Tage Alter Musik – Almanach 2016

compositions Benedicamus and Gaudea- mus. This is fascinating music, on the cusp between the late Gothic and the Renaissance periods, with complex rhythms and interwe- aving vocal lines. The instruments were used creatively, and it was particularly good to hear the gentle and musical fluid lines from Guillermo Pérez’s organetto. The penultimate concert of the long week- end was given in the Neuhaussaal by Euskal Barrokensemble from Spain with their pro- gramme of Andalusian folk songs and dan- ces of the Baroque period, El Amor Brujo 1715 . The title and basis of the concert was a bit misleading, as much of the music was by, or arranged by, Manuel de Falla in the early 20th century for his one-act ballet El Amor Brujo (Love Spell). This explained the occasional snatches of well-known Spanish pieces that had crept into the music charts in the past decades. But also included were pie- ces from the likes of Sanz, Matteis, and Kaps- berger in this arrangement of de Falla’s ballet using period instruments and music. Singer Rocío Márquez seemed to be emoting as much as actually singing, setting up an exo- tic background for the Flemenco-style, fin- ger-clicking, cloak-whirling and toe-tapping dancing of Maria Moreno. A fascinating concert, although perhaps more remeniscant of recent dusky evenings in Seville than the early 18th century. The Tage Alter Musik weekend finished with one of the undoubted highlights, the concert given in the Trinity Church by the eight sin- gers of Solomon’s Knot from the UK with the Swiss period instrument orchestra Les Passions de l’Ame . They gave a rare perfor- mance of A Lyric Ode on the Fairies, Aerial Beings and Witches of Shakespeare , by Thomas Linley (the Younger), dating from 1776. The son of a well-known musical fat- her, Linley was a child prodigy who gave his first public concert aged 7. Three years later he was on the stage of Covent Garden, sin- ging and playing the violin in the role of Puck. After a meeting in Italy 1770 when both were 14, he and Mozart became firm friends. The first performance of his Shakes- peare Ode in 1776 was greeted as ”an extra- ordinary effort of genius in so young a man”. Two years later he was dead, drowned in a boating accident, aged just 22. His Shakespeare Ode is an extraordinary work, albeit composed to one of the silliest librettos around. Combining elements of the music of Handel, Boyce (Lindley’s teacher), JC Bach, Gluck and other continental com- posers, he generates a lively invocation of the weirder element of Shakespeare’s character- isations. There is a prominent role for solo oboe (here played by Shai Kribus) and for two sopranos (Zoë Brookshaw and Clare Lloyd Griffiths as Fancy and the Spirit of Avon) and two bass singers (Jonathan Sells, director of Solomon’s Knot, and Alex Ash- worth) as the Fearful Observers in the grue- some opening of the second part. As is usual with Solomon’s Knot they all sang fromme- mory, increasing the communication with the audience, who clearly loved the whole thing, rewarding them with the only stan- ding ovation of the whole weekend. On this occasion, the excellent Les Passions de l’Ame was led by Julia Schröder, rather then their usual director, violinist Meret Lüthi. With its delightful arias and rousing choruses it made a fitting end to the Tage Alter Musik festival, sending us home with a warm feeling inside. And so ended one of the most intense musi- cal festivals around. Some of the concerts were broadcast live on Bavarian TV or radio (BR Klassik), and se- veral will be broadcast at some future date. Alongside the concerts was large showcase for musical instrument makers and music publishers, housed in the enormous Saltzsta- del by Regensburg’s famous Danube bridge. The programme has detailed programme notes for all the concerts, only in German, and there are also some pre-concert talks. My only quibble is that in many of the ve- nues makes that it is impossible to see the performers properly. Although the musici- ans sometimes had low stages, that usually only lifted them up to around the head height of the front row audience. Most of the church pews are on raised platforms, mea- ning that those sitting in additional chairs at floor level are completely blocked from view. The only real solution is much higher sta- ging for the performers. andrewbensonwilson.org 9 Ensemble sinn&ton Foto: Hanno Meier