Home & Away

On Saturday night a near capacity audience was treated to a varied and colourful programme of old and new, familiar and not so familiar orchestral music presented by one of Dunedin’s most valuable assets in the music community, the Dunedin Youth Orchestra.

Conductor Peter Adams introduced each item and offered insights and past connections he’d had with both the music and composers, notably Anthony Ritchie, which made the listening experience that much more special.

The opening number, Ritchie’s Stomping in the Park, was a great introduction, particularly showing off the excellent brass, wind and percussion. The Vaughan Williams English Folk Songs were a nice contrast, where the strings had more chance to be a feature. Perhaps it was where I was sitting, but the acoustic of the hall was not very kind to the string section, particurlarly when brass, wind and percussion were at full force.

The two French composers, Fauré and de Bériot, were the highlights of the first half, as they featured two up-and-coming musicians, conductor Ben Walker and violinist Michelle Brown. Walker had a relaxed demeanour and was clear with his musical intentions in conducting Fauré’s Pavane. The solo melodies, as they passed from one player to another, were beautifully shaped.

De Beriot’s Fantasia is a new work for me and Michelle Brown’s playing has inspired me to investigate it further. Perhaps her opening, although firm in sound and technique, was a little tentative in approach, but by the time the Bolero swung into action, the performer had relaxed and gone for it, tossing about harmonics, virtuoso scales, string-crossing and triple-stops with gleeful abandon.

After Natasha Manowitz awarded oboeist Calum Fotheringham the thoroughly deserved DYO Young Musicians Award, the second half of the programme began with a well-executed Pomp and Circumstance by Elgar. This was followed by something completely different – Tango Mango, by NZ composer, Leonie Holmes. A captivating opening of solo strings and piano merged into tutti strings that dominated a lot of the piece and exhibited rich layers of sound throughout, especially enhanced by a vibrant second violin section. Impressive work was heard from the percussionists and the unconventional time signatures were tightly maintained by all.

Then came the performance of Through the Mountain Way, composed by Clara Satherly, 2024 Young Composers Award Winner and member of the first violin section. It was an evocative piece, and like many NZ composers, the landscape was a source of inspiration, with Clara’s notes stating that Celtic melodies and the mountain summit inspired her. As a violinist, I especially enjoyed hearing all the different sound layers and use of different effects that strings created within the layers.

By this time, I decided I didn’t want to be a reviewer any more, and sat back to just enjoy the Sinfonietta (Anthony Ritchie). And it was terrific. The piece was not familiar to me, but in a way it was. And hearing a group of talented young NZ musicians playing such quintessential NZ music seemed to be the most natural thing in the world at that moment.