Grammar School, Grantown-on-Spey, 26 August 2006

Donald Goskirk and Rachel Snow

BEETHOVEN is never an easy ask for any orchestra, far less a semi-professional one that meets in full only twice a year, but the Highland Chamber Orchestra have never lacked ambition to go with their obvious commitment, and are steadily working their way through the complete Symphonies and Concertos.

It was the turn of that revolutionary masterpiece, the ‘Symphony No 5’, to take centre stage in this programme, which was also performed in Fortrose. The orchestra was augmented by piccolo and three trombones for the symphony, and the entry of the trombones in the transitional music between the final movements made a powerful impact when it finally arrived.

The symphony stood alone in the second half of the concert. Although relatively brief by comparison with his Eroica or the massive Choral Symphony, it is a challenging work in its intensity, and especially in its architectural qualities. A successful performance must convey the structural integrity of the music across all four movements, and Susan Dingle, the HCO’s principal conductor, succeeded in doing so here.

The playing wobbled a little here and there, as in the pizzicato section prior to the very effective entry of the trombones, and in some of the more exposed moments for sub-groups in the orchestra, where sonority sounded thin or a little insecure.

For the most part, though, they pulled off a difficult task in fine style, with good overall control of the momentum and shifting dynamics of the music, and a rich, full-bodied ensemble sound when in full flow.

They had opened the evening with more Beethoven, in the shape of an energised account of the Egmont Overture. The vibrant ensemble playing was excellent in this piece, and they carried that momentum into Holst’s colourful, folk-inflected ‘St Paul’s Suite’, in which they maintained the feel and motion of the music’s vivid dance rhythms in fine style.

Rather than the customary instrumentalist performing a concerto with the orchestra, the HCO had invited a singer as guest soloist for this concert. Appropriately enough, coloratura soprano Shiona Cormack has connections with nearby Carrbridge, and first heard the orchestra play in this venue.

She sang expressively and with clarity in the three arias (and one linking recitative) that make up the piece, creating a structure that is analogous in some ways to the traditional instrumental concerto. The orchestral accompaniment overwhelmed her voice in some parts of the opening aria, but a better balance was struck for the rest of the piece, allowing her singing to shine through.

The Highland Chamber Orchestra will close their programme for 2006 with a scaled-down version of the ensemble performing a varied programme at Victoria Hall, Cromarty, on 9 September 2006, with Donald Goskirk as conductor.

© Kenny Mathieson, 2006