Serebrier and Toulouse Chamber Orchestra a "fitting end" to Festival

WEDNESDAY, FEB. 22:

Soprano Carole Farley’s dramatic all French recital ‘did not demonstrate her strongest vocal qualities’

By Laura Springham
Bermuda School of Music

Thursday evening’s concert featured world-renowned soprano Carole Farley in a programme of French art song and opera.  Pianist John Constable, who has recorded several albums with Ms Farley, accompanied her. 

Ms Farley entered the stage with a commanding presence, singing her first piece, Le Balcon or “The Balcony” by Claude Debussy, text by Charles Baudelaire. 

First impressions of her voice were that some of her pitches were not clear and ringing.

Her voice seemed closed for this piece, which had many dramatic leaps in range and sustained notes that were not powerful enough for the lush piano part. 

Continuing chronologically by composition, the next three songs were from Maurice Ravel’s Chansons Madécasses, completed in 1926. 

In the first song, Nahandove, Ravel uses his signature style of a pentatonic harmony with a gamelan-type accompaniment over a melancholy vocal line. 

The second song, Aoua! Aoua! begins with a primal vocal scream, and tells the natives “do not trust the white man”. 

Piano and voice are written in a low register after the initial “scream”.

Ms Farley’s voice sounded a bit strained for the low sections, but her higher register opened up more than in the Debussy. 

Il est doux begins with a sparse single line of music, gradually developing as the voice enters. 

A description of pleasure and basking in the warm breezes bring the song cycle to a calm close.

The main attraction and Ms Farley’s better performing was in the second half of the concert. 

La Voix Humaine, by Francis Poulenc, was originally written as a play by Jean Cocteau. 

Ms Farley seemed much more comfortable showing her acting and dramatic flair as the opera in one act developed. 

Poulenc’s score complements the emotions of the story, told as a one-sided telephone conversation between a woman and her lover who has left her.

Mr Constable played with precision, as the piano was intricately woven into Ms Farley’s operatic “conversation”. 

Ms Farley’s voice sounded full and soaring in parts; she was able to create the drama needed in her voice for this role.

The music chosen for this concert was dramatic and melancholy.

If  Ms Farley had chosen to speak about the music first, the audience may have felt more of a connection with her. 

Ms Farley’s biography shows an outstanding career.

However, on this night her performance did not demonstrate her strongest vocal qualities.

Maestro Jose Serebrier brought out the true professionalism of the chamber orchestra

By Diana Madeiros

The Christian Humann Foundation is to be congratulated for sponsoring the Toulouse Chamber Orchestra under conductor Jose Serebrier as part of the Bermuda Festival.

Although not playing to a capacity audience at the City Hall Theatre in Hamilton, those present, many of whom had attended a pre-concert lecture by the conductor, were cognisant that they were in the presence of true professionals, and their applause recognized that fact.

Unfortunately, the venue did not do justice to the performers, although intimate for the audience, the stage did not have enough depth and when John Constable played the Concertino for Piano and Orchestra by Walter Leigh, the conductor and some of the orchestra were hidden from sight behind the piano. 

The stage had to accommodate six violins, two violas, two cellos and a double bass — quite a squeeze.

The programme was well thought out starting with the hauntingly melodic Air, from Suite No. 3 by Bach.

At once the audience grasped the special relationship between the conductor and orchestra, and on occasions during the concert Maestro Serebrier clapped his orchestra to signify that they had attained what he was seeking musically.

It was interesting to watch the conductor leading the orchestra in his own inimitable style.

Sinfonia in C. Major for Strings by Bach followed with Divertimento in D. Major by Mozart each of these orchestral pieces showcasing the talent of the orchestra and diversity of the programme this was particularly noticeable in the moments of fortissimo and pianissimo.

Concertino for Piano and Orchestra by Walter Leigh is the work of a composer who died in the Second World War at the comparatively early age of 37.

I felt that the start of the Concertino (Allegro) did not really meld the piano and orchestra but the ending Allegro vivace achieved this melding.

It is sad that Walter Leigh did not have an opportunity to further mature his talent.

Mr Constable not only had to play this Concertino but had to turn his music as well, a sterling feat for any musician!

After the intermission, pieces by Tchaikovsky, Arensky, Turina all combined to assure the audience of a varied programme finishing with Romanian Folk Dances by Bartok which showed off the spectacular talent of the first violinist.

The conductor having congratulated his orchestra and thanked the audience, had his players drop their bows and pluck their strings in homage to a classic American piece of jazz, a fitting end to a marvellous evening of artistry and intimacy.

The audience left smiling, having had the concert presided over by Mr Serebrier who was not only in charge of his orchestra but also of the audience as well.

High calibre orchestral performances made it a night to remember and a fitting end to Festival

By LaTannia Denise Ellerbe

On the evening of February 18, lucky audience members in City Hall Theatre witnessed the collaboration between a world-renown composer and a French virtuosic string ensemble: the result being an evening of high calibre performances.

Conductor Jose Serebrier and the Toulouse Chamber Orchestra gave a presentation fitting for the final evening concert of the Bermuda Festival.

The first half was devoted to the music of  Edvard Grieg.

The ensemble opened the concert with a spirited and heart-felt interpretation of the Holberg Suite.

The instrumentalists provided galloping rhythms in the Prelude, stirring lyricism in the Air, and rustic violin and viola solos in the Finale.

Afterwards, the chamber orchestra performed Two Elegaic Melodies. With the guidance of Serebrier, the Toulouse Chamber Orchestra played in a manner that a listener could almost hear actual words.

But words were to come just a little later; Carole Farley joined Serebrier and the ensemble to perform three brief songs: In the time of Roses, Mother’s Lament, and Solveig’s Cradle Song. 

An experienced soloist with a formidable biography, Ms Farley presented her songs with impeccably clear diction (no easy task since the lyrics were Norwegian) and gripping expression.

In the second half, the ensemble demonstrated their versatility.

The orchestra began with a symphony written by Serebrier himself. Even though the harmonic language of Serebrier’s Third Symphony may have been unfamiliar to some, the intensity created by the driving rhythmic motives in the first movement could be felt by all in the venue.

Members of the chamber orchestra then showed their command of the tango idiom in a performance of Serebrier’s Tango in Blue.

Amazingly, the ensemble effortlessly shifted gears to play the heart-wrenching Chrysantemi by Puccini.

The scheduled programme ended with a familiar favourite, Mozart’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik.

The ensemble played the classical-era composition with careful attention to style and detail.

As an aspiring conductor, I found their interpretation to be a treat to my ears.

The chamber orchestra’s performance provided new insight into the piece. I am sure other audience members felt the same way.

Fulfilling requests from spectators of the previous night’s performance, the ensemble gave repeat encores of the Air from Bach’s Orchestral Suite in D Major and Leroy Anderson’s Jazz Pizzicato.

With delightful pizzicatos, virtuosic fast passages, and luscious string sonorities, the Toulouse Chamber Orchestra gave Bermuda a performance to remember. 

Although the members are described as 11 soloists, they combine to make a skilful and cohesive ensemble.

Kudos to the festival committee for including these artists.