Review: "PACHELBELS' GERMANY" performed by Salute!, with Hans-Dieter Michatz - Baroque flute and recorder, and guests. Kings Hall, Old Parliament House, Friday March 14 1997. Reviewed by TONY MAGEE

Salute! is a Baroque Trio featuring Sally Melhuish on recorder, Tim Blomfield on baroque cello and Luke Green on harpsichord. This concert also featured special guest Hans-Dieter Michatz on baroque flute and recorder with further augmentation by Baroque violinists Julie Hewison, Lorraine Moxley and Madeleine Easton.

The music and the playing were both delightful and in the acoustics of Kings Hall the whole concert was really quite serene and sublime. 

In particular, Baroque flute and recorder player Hans-Dieter Michatz was outstanding - his tone, phrasing and embellishments all first rate. 

The program featured of course Pachelbel's Canon and Gigue in D, played at a somewhat brisker tempo than I am used to hearing it, but this added a certain charm, particularly to the Canon section. The recorders made their entrance with the Sinfonia in F by Fux, which was enjoyable and then the first of the more substantial works for the evening - Telemann's Introduzzione a tre in C, scored for two recorders, two violins and continuo (which in this case, as for all the pieces on the program, was simply harpsichord and cello - simple but highly effective). 

In this piece, all parts came through with great individual clarity as well as retaining an appropriate ensemble balance. The recorders in particular, whilst complementing each other, also portrayed interesting contrasts in tone and development of sound. Hans Dieter Michatz favours a precise and tightly tongued sound with precise pitching and clear singing tone. Sally Melhuish on the other hand chose a more breathy sound, with very light, if not sometimes absent, tonguing which results in a totally different approach to pitching and phrasing. An interesting contrast, which combined with the Baroque string players resulted in a typical but also unique "early music" sound - ie: very different to our slick 20th century made instruments used in many orchestras and ensembles today.

Other pieces in the program included the Trio Sonata in B flat by J.S. Bach and another work by Telemann, his Concerto in E minor. Here we were treated to Hans-Dieter Michatz's superb playing on the Baroque flute, (played transversely, but made of wood). Wooden flutes are fairly soft, but the sound of this one came through nicely and with fine playing from the other members of the ensemble, made for a charming conclusion to a most enjoyable concert.

Originally published in Muse Magazine (Canberra), April 1997

Memories of heady days

by Norma Allen

Dec 16, 1996

Noel Ferrier with Coralie Wood, Lorraine decker and pianist Tony Magee. Photo: Martin Jones

WE ALL tottered along Memory Lane on Wednesday, gathering at the Canberra Theatre to honour its first director, Terry Vaughan, 1965-1980. His widow, Roma, and daughter Sally, unveiled a plaque in the foyer, surround by friends and fans from 30 years ago. Terry died in April this year and had lived in Perth with his family since 1980, returning to Canberra in 1983 to conduct The Merry Widow for Canberra Opera.

And no doubt about it, Terry Vaughan was among us all last week. His memory was invoked in story and anecdote and everyone had some recollection of Terry’s days at the theatre. Raconteur, actor, conductor, composer, director, persuader, coaxer and author. His book Whistle As You Go was launched last year, telling the story of the Kiwi Concert Party.

Heady days, indeed, when the theatre was opened. All the big names came to Canberra, Dietrich, Ustinov, Laurinda Almeida, the Tintookies, Winifred Attwell, Googie Withers and John McCallum, Christian Ferris, Kenneth McKellar, the list is there for people to see, on precious, fading billboards in the endless passageways underneath the theatre.

A reunion for Roma Vaughan, widow of the theatre's first director,
with John Rohde and Terry's daughter, Sally. Photo: Martin Jones

Several people from “day one” were at the ceremony on Wednesday. Manager John Rohde, ageless, handsome as ever, came from Sydney and so did actor Noel Ferrier. Coralie Wood was the theatre’s first publicist, Lorraine Decker worked in accounts, Joyce Barker was in the ticket box and Sir Richard Kingsland was head of the then Department of the Interior, “and Terry would seduce my staff into giving him more material and concessions than he was entitled to”, he said in his speech.

