‘Let Music Sound’

July 2013, St. John’s Church, Wellington

Shakespeare’s lines are an excellent excuse for singing! Amici’s recent Wellington concert ‘Let Music Sound’, brought together 17th to 21st century settings of the Bard’s words. Under the assured baton of Andrew Trewellha, and accompanied on various keyboards by John Young, it was a memorable evening.

Amici achieves an effortless vocal blend, despite on this occasion being slightly reduced in numbers. High points were a gloriously rich sound in Purcell’s ‘If music be the food of love’, and a very moving performance of Paul Mealor’s ‘Let fall the windows of my eyes’, a complex modern piece evoking heart-breaking melancholy.

From the dreamy mysticism of Vaughan Williams’ ‘Full fathom five’ to the lively setting of ‘It was a lover and his lass’ by P. D. Q. Bach, and Mendelssohn’s charming ‘You spotted snakes’, Amici showed themselves capable of a wide variety of styles. Whether accompanied on keyboard or organ, or unaccompanied, pitch and attack were usually spot-on; although the harmonies got a bit muddy in E. J. Moeran’s ‘Sigh no more, ladies’ and the tempi occasionally sluggish in George Shearing’s jazz-flavoured ‘Songs and Sonnets of Shakespeare’.

Spoken extracts from the plays and sonnets, handled bravely by young readers and led by James Bradnock, added to the atmosphere of this unique and enjoyable concert.

Sue Goodman, July 2013