5 July 2011
What better way to emerge, briefly, from a sabbatical, than to pay homage to a group of particularly distinguished leavers, who had assembled to give one last concert at the end of their Abingdon careers? Although the quartet of musicians lacked one or two notable contemporaries (Ben Etherton, John Carter, Otta Jones), the boys gave the select audience of some twenty or so parents, teachers and governors a most memorable concert of outstanding music-making.
Osman Tack, a seven-year veteran of Abingdon music-making, survivor of two major concert tours (China 2006 and USA 2011) and soloist of three piano concertos (Beethoven 3, Gershwin Rhapsody in Blue and Saint-Saëns 2) was the organiser, accompanist and first to perform. Ozy did not choose a piece for the faint hearted, but Liszt’s virtuosic Transcendental Study, “Mazeppa”, notoriously challenging work of the piano repertoire. He was, as ever, fully in command of both technique and musicianship, playing the mesmerising double octave passages with a great sense of style and accuracy and with a confident and mature grasp of rubato in the middle section.
David Mears chose the slow movement of the Brahms Eb sonata and played with an audaciously well-controlled pianissimo and a lovely legato line throughout. This was telling musicianship and a wonderful contrast to the theatrical bravura of the Liszt that preceded it. David’s mature instinct in this phrasing reminded all present of his pedigree as an experienced NYO clarinettist over several years.
Charlie Hall, again accompanied by Osman, stepped forward to play Vivaldi’s ‘Summer’ from The Four Seasons (first movement). This was lovely playing, too, beautifully in tune and with a lovely sound and sure technique in the string crossings.
David Mears showed us another side of his musicianship as a pianist in Rachmaninov’s Prelude in G# minor. This was beautifully and confidently played, providing a fitting coupling with Charlie Hall’s performance of another Prelude from the Op 32 set, this time no.10 in B minor.
Our final soloist was Robert Brooks (baritone) who chose a set of five songs from Schubert’s enchanting cycle, Der Winterreise, a setting of 24 poems by Wilhelm Müller which describes a “Winter’s Journey” in which the protagonist expresses feelings of solitude and rejection from his beloved, reflected in encounters with a village, a tree, a hurdy-gurdy... Robert, a gifted ex-Head Chorister of New College, showed his customary ability to get inside the text and express the heartache with tremendous power, accuracy and musicianship. Particularly striking is this young man’s ability to communicate through eye contact with his audience - and his concise verbal prelude, a description of the songs, gave us all the chance to grasp the poetry and to enjoy his wonderful, amber baritone voice.
What a marvellous concert this was and what a wonderful way to celebrate the passing of this distinguished musical generation! We’ll miss them, that’s for sure.
Photograph shows David Mears, Osman Tack, Robert Brooks and Charlie Hall.
MAS