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Dunedin Consort produces Songsheet, four times a year in both a paper and an electronic format.
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Songsheet 45
Diary
Saturday 31 October, 19:00: Gala Concert in aid of the Peter Potter Gallery, by internationally acclaimed soprano Susan Hamilton accompanied by Neil Metcalfe- Holy Trinity Church, Church Street, Haddington. Ticket price £20 (which includes a post-concert reception with refreshments- from Peter Potter Gallery (01620 822080).
Monday 9th November, 19.30: Dialogues of the Soul, Music by Bach, Schütz and Wallen – Aberdeen Chamber Music Club, Cowdray Hall, Aberdeen. Part of Sound Festival 2009. Tickets: £10 (concessions £5). Box office: 01224 641122 www.aberdeenchambermusic.org
Tuesday 10th November, 19.30: Dialogues of the Soul, Music by Bach, Schütz and Wallen – University Memorial Chapel, The Square, University of Glasgow. Tickets: £10 (concessions £8), students £5. Box office: 0131 332 4007 or email info@dunedin-consort.org.uk or on the door subject to availability (see advert overleaf).
Saturday 14th November, 19.30: Motets of Bach and his Forefathers, Ardee Baroque Festival, County Louth, Ireland. For further details please call Ardee Baroque on +353 (0)41 685 8191. www.createlouth.ie/ardee-baroque-2009
Friday 20th November, 19.30: The Colour of Song, including music by Byrd (Fivepart Mass), Tallis and Musgrave – Kelso Music Society, Kelso High School Hall. Tickets: £12 (£10 concessions), students £3, under 14 free with an accompanying adult £6. www.kelsomusicsociety.com
Sunday 29th November, 19.30: Handel's Saul – Dunedin Soloists and Players with Glasgow University Choral Society and Chapel Choir. Bute Hall, University of Glasgow, University Avenue. Tickets: £9 (£6). Box office: 0141 330 5522 or email boxoffice@gilmorehillg12.co.uk
Thursday 10th December, 19.30: John Butt and Susan Hamilton in recital – East Gate Theatre and Arts Centre, Peebles. Tickets: £10 (under 16 free). Box office: 01721 725777. www.eastgatearts.com
Sunday 20th December, 19.30: Bach's Christmas Oratorio, Parts 4 to 6 (Dunedin Soloists) – Ayr Choral Society
Wednesday 23rd December, 19.30: Handel's Messiah – Queen's Hall, Edinburgh. Tickets: £22, £18, £10 (concessions available) Box office: 0131 668 2019. www.thequeenshall.net
B Minor Mass Recording
The recording of Joshua Rifkin’s new edition of Bach’s B Minor
Mass took place between 11th and 17th September in Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh. We were delighted with the exceptional team of singers and players that came together to produce what promises to be a very exciting recording.
Thank you to those of you who attended the concert performance on Monday 14th September. It was well received and gave a tantalising taster of the quality that we can hope to expect when the CD is released next year.
Here is how John Butt thought it went from a conductor’s point of view:
I have been occupied with the Mass in B minor as both performer and scholar for many years – perhaps more than for any other Bach work. So I entered the recording process with considerable excitement and anticipation. Finding that virtually all the performers were equally enthused about the project was both inspiring and challenging – could we possibly meet the expectations that we all took along to Greyfriars Kirk? We were exceptionally fortunate that our very best performers were free for the week and that they combined particularly well; indeed, it was all too easy to become complacent (especially given that all recording sessions are notoriously prone to unexpected accidents).
In the event, I think we all had a tremendous musical experience, both in the spontaneity of a live performance to an audience of Dunedin supporters and in working at the microscopic detail required in the individual sessions (skilfully produced, as usual, by Philip Hobbs). Musicians need a different sort of concentration for the two types of activity, and Dunedin has perhaps prided itslef in the past on being able to communicate something of the energy of live performance in the concentrated bursts that go into making a recording. We certainly felt that we achieved this again this time, and despite the constant obbligato of scaffolding poles being thrown about on a nearby building site, there were remarkably few incidents (no great traumas, at least that I noticed, and not even a hint of swine flu).
