SCHEHERAZADE AND PAGANINI VARIATIONS AT WEST ROAD
October is the least cruel month. Yes, really – despite the darker days ahead it marks the beginning of the arts calendar. A regular highlight is the first seasonal outing for The Sampson Orchestra, one of Cambridge’s finest. This concert did not disappoint. It was a feast of mellow melodiousness. First off a less familiar piece: Autumn by the Russian composer Glazunov. It bursts with sumptuous tunes not least the opening theme which has such an air of familiarity – like the theme tune to a much-loved TV series. Maybe it was and readers can enlighten me. The 19th century Russian’s music is from a ballet and there is such a joyous dancing atmosphere. Toe tapping was tough to resist.
The Sampson, under their regular conductor Darrell Davison, played with great confidence and thrilling musicianship from the start. Davison always looks like he’s enjoying the concert more than anyone in West Road and that translates to the energy of the playing. Autumn is a good show-off piece for the orchestra – the opening boom of the brasses actually had my old specs vibrating. There was some lovely woodwind ensembles and a stand-out contribution from the harp which also had a big role to play in the following pieces. One can’t help feeling a bit sorry for Glazunov who should have been around in the movie era. There is a theme near the end that is straight out of a John Williams motif. Had West Road had a curtain, this work would have been a wonderful curtain raiser.
CHRISTOS FOUNTOS, THE SOLOIST
Next up was the BIG ONE – the Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini by Rachmaninov. The soloist was the Cyprus-born Christos Fountos. The 27 year-old strolled on to the stage with great nonchalance, adjusted the height of his piano stool, and with his top knot firmly fixed on his crown, he gave the nod to begin. After the short orchestral introduction, Fountos played the first notes, the bare Paganini theme with one finger. This was a true Chico Marx moment. And it was so right. Rach intended the Rhap to almost light hearted and certainly unstuffy.
And then the fun began in earnest: forget Chico, Fountos is a wizard of the keys. This was a muscular reading with crashing chords and delicate flights of rhapsodic fancy. The orchestral parts are so tricky – with bluesy offbeats in the strings (echoes of Gershwin) and micro-timed thematic responses. Happily this band was up to the challenge and the whole was a thrilling duel between the powerful soloist and full orchestra. Of course we all love the 18th (of 24) variation – the one with the huge romantic theme. It sent tingles down the spine with pianist and orchestra in perfect blend. The frenetic final variations were done with panache and the orchestra gave as good as it got from the soloist on fire. It was exhausting and triumphant and the near full house at West Road sounded like they wanted to keep cheering through the break.
The second half had one work: Scheherazade by Rimsky Korsakov. This has been a favourite of mine during 60 years of classical music loving. The bar then was high and mostly, the Sampson were up to the mark. Each of the four movements, telling parts of the Arabian Nights story is dominated by a glorious main melody. Again the brasses were outstanding as were the strings and woodwind. But the main plaudits must go to the band’s first violin, Catherine Smart.
She has been a stalwart of the Sampson for many years. She played the solo violin calling-card theme of Scheherazade with such finesse, charm and eloquence. Her duets with Elizabeth Green on the harp were truly magical – like a lampful of genies.
One may baulk at the cultural appropriation of the non-Arabic Rimsky (I don’t) but his dramatic melodies and superb orchestrations (endlessly creative) conjure up such an exotic sound world that all is forgiven (though there is nothing to forgive).
Sadly the music had to come to an end, but the audience were clearly in a delighted reverie. We left the concert hall and into the cool dark outside. Autumn was here. Roll on November.
