BY CHRISTOPHER WAINWRIGHT
Adelaide Baroque presents Discovering Bach @ Ngeringa
Concert Two: Permissable Delights, featuring works by JS Bach
UKARIA Cultural Centre, Mt Barker, 30 October
Discovering Bach was this program’s intent, and what Adelaide Baroque created was a highly enjoyable introduction of well- and lesser-known works by the grand master Johann Sebastian Bach.
The crisp and clean acoustics of the recently built UKARIA Cultural Centre (previously known until recently as Ngeringa), made possible thanks to the significant generosity of Ulrike Klein, allowed audiences to appreciate Adelaide Baroque’s fine musicianship to the fullest. Throughout the concert, there were opportunities to relish in the virtuosity of Bach’s keyboard music, the wondrous drama of his cantatas, and the rich counterpoint and polyphony of his instrumental and orchestral music.
Harpsichordist Katrina Brown commenced with the Andante of Bach’s well-known Italian Concerto, in which she skilfully captured the calm and meditative nature of this work and revelled in Bach’s beautiful and detailed counterpoint.
It was followed by leading Australian gambist Laura Vaughan, with harpsichordist Glenys March performing Bach’s virtuosic Sonata in D major. Throughout, one witnessed great ensemble, made possible due to the musicians’ adept choice of tempi, fine phrasing, and enjoying the rich and delightful moments of harmony and counterpoint in this masterwork.
Then Emma Horwood and Matthew Rutty and instrumental ensemble performed two well-known works: We hasten with weak for soprano and alto and Sheep may safely graze for soprano, capturing the joyous and religious zeal with great dramatic effect.
Virtuosity again came to the fore with Katrina Brown as soloist in Bach’s Harpsichord Concerto in F minor, in which she also led a group of talented baroque string specialists. Through good choice of tempi and direction, one was able to appreciate the work’s virtuosity, harmonies and counterpoint.
Closing the concert was Bach’s Come, O sweet hour of death, a work for soprano, alto, tenor and chorus. The ensembles accompaniment throughout brought out clearly the dark and joyous characters of death, which Bach so beautifully depicted in this cantata. Throughout the cantata, the soloists captured the emotions well, with clear and crisp diction. Unfortunately as sometimes seemed to be the case in the duet and aria, the solo voices occasionally seemed to struggle to carry over the ensemble. However, in the chorus and chorale sections, it was well balanced.
Adelaide Baroque did a fine job in introducing and celebrating master Bach, as one witnessed from the enthusiastic and appreciative applause given by the sell-out audience.
Christopher Wainwright is an Adelaide-based freelance journalist and music critic. He has worked in the classical music industry for more than 15 years in marketing, communications and management roles. Most recently, he was General Manager of the Adelaide Youth Orchestras.