Former board member, Jim Leedman had some tales to tell and messages were read from absent friends. Stuart Wagstaff could not attend, he was working and a cheer went up for an actor who was in work. Hec and Phyll McMillan, another couple who “trod the boards” at the theatre had memories to add. And in an eerie footnote to those theatrical days, the Playhouse came down the same day, across the courtyard.

First published in The Canberra Times, December 16, 1996

Review: 4th Subscription Series, BEETHOVEN AND DVORAK. Canberra Symphony Orchestra, Isaiah Jackson. At Llewellyn Hall, November 6 1996

Canberra Symphony Orchestra

Wednesday 6th November 1996

Llewellyn Hall

Isaiah Jackson - Conductor

Kathryn Selby - Piano

Reviewed by Tony Magee

Isaiah Jackson

Once again it was a delight to see and hear the results of preparation and performance by Canberra Symphony Orchestra under the direction of Isaiah Jackson. Formerly assistant to Leopold Stokowski, Jackson not surprisingly retains some of the late master's techniques in his own style - the huge sweeping, manipulative hand gestures, the infrequent use of a baton, surging, almost exaggerated dynamics and of course that famous lush (and sometimes controversial) sound.

All these qualities were used to full effect in the opening work, the overture to Rossini's opera Semiramide, played with feeling, passion and beauty by the orchestra. 

The first of the two substantial works for the evening followed - Beethoven's Piano concerto No 3 in C minor, with Kathryn Selby as the soloist. On the whole this was a wonderful performance. Kathryn Selby is an extremely fine pianist and her playing displayed an almost perfect artistic balance between tone production, technique, phrasing and style. She is also an extremely confident musician and whilst she and Isaiah Jackson worked very well together, I got the feeling that the real control in this performance came from her own hands rather than the pair on the podium behind her.

Kathryn Selby

Balance between soloist and orchestra was always excellent although at times I felt the accompaniment was just a little stilted. Overall a really great performance of one of the world's favourite piano concertos.

The final work for the evening was Dvorak's Symphony No 8 in G major. In this the orchestra displayed fine tonal balance particularly in the many sections within this symphony which place focused attention on solo and sectional counterpoint and frequent tonal changes from major to minor.

A great finish to the year's program for Canberra Symphony Orchestra and I look forward to 1997's new and further expanded program.

Originally published in Muse Arts Monthly (Canberra), December 1996

Review: Pro Musica Presents "ENSEMBLE I", National Gallery of Australia Fairfax Theatre, Sunday October 27 1996. Reviewed by TONY MAGEE

Brachi Tilles and husband Spiros Rantos

In 1995 I reviewed Ensemble I's concert for Pro Musica and finished with "please let's have Ensemble I back again soon" - so enthusiastic was I about their first concert. I certainly wasn't disappointed with this further offering although I do have some reservations about the group's intonation - more on that later.

Let me start by saying that the group's pianist, Brachi Tilles, is one of the most outstanding musicians I have heard. Easily one of the best small ensemble pianists in Australia, I found myself yet again entranced by her poise, style, technical accuracy, emotion, tonal beauty and general adoration for the art of making music. As you will read from my thoughts on other concerts elsewhere in this publication, quality music making in the last few months of 1996 was indeed dominated, for me anyway, by the ladies. 

The program featured Mozart's Piano Quartet in E flat major, K493, Turina's Piano Quartet in A minor, Opus 67, Theodorakis' Sonatina for Violin and Piano and finally Dvorak's Piano Quartet in E flat major, Op 87.

