medievalism and the equally Eastern influenced spirituality of John Taverner. However, the other contemporary Australian works on the programme were not as much to my taste. Although Stephen Leek has been widely acclaimed for his choral works, whilst his settings were interesting, I'm really rather over the onomatopoeic sounds of the Australian bush that Sculthorpe has done so much to popularise. I must admit to finding Anne Cawrse's Song Of Amergin overlong and rather repetitive and really rather tenuous - in terms of programming. However all of the works were expertly led by Crossin. It was back to more familiar work (Rachmaninov and Gorecki) and a guest conductor - Michael Brewer - leading an augmented choir for the two final works in this very fine recital. Given the high calibre of these performances and the fact that this concert - like the last of its type at the last Fringe - makes me wonder why the larger Arts Festival as such has not taken up this fine choir themselves. A truly world class recital.  |
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