REVIEW: Façade:
An evening of music and poetry
with Isobel Buchanan - Wed 10 July
The Great Hall at Longleat
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Review Published: 17 July 2008
Author: Helen Wynter
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This seldom-performed setting of Walton's music to Edith Sitwell's poetry is in a class of its own and I approached this concert with a degree of reluctance. How would the speaker cope with the demands of rhythm, articulation, the changes of speed and bizarre nature of the verse while maintaining sufficient projection to avoid being drowned by the orchestra?
I need not have worried. The six instrumentalists from The Bath Philharmonia, conducted with great care and attention to detail by Jason Thornton, combined with a superb performance by singer Isobel Buchanan gave us splendid entertainment.
Admittedly there were moments when the pace was such that it was not possible to follow the text and others when the imbalance between orchestra and speaker swamped the words but these were more than compensated for by the enjoyment, warmth and talent emanating from the soloist and reflected by the musicians which flowed through the entire performance. I was very glad to be there.
