Souvenir De Florence – Royal Liverpool Philharmonic

This delightful concert in the Close-Up series features musicians from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra.

The ensemble consists of:

Thelma Handy- violin

Sarah Brandwood-Spencer- violin

Alex Mitchell- viola

Gwendolyn Cawdron- viola

Jonathan Aasgaard- cello

Alexander Holladay- cello

The evening comprises of three pieces of superlative chamber music.

Vaughan Williams Phantasy Quintet (1912) is probably one of Williams most lyrical and moving compositions. Its melody positively soars over the course of four short movements. There is an overriding theme of contemplation that runs throughout each movement. It is a truly beautiful piece of music and the ensemble play this with great finesse and precision. Exquisite.

Martinu String Sextet (1932) is a more modern piece of music, and its complex tonal structure is surprisingly buoyant and full of energy. It is also a supremely emotional work which contains a lot of harmonic depth and jazz notes over its three short movements. Martinu’s sextet is lyrically hypnotic and although complicated and sharp in some parts it is nevertheless richly rewarding. I particularly enjoyed the spirited and audacious final movement with some fine performances from the ensemble.

Tchaikovsky’s Sextet in D minor Souvenir De Florence (1890) was the richly deserved central work this evening and what a truly magnificent piece of music it is. This is the composer’s only string sextet and it was influenced by his visit to Florence. The structure of Tchaikovsky’s piece is set in four distinctive movements. The first movement sets the tone with a flamboyant flourish of dizzying melody and colourful narrative, performed with the utmost clarity by the superb ensemble. The second slower movement and probably my most favourite of the four has a charming mediative and melancholy feel about it, and it just shows what a musical genius Tchaikovsky was – once again the ensemble performs this impeccably. The final rousing two movements of Souvenir De Florence show off the composer’s roots in folk-like melody with their triumphant and anthemic themes going throughout.

This was an imaginative and beautifully assembled programme of short works performed by a superb ensemble of talented musicians at the top of their game!

Reviewer: Kiefer Williams

Reviewed: 17th October 2022

North West End UK Rating: ★★★★★