Kinross High School concert

Jun 6 2008 By Alister Y Allan

THE sixth concert given by schools at this year’s Perth Festival of Arts featured Kinross High School which played a very varied programme and included musical styles from the 16th century to modern times before a sizeable audience.

The concert opened confidently with the large wind band conducted by Tim Mitchell playing Sinfonia No4 by Broege whose three movements, "Broadcast, Memories, Romance" and "On the corner" were well contrasted, and the "The Blues Brothers Revue", arrangement Bocook. This is a well-balanced band which plays with stylistic awareness; the changes of mood and dynamics were well observed and there was expressive playing, particularly in the "Romance".The percussion section added vitality.

The first of the soloists, Maisie Cottingham (violin), gave a peacefully hushed account of JS Bach’s "Air on a G String" (Air from suite No3 in D) in a very convincing arrangement for violin and piano, producing a pleasant tone quality.

The second soloist, Lesley Spenser (vocalist), gave a lively performance of "Roxie" from "Chicago" by Ebb and Kinder, complete with American accent, and a real sense of "pazazz". This young lady shows promise for the future.

The second ensemble, the string orchestra with added percussion and conducted by Mhairi MacKinnon, played two contrasting pieces, "A Kwanzaa Celebration" arranged by O’Reilly, which had an African influence and contained an effective scoring of "Kum Ba Yah" and "An Irish Party in Third Class" arranged by Gaelic Storm, which contrasted a jig and reel. The ensemble produced a full tone with well disciplined bowing. Phrasing of a high standard was obvious and intonation was, for the most part, secure.

The third soloist was Jill Sweeney (flute) who performed the difficult first movement (Allegretto Malonicollo) from the Sonata by Poulenc. This was an excellent performance, featuring fine breath control, awareness of changes of mood, expressive phrasing and effortless tempo variation.

The fourth soloist, Gillian Shackleton (trumpet), performed the evocative "The Enchanted Trumpet" by Vizutti, an expressive piece which grows out of the short opening theme. Though starting dreamily, the piece reaches a climax with short fanfare figures before dying away. Gillian produced a gentle tone at the start and the climax was well articulated with crisp "tonguing". Another excellent performance.

The Chamber Group (three violins, viola and cello) then played "Lord Of The Dance" by Hardman, arrangement Moore, which contrasted the well known "Shaker" melody with a tune in the minor key. The ensemble gave an expressive rendition of this effective arrangement.

The fifth soloist, Hazel Sweeney (clarinet), played the virtuosi "The Quick Brown Fox" by Lyons with great skill and musicianship, as contrasts in dynamics happened very quickly in this almost "Moto Perpetuo" piece which displayed a mature performance.

The sixth and final soloist, Ruaridh Pattison (saxophone) showed fine awareness of the jazz style in the technically demanding "Now’s the Time" by Parker. The rhythm "sparkled" and his phrasing was well defined and tone production vibrant. This was another excellent performance.

The impressive concert ended with the third ensemble, the brass band, conductor Bob McDonald, performing "Eastwards", a stirring march by Dutton and "Young Amadeus" arranged by De Haan and reworking the theme from the Andante of Mozart’s Clarinet Concerto.

The full rich sound produced by this excellent band was evident from the start and contrasted quieter sections being musically played "nice euphonium solos". The balance was first class throughout, with percussion adding vitality to the performance. The tutors, Tim Mitchell, Mhairi MacKinnon and Bob MscDonald must be delighted with their efforts, getting the best from the pupils. Accompanist Maureen Rutherford played sensitively for all the soloists, which was a joy to listen to in a most pleasing concert.