The Turina came off the best with good intonation, fine ensemble balance and a seemingly intuitive understanding from all players of the emotion and fire required for Spanish music. The Sonatina for violin and cello was a nice inclusion, displaying music from the homeland of violinist and leader of the ensemble, Spiros Rantos, whom I first met in 1977 when he was guest violinist with the Frankston Symphony Orchestra.

Whilst the Mozart and the Dvorak were most enjoyable, I found the intonation from the string players to be lacking in places which in a more resonant environment might have gone almost unnoticed, but in the comparatively dry (but still good) acoustics of the National Gallery Theatre, all is revealed in full nudity (like some of the paintings).

Originally published in Muse Magazine (Canberra), November 1996

Review: Bumbling ineptitude from Dudley Moore

Monday November 4 1996

Hoffmann review first published at The Canberra Times, Monday November 4, 1996

 

Review: "BURNING SEQUINS" performed by Paul Capsis, School of Arts Cafe, 14 & 16 October 1996. Reviewed by TONY MAGEE

Paul Capsis

"Hi. I'm a channeller. Ever since I was a little boy, I've had the ability to accept the minds of other people - living or dead - into my own. Unfortunately I have no control over it. People just barge in whenever...Oooh...who's this...Oooh...Ahhh...'Hello. My name's Judy Garland'".......

So begins the first of Paul Capsis' extraordinary characterisations of some of the world's great female performers. From start to finish, this highly talented artist had the audience enthralled as he moved from one character to another, each time leaving us even more astonished than before. I've never seen or heard anything quite like it.

Dressed in black for the whole performance, and with only a general purpose and unchanging makeup for all characters, Capsis convinced us with sheer vocal magic, uncanny facial expressions and perfect body language, that he was Judy Garland, Maria Callas, Bette Midler, Dianna Ross, and Billy Holiday.

Then came Iris, an ex Tivoli girl, now well into her eighties, who just sat quietly and espoused her views on the shape of Australian showbusiness today and the world in general. This frail and wispy old dame then gently tottered off, and we all had a break and marvelled.

Act II revealed Madonna, Barbara Streisand and Janis Joplin - "take it, take another little piece of my heart", she raunched, with hair flying madly everywhere and beads swaying and clicking.

Then came the encores. We wouldn't let him go and he just kept delivering more - Tina Turner, more Judy Garland and then a finale that had so many stings in it's tale, it's a wonder we weren't all poisoned in the room - I will not comment further on that!

Burning Sequins is a sensational act. Find out where it's playing and go.

Originally published in Muse Magazine (Canberra), November 1996

Review: "SONGS MY MOTHER TAUGHT ME" John Michael Swinbank, with Marie Sermon (piano), at School Of Arts Cafe, October 1996. Reviewed by TONY MAGEE

Concert and Cabaret artist John Michael Swinbank together with accompanist Marie Sermon presented a mostly enjoyable selection of the songs of Noel Coward at the School Of Arts Cafe. Such numbers as Bad Times Just Around the Corner, Uncle Harry, A Bar On the Picola Marina, Mad Dogs and Englishmen, Nina and Let's Do It to name just a few, were stylishly portrayed. 

In general, I think that Coward has the potential to be uproariously funny, outrageous, supremely witty, sometimes melancholy and just plain good fun. I don't feel that this  show ever really achieved these levels and I feel that the main factor here is that John Michael really can't decide whether he's actually playing Coward himself, or himself singing the songs of Coward - a big difference, and this 'middle ground' approach only served to make some of the numbers quite unconvincing, particularly Mrs Worthington, I Wonder What happened to Him and I Went To A Marvellous Party.

However, many numbers were set-up by some most eloquently delivered monologues which did help a great deal to keep the Cowardish mood flowing. A nice touch.

Pianist Marie Sermon provided stylised and appropriate accompaniment and in fact the two artists are a great musical union - something to be cherished by both performers. 

The program finished with a nice rendition of I'll See You Again. On the whole, an enjoyable but not sensational cabaret act.

Originally published in Muse Magazine, November 1996