But we're not there yet- making a CD recording at the highest studio quality is rather like the process by which the historic steamer, Sir Walter Scott, was delivered to Loch Katrine. It was first constructed complete, then broken into sections to be transported by water and track to the loch, and then out back together again. The process was successful because the steamer was conceived and built as a working whole, but with sufficiently flexibility and internal integrity to survive both the journey and re-assembly. I'm confident that we managed to produce a musically coherent performance, so now we hope that the segments we recorded will add up to a whole that equals, and hopefully betters, our original performance. There are perhaps more rival recordings for the Mass than for any other Baroque work, but we intend that this one will go well beyond the 'merely' excellent. My most intense thanks are due not just to all performers, but also to Philip Hobbs and the Linn team, Susan Hamilton and Neil Metvalfe for their superb management of the project, the dunedin board and to all those who hosted musicians and generously contributed to the considerable costs of the recording.'
Thank you once again for the generous support from Dunard Fund and to all of those who sponsored the recording. Congratulations go to our competition winner, Cati Ramsay from Pitlochry. Her tremendous efforts in raising sponsorship won her a signed copy of John Butt's book on the B Minor Mass, a copy of the CD signed by as many of the performers as possible, two tickets to the launch concert, and an opportunity to attend a recording session. There is still a £5,000 shortfall in funding this project, so if you have not already done so, please return your sponsorship forms. Your copies of the CD will be sent to you in Spring 2010.
We would also like to take this opportunity to thank those of you who provided accomodation for our performers. The players and singers really do appreciate the hospitality they enjoy in Edinburgh and we are most grateful to you for the real saving that this affords the Consort. As the number of concerts increase, so does the need for accomodation. If you are in a position to help, please contact May Matthews by email, may@dunedin-consort.org.uk.
EIF Review
Well done to those of you who managed to secure a seat at Dunedin's sell-out performance during the Edinburgh International Festival. The programme consisted of Bach's Cantata 32 and 57 and was part of the highly successful Bach Series at Greyfriars. There have been wondeful reviews and many complimentary comments from those who attended. Kenneth Walton of the Scotsman described it as a "slick" performance. "Though small in scale-essentially sequences of vocal solos and duets-they are big in characterisation, and as such require expert handling by the protagonists. In that respect, both Susan Hamilton (soprano) and Matthew Brook (bass) negotiated the music's athletic symbolism with purpose and agility. Butt, directing from the harpsichord, shaped the bigger picture with stylistic conviction. The operatic subtext was not lost."
Future Work
Building on this success, we are pleased to announce that Dunedin will be performing at several other international festivals over the coming months. These will include Ardee Baroque Festival in Ireland (14th November 2009), Blumenthal Festival in Tel Aviv (11th-15th May 2010) and Festival van Vlaanderen in Antwerp (2nd October 2010).
Residential workshops
Next year's workshops will be based on Monteverdi's Vespers (1610 version). Due to the overwhelming interest in this year's residential weekend in Dunblane, we will be offering a choice of two weekends in 2010: on 22nd-24th January and 12th-14th February, with an additional day workshop in Edinburgh on Saturday 30th January. For more information, please refer to the flyer enclosed or the website. Places are limited so please return your forms as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. Download PDF Residential Workshop flyer
The Sixteen in Scotland
The highly successful group, The Sixteen, will be performing in Scotland as part of their ChoralPilgrimage in 2009. The programme will include Purcell and MacMillan, Bright Orb of Harmony. Glasgow Cathedral on 21st October, Holy Trinity Church in St Andrews on 22nd October and Greyfriars Kirk, Edinburgh on 23rd October. For further details , please visit their website; www.thesixteen.com. Box Office: 01904 651 485 or visit www.ncem.co.uk.