4 May 2018

Review: CMNZ presents Phantasm

From Upbeat, 1:40 pm on 4 May 2018

Peter Hoar says Phantasm gave a survey of viol music that spanned three centuries. He says while an evening of viol consort music may seem daunting, the music was varied and never dull due to the excellent playing. He discusses the varied programming which saw some pieces played as duets, trios or quartets.

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Photo: RNZ / Cole Eastham-Farrelly

The program was arranged chronologically and began with a Fancy by the elder Alfonso Ferrabosco. The warm sound and precise playing set the tone for the evening. We moved through the notables of English viol music with Byrd, Gibbons, Tomkins, Locke and some lesser known composers such as Elway Bevin and Richard Mico.

The second half carried on the English theme with four Fantazias by Purcell before branching out with Mozart’s arrangements of 4 fugues from Bach’s Well Tempered-Claver Book 2.

The evening finished with undiluted Bach in the form of four selections from ‘The Art of the Fugue’. There was an encore of Scarlatti sonata (K87) arranged for quartet.

The playing throughout was impeccable. Vibrato and other ornaments were deployed with great taste and used as emphasis and to highlight the music’s emotional effects. There were exciting and fiery virtuoso passages such as in the final Bach selection which Phantasm handled with brio and assurance.

The more meditative music was delivered with thoughtful concentration that never fell over into being mannered or precious. The group’s overall sound is very warm and mellow but there is also grit and power when it is needed by the music.

For those unfamiliar with the viol this program by Phantasm provides a fascinating and carefully thought out overview of the instrument in its consort form. Maybe including a solo piece or two from the instrument’s vast repertoire would add another dimension of variety. But that is not a complaint at all.

This concert wasn’t a history lesson as such, it was an evening of varied and powerful music that was played with feeling, through and precision. One of the year’s highlights I think.