9 July 2010 and 11 July 2010
The Second Weekend
The Allegri String Quartet
The Medlock Quartet
Mark Simpson (clarinet)
St Myllin’s Church, Llanfyllin, was filled with sparkling music and an enthusiastic audience on Friday 9th July, when the Allegri String Quartet gave dazzling performances of quartets by Beethoven’s and Brahms. After the interval the Allegris were joined by the up and coming ensemble from the Royal Northern College of Music, the Medlock String Quartet, to play Mendelssohn’s Octet. This is an exciting double string quartet written when the composer was only 16 yet is one of the great works of the chamber music repertoire. This was an evening of classical music at its best - melodic, full of contrasts, with jollity one moment and melancholy the next, uplifting and inspiring to those who had the good fortune to hear it.
The final concert of this year’s Festival on Sunday 11th July saw the Allegri playing Stravinsky’s Concertino, a short, relatively unfamiliar piece, and next a quartet by Ravel. Although this work failed to gain the composer the coveted Prix de Rome prize, it is regarded today as his first masterpiece. To conclude the concert, Mark Simpson, former Young Musician of the Year, joined the Allegri to perform Brahms’ clarinet quintet. Brahms composed this work late in his life; it has an elegiac character and indeed an incredibly poignant final section, leaving the audience in a contemplative mood. Perhaps an unusual choice with which to end the Festival, but a marvellous piece of music and one to reflect on in the coming weeks.
We have enjoyed a wide range of chamber music from the quartet and guest musicians this year, from Purcell to 21st century music, with plenty too from the classical repertoire. To conclude this year’s activities the Festival is hosting a Harp Gala at Theatr Hafren on 30 October. Let us hope that funding is sufficient for the Festival to continue offering top class live music such as this in the years of austerity to come!
Margaret Clennatt
Committee Member