Sudbury Symphony Orchestra

20/03/2016
St Peters, Sudbury
Spring Concert:
Beethoven- Piano Concerto no.5 in Eb The Emperor
Soloist: Jill Morton
Dvorak- Symphony no.6 in D
As a newcomer to a Sudbury Symphony Orchestra Concert I could not
have asked for a warmer welcome. The front of house staff were so
welcoming and helpful, and it really does help to take the edge off of what
can be viewed as a very stuffy experience.
The first item on the bill was the infamous Emperor concerto. The
opening allegro is a true conversation piece between soloist and
orchestra, Matthew Andrews presiding well over the difficult interlocking
sections however there were one or two moments of delay. I fear here I
must also mention the dreaded T word- Tuning. I always find tuning is so
much more successful to have a thorough tune before hand. So many
orchestras fear boring the audience with sectional tuning and no doubt
the players fear it too! However, I hope that it is something to be
considered as there were moments in the first movement where brass and
woodwind were settling in with their tuning- much improved in the
second and third movements yet something that could be avoided- the old
saying Close enough for Jazz might continue- ...but not for Beethoven.
The second movement has such a sensitive and heartfelt opening it is
possible to underplay the dynamic- yes violins are marked con sordino
(play with mute) however this is more for the colour effect than the PPP
we heard a snivel is too harsh but it must still have body! We know the
strings are more than capable of it but more on that later! Jill Morton, our
stunning soloist has so far gone without a mention- mea culpa. Her
sterling effort through the first movement was wonderful- however it was
here, such control was shown, her trills sparkled- champagne bubbles
fizzing- such as it put me in mind of Annie Fischer although- dare I say it, I
preferred Jills! Jill continued to lead us into a hearty Rondo which was well
clearly enjoyed by all- a little more attention to the articulation wouldnt
go a miss. The final piano run is always deceptive and it was such a
shame pianist and orchestra missed each other- if only by the quaver!
Bravo to all, such an enjoyable performance- if this is what your Empress
does with the Emperor I cant wait for the Chopin!
The Dvorak is such an underrated work and I was delighted to hear it
tackled with such excitement and engaged playing. I have to make clear
what a pure pleasure it was to hear such crisp and clean flute playing from
Beck Mair and Sue Heaton, more please! The first movement was joyful
and we got the feel for all those folk tunes, unfortunately the tuning was
still a little awry. The second movement seemed awfully loud, I know it is

supposed to be a juxtaposition with flashes of thunder and then straight

back to serene calm but it seemed less like a summer shower and more of
a hail storm. The third movement flashed and dance with vibrant rhythm
and colour- I finally felt I heard the upper strings! Such power and strength
with good playing from the brass and woodwind. The cellos unfortunately
seemed to be dampened through the entire concert- it could have been
positioning rather than playing but it was very noticeable in this
movement. The finale movement was everything we could have asked for,
it was truly wonderful to see and Sudbury Symphony orchestra engage
with the entire symphony, however I was worried at times if Matthews
excitable conducting might have lead to him falling off- however one look
at his programme notes tells me a seasoned professional would never do
such a thing!
SSO- More please!
Thomas Duchan