Review

Colosseum

Watford Philharmonic's last concert of the current season at Watford Colosseum last week was ambitious and unusual.

Monteverdi's Madrigals - Songs of Love and Death, although designed to be performed by a small number of individuals was, on this occasion, sung by the full choir treated as five voices: two sopranos, an alto, tenor and bass.

The minimal accompaniment was by woodwind and brass only.

Although going against the modern trend for "period" performances these arrangements by the 'Phil's conductor, Stuart Dunlop, no doubt achieved his avowed purpose of making this music appeal to a wider audience.

The rather stylized texts dealt with the usual themes of love, loss and death, which touched the emotions and were obviously relished by the choir.

This was an enjoyable introduction to the evening and well received by the audience.

In contrast, the second item, with a large orchestra, implied all the rich forces called for by Richard Strauss in a Suite from Der Rosenkavalier.

This gave a wider view of the opera than the usual suite of waltzs and was performed, if not perfectly, with enthusiastic style.

From the opening "whooping" of the horn through to the passionate presentation of the rose, the heart-breaking duets and, of course, the luscious waltzs, this adventurous choice roused the audience to spirited applause.

The main work was dedicated to the memory of Mary Smith, a long-standing member of the choir who served as secretary to the society from 1995 to 2000 and who died suddenly in April.

The superb choir gave of their very best of a work which, although based on Lutheran Bible, does not follow the traditional liturgy, being seen more as a comfort to the bereaved than a soulful requiem for the dead.

Uplifting throughout, to me the highlight was the second chorus, "Behold all flesh is as the grass", the orchestra and choir being in perfect harmony.

Soloists have a comparatively easy time in this work but Constance Novice, soprano, and Simon Neal, bass baritone, suited admirably - the baritone and chorus in the penultimate section "Here on earth we have no continuing place" was particularly memorable.

It was fascinating to compare this with Handel's setting of the same text in his Messiah.

The final chorus, "Blessed are the dead" brought the work to a tranquil end, a palpable silence indicating the audience's immersion in the work.

This was an enjoyable, if somewhat sombre, concert and although Stuart Dunlop had described Der Rosenkavalier as some of the sexiest music ever written, perhaps, in view of the Golden Jubilee celebrations, the inclusion of some more popular patriotic item would have lifted the spirits.

Nevertheless, this was a fitting conclusion to an enjoyable season.

by Wendy Keeling Taylor