BREMF –Les Caractères de l’Amour – BREMF Emerging Artists, Ensemble Molière, BREMF Players, Satoko Doi-Luck & John Hancorn (directors)

Quality always tells and Ensemble Molière is pure quality. BREMF stalwarts, they opened this year’s festival with a delightful selection of dances from Rameau’s operas Dardanus and Les Indes galantes, freshly realised by Satoko Doi-Luck, directing immaculately from her harpsichord. Flavia Hirte’s seductive flute and Alice Earll’s sensuous violin led with the tunes above responsive support from Catriona McDermid on bassoon and Kate Conway’s viola da gamba. These charming instrumental movements were balanced either side of the fine bass voice of Henry Saywell expounding Rameau’s wise appraisal of the gods’ petty rivalry for the lovely Thétis. A whole hour of Rameau passed so lightly it seemed almost too quick, such is the magic of a beautifully chosen programme.

Ensemble Molière was then joined by the formidably accomplished Alison Bury and the local ensemble, BREMF Players with the Baroque Collective Singers, to perform the UK première of Mademoiselle Duval’s Les Génies ou Les Caractères de l’Amour. A series of cautionary tales of love sung by more talented soloists from the BREMF Emerging Artists scheme. The Prologue was delivered in clarion tones by baritone Allyn Wu in the rôle of Zoroastre. He projected magisterially across his score, initiating a strong sense of drama. Sopranos Harriet Cameron & Laura Coppinger merrily portrayed goddesses, nymphs and sylphs encountering ‘indiscreet love’, ‘ambitious love’ and ‘light love’ in Acts 1, 2 & 4 from the opera with tenor Richard Jackson their hapless suitor. As before with Henry Saywell, the surtitles displayed clearly the translations while the music and the voices beautifully expressed the pace and emotions. Some play with camouflaging branches and a selection of Carnival masks provided all the stagecraft required for this concert performance.

I had been worried because my niece, Tara, had asked to accompany me to the opera and refined Baroquery might not be everyone’s immediate choice for a first timer. No problem – although it didn’t actually deliver the “excitement and splendour of Enlightenment Paris” as promised in the programme notes, it was still thoroughly enchanting and a musical triumph. Tara was completely captivated and observed that she had never sat so still before in her life!

St Martin’s Church,
10 October 2024

Rating:

BREMF Emerging Artists vocal soloists:
Harriet Cameron & Laura Coppinger sopranos
Richard Jackson tenor; Allyn Wu baritone
