Reviews of the 12th May 2002 Concert
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READING CHRONICLE ARTICLE (16 May 2002)
Review by Barrie Theobald
UNDER the baton of their musical director Christopher Walker and led by Tim Hawken, the young people of this orchestra gave accomplished interpretations of three vastly differing pieces.
Setting the scene for the high standard of musicianship that was to follow, the concert opened with rousing performance of Rossini's famous overture to The Barber of Seville.
I am not particularly keen on the works of Richard Strauss, but certainly warmed to the orchestras rendition of his Horn Concerto No. 1, for which they were competently joined by young Martin Priestley as the soloist.
The second half of the programme was devoted to Dvorak's Symphony No. 8 in G Major, and what a skilful job they made of it! The vibrant Allegro con brio movement was, perhaps, the high spot of the evening, closely contended by the rustic dance in the third movement.
MEMBERS OF THE ORCHESTRA
Review by Tommy Lee
Our May concert took place at the Reading University Great Hall on Sunday 12th. This was a wonderful venue to play in and the concert was a great success.
We opened with Rossini's overture to The Barber of Seville. Its grand
introduction contrasts with the fast moving main theme, which in true Rossini
style keeps getting louder and faster until it culminates into a burst of comic
frenzy. Originally composed for a different opera (Rossini lost his original
overture and so used this again!), it sets the mood perfectly for one of the
greatest comic operas ever written.
Our second item was Richard Strauss' Horn Concerto no.1 with Martin
Priestley as the soloist. Perhaps Strauss' most famous Horn Concerto, it
is extremely energetic and very demanding for both orchestra and soloist. We
would like to congratulate Martin on the success of this very accomplished
performance.
After the interval we performed Dvorak's Symphony no.8 in G major. This piece is
broad in scale and is extremely melodic throughout. He gives the opportunity for
all the instruments to shine through varying texture and orchestration. The
final movement builds towards a conclusive climax, by getting faster and faster
until the very end where it comes to a dramatic finish.
The concert was enjoyed by everyone and I would like to thank all our guest
players and also the staff for their continued help and encouragement. We had to
say a sad goodbye to Oonagh Jones who is our viola coach. I would
like to thank her for all her help and commitment and we wish her well for the
future, as she is going on to take a course in Music Therapy.