August 6th 2007
Elgar Cello Concerto
EDINBURGH YOUTH ORCHESTRA, MUSIC HALL
With Julian Lloyd Webber as soloist, Elgar’s Cello Concerto played to a capacity audience at the opening of this year’s Youth Festival. Garry Walker conducted the Edinburgh Youth Orchestra, which has already built up its own loyal following here.
The sedate tempo of the opening of the Concerto seemed disconcerting but Lloyd Webber’s performance soon made its point clear. Constant glances between soloist, conductor and orchestra leader made it obvious that Lloyd Webber intended to impress his stamp firmly on the music. With meticulous technical finesse, he pointed up countless fine details in the score, which can be missed. The gentle autumnal glow of the slow movement was totally entrancing.
The concert opened with the orchestra in fine fettle in Sir Malcolm Arnold’s Four Scottish Dances. The broad humour of the second Dance came across with great verve and in the third Dance the beautifully transparent sound of the upper strings and woodwind playing were both established as a hallmark of this orchestra.
These aspects of the playing were crucial in the success of Ravel’s orchestral setting of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition. As in Malcolm Arnold’s Dances, this score has its moments of humour, though much more subtly expressed. The Edinburgh orchestra caught the abruptly changing moods of the contrasting pictures perfectly, pointed up by some splendid solo playing throughout the orchestra. The percussion section, which sometimes gets taken for granted, was particularly fine. ALAN COOPER
