Ensemble Correspondances: Music From The Court of Louis XIII

The beautiful setting of Glyndebourne is undoubtedly a jewel in our countryside and the fine acoustics of the opera house equally special. What more could one hope for a visiting ensemble? In many ways it was a perfect marriage, but one could not help thinking that it might have worked better in a more intimate setting and with less pious reverence from the audience. Waiting for the very end of each of the two halves of the concert to applaud made the programme drag somewhat and this was not helped by the steady pace of the chosen programme. It was beautifully played, beautifully sung and… well in my view came across as rather academic.

In the second half the mood was lifted by a more varied collection of works, varied in both pace and mood and by the end my interest in the music had lifted from melancholy to a little more joyful. Joyful especially at the first piece of the second half when we were treated to the extraordinary beauty of bass Nicolas Brooymans’ rich solo voice filling every corner of the house. Whilst the musicality of the group was near faultless the balance of the offering was rather flat and not helped by an encore that was equally level in mood. Peppering the performance with much deserved applause might have raised the atmosphere a notch or two and more of Mr Brooymans fabulous voice too!

Brighton Festival

Glyndebourne

5 May

Andrew Kay

Rating: