Review of Dunedin Consort playing St Matthew Passion in Perth Concert Hall

Apr 19 2011 Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

FRIDAY’S concert in Perth Concert Hall carried on the fine tradition of inviting stupendous singers to give magnificent concerts.

On this occasion it was the Dunedin Consort and Players under their director John Butt in a performance of JS Bach’s Matthew Passion.

To start before the music, praise must be due to the splendid programme book available from Horsecross. Praise is also due to Horsecross for, having given the audience the complete text, then, though maintaining focus on the platform, they kept the auditorium lights at a level so that you could actually read it.

John Butt’s layout of the stage was instructive. In believing that dialogue is a most important facet of the work, the two, one-to-a-part choirs were on either side, each with its own orchestra. The two portable organs were in the centre, one of which John Butt himself played to accompany recitatives. Thus, in the opening chorus most came from the soloists-as-choir on the left with the interjected questions thrown in from the choir on the right. The impact of the drama was present in all the singing, not just when they were the bloodthirsty crowd.

Playing on original instruments the line up of these two orchestras was cast from strength, having Pavlo Besnoziuk as Leader of the first orchestra. His performance of the solo in a siciliano-inspired version of Erbarme dich was exceptional as was the viola da gamba solo, played by Emilia Benjamin, in Komm, süßes Kreuz.

Immediately from their first notes John Butt created a powerful atmosphere, with lively tempi and the dance inspiration of many of the arias brought out. None of the singers was less than first rate and all had exceptional clarity of diction. James Oxley, tenor, as the Evangelist carried the story swiftly and clearly forward, allowing Derek Welton, bass, as Jesus his more personal words. Amid such excellent solos from all the singers it is not intended as invidious to mention alto Claire Wilkinson, who really lived all her lines or the bright soprano of Susan Hamilton or the firm bass of Jimmy Holiday and the extraordinary string playing in both his Arias Gebt mir meinen Jesum wieder and Mach dich, mein Herze, rein.

As was only right for this exceptional performance, a large and appreciative audience had come to Perth Concert Hall, and re-called conductor and singers to the stage many times and by that praiseworthy habit peculiar to Perth gave the orchestral leader his own part of the applause.

Ian Stuart-Hunter