Irish Times writers review current events from the arts world
Dudley, RTÉ NSO/Maloney at the NCH, Dublin
Smetana - Vltava. Koussevitzky - Double Bass Concerto. Barber - Adagio for Strings. Dvorák - Slavonic Dances in B Op 72 No 1, in G minor Op 46 No 8
Serge Koussevitzky is best known as the conductor who, for nearly 30 years, was at the helm of the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and who commissioned important new works from, among others, Copland, Stravinsky and Ravel. However, he was also a composer; and around 100 years ago, when he was in his 20s and 30s, he toured Europe as a virtuoso on the double bass.
In 1905, with the help of his Russian compatriot Glière, he produced his Double Bass Concerto, one of those works that is known by reputation but rarely heard. This romantic-style piece is worth hearing, for it compares well with the concertos by Dittersdorf and Bottesini, and is considerably better than the famous one attributed to Dragonetti.
In this lunchtime concert, the soloist was the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra's principal bass player, Dominic Dudley. His always-shapely playing suited a work that is less concerned with fireworks than with the instrument's lyrical possibilities. He rose with seeming ease to the technical challenges, never strove at projection, and left any worries about balance to the music's well-judged scoring and to deft directing by of the orchestra's assistant conductor, Gavin Maloney. It all worked.
The RTÉ NSO was responsive to Maloney's conducting, which was definite without being dictatorial. His beat encouraged a style of attack that, especially in the strings, was suitably rounded for the romantic language of this programme.
Smetana's Vltava and two Slavonic Dances by Dvorák were full of aptly pointed contrasts. Accentuation sometimes got in the way of long-range drive and, in the first part of Barber's Adagio for Strings, the rhythm sat down. Nevertheless, this was a satisfying concert that, especially in the Dvorák, attained scintillating levels of rhythmic energy. Martin Adams
OSC/Spratt at St Ann's Church, Dawson Street, Dublin
Mozart - Oboe Concerto. Horn Concerto No 4. Andante in C K315. Flute and Harp Concerto.
The second instalment of the Orchestra of St Cecilia's three-concert survey of Mozart's concertos for wind was very much a concert of two halves.
But the even-toned manner adopted by Matthew Manning in the Oboe Concerto was careful and timid rather than adventurous or extrovert, and the overall effect was on the bland side.
Fergus O'Carroll, who played in the Horn Concerto in E flat, K495, was a lot more technically assured than Lesley Bishop in the previous week's horn concerto. Yet, given the solidity of delivery he seemed to be aiming for, it was surprising to have had so many reminders of quite how difficult and treacherous an instrument the horn still is.
William Dowdall played the Andante in C, K315, on a wooden flute, an instrument whose tone was noticeably and pleasingly mellower and grainier than its modern, metallic successors.
Among the evening's soloists, Dowdall was, moment-by-moment, the most musically attentive and assertive. And with Andreja Malir, a fluent partner in the delectably-coloured Flute and Harp Concerto, the closing item proved the highlight of the evening.
The orchestral playing under Geoffrey Spratt, though still rather too rough at the edges, was generally more spirited than in the series' opening concert, and the benefits of this were felt through all four works. Series concludes on Tues, July 18 Michael Dervan
Iarla Ó Lionáird at Farmleigh House, Dublin
Venues don't come much better than Farmleigh's ballroom. And there isn't a sean-nós singer in the country who comes within spitting distance of Cúl Aodha's Iarla Ó Lionáird. The OPW is behind a series of fine sponsorship initiatives this summer, promoting traditional music in heritage settings. Why then, was this concert so unsatisfying?
For starters, Ó Lionáird yielded much ground to his accompanists, piper Mick O'Brien and fiddler Caoimhín Ó Raghallaigh. While there's no doubting the combined talent of this duo, it was frustrating to find that Ó Lionáird was happy to recede into the background. The pair strode purposefully through a fine set of tunes, ranging from the Siamese twin-set of Peata Bheag Mo Mháthair and Mother And Child to a series of piping tunes borrowed from the playing of Seamus Ennis, including a muscular reading of Jenny's Welcome To Charlie.
Iarla Ó Lionáird is possessed of a pair of vocal cords that render the smallest of songs significant. Add to that his flawless diction, complete with a guttural Ballyvourney blas, and you find yourself in the presence of a rare talent.
His bare-boned reinvention of Aililiú Na Gamhna, his sublime ability to pick out the inherent syllabic rhythms of Bean Dubh An Ghleanna, and his child-like delight in the simplicity of Cú-cú-in are mere snapshots of a singer whose interpretive ability is matchless.
Why then, did he repeatedly insist that his songs were insignificant, despite a fine reading of I'm Weary Of Lying Alone, one of the tradition's so-called "big songs"? Why did he continually berate his own contributions to the evening, ever-yielding to what he saw as the superior talents of O'Brien and Ó Raghallaigh? Ó Lionáird's self-effacement bordered on self-flagellation, and proved to be an increasing irritant. A touch more stagecraft wouldn't have gone amiss either. Punters toward the back of the room weren't privy to the onstage banter. After so much promise, a hugely disappointing night. Siobhán Long
Earagail Arts Festival: Joanna Mac Gregor at An Grianán Theatre
A magnificent trawl through the richness of American music, north and south, Joanna MacGregor's opening concert got this year's Earagail Arts Festival off to a resounding start. The first half of her musical exploration focused on the northern part of the subcontinent, featuring iconic pieces ranging from the well-known Gospel song Sometimes I feel like a Motherless Child through more challenging works from the likes of Thelonious Monk and Colon Nancarrow. This section reached a more familiar but brilliant finale with Nina Simone's sophisticated version of Good Bait. It was magnificently performed, and MacGregor's introductory tribute to Simone was moving in its sincerity.
With a stage presence that gave an equal sense of assured command and vulnerable physical exposure, MacGregor's introductions were perfectly pitched. She unobtrusively provided the background needed to situate more obscure pieces, or to hear familiar ones in a new way.
The second half took us on a magical mystery tour of Brazilian music, where MacGregor's enthusiasm for and command of the musical idiom were clearly evident. Again she mingled the familiar with the less well known. The melodies of Hector Villa Lobos, Baden Powell and Astor Piazzola have entered the realm of popular music, and were performed with great verve.
It was, however, while playing more obscure works by Egberto Gismonti, Antonio Carlos Jobim and Vinicus de Moraes that MacGregor's fiery energy and astounding technique came closer to performance art than what one normally understands by piano recital. Apart from the sheer visual impact of the virtuosity, speed and dynamism of her hands, she fully exploited the piano's percussive potential, dramatically strumming and dampening strings within the body of the instrument, while continuing to play melody on the keyboards. A memorable performance and a very promising start to this year's festival. Mary Phelan
