Music

Philip R Buttall's Review Of The Classical Year 2009 (feature)

21st December 2009

It has certainly been another good year for classical music in the city and surrounding area.

Plymouth Chamber Music Trust once again brought some top artists to the city, starting the year off with saxophone ensemble, Flotilla, who certainly managed to blow away any remaining festive cobwebs.

For those attuned to the more sedate sounds of strings, there were the Herold, Badke, and Maggini Quartets and, of course, the Endellions, with their special-celebration all-Haydn programme.

The Sherwell Centre’s fine grand was used with great effect by the Aquinas Piano Trio, pictured bottom, and by the Frith Piano Quartet in what were two of the year’s chamber music highlights.

Many patrons were disappointed to hear that PCMT was disbanding next April, at the end of its 16th season, but a recent announcement that a steering group has been set up to look into the possibility of promoting future chamber music, by University of Plymouth Director of Music, Simon Ible, who also directs Peninsula Arts, is certainly a hopeful sign.

Another series due to close next April is the International Lunchtime Series at the City Museum & Art Gallery, already in its 17th season.

This also came as a shock to its regular patrons, especially when three of this year’s recitals, by Eclectica!, the Modern Guitar Trio and, most recently, top US jazz pianist, Judy Carmichael had proved so entertaining, bringing a welcome breath of fresh air to the series.

Again, there is better news on the horizon as concert organiser, Jeanie Moore, has vowed to continue, moving across the road to Sherwell United Church for the foreseeable future.

The last four events in the Plymouth Orchestral Series included an excellent performance from Lithuanian pianist, Evelina Puzaite, with the Ten Tors Orchestra, some equally impressive cello playing from Julian Lloyd Webber and the European Union Chamber Orchestra, and the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra with soloists, Boris Giltburg and trumpeter, Alison Balsom.

There is no more funding as such, but the BSO will at least be returning to the Pavilions in March, with a programme of Movie Classics.

Plymouth Symphony Orchestra has been busy, too, and it would be hard to better soloist, Jennifer Pike’s, pictured top, playing in Sibelius’s Violin Concerto.

Devon Baroque celebrates its tenth birthday, and is emerging as a major force in music of the period.

The Ten Tors Orchestra has also put on some fine concerts, and provided the accompaniment for pianist, Ben Frith, when he gave the inaugural performance on the new grand in the Roland Levinsky Theatre.

Opera fans also had something to sing about, with three productions from Welsh National Opera, and Glyndebourne on Tour respectively.

It would be tough to pick an out-and-out winner, but WNO’s Salome and Glyndebourne’s recent Jenufa must surely rank among the contenders.

With Dartington a relatively short distance away, they have also hosted some outstanding events during the year, including tenor, Ian Bostridge and the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, The English Concert, and the Academy of St Martin in the Fields.

The University of Plymouth Choral Society and Plymouth Philharmonic Choir have also been in fine voice and, if pressed for arguably the best all-round concert of 2009, the Philharmonic’s special charity performance with the Orchestra of the Royal Marines in aid of Combat Stress, the opening event of the British Armed Forces Celebrations, would be a really hard one to beat.

Read next week’s column for news of all the exciting classical music events to look forward to in 2010.

PHILIP R BUTTALL

Philip R Buttall's Review Of The Classical Year 2008 (exclusive)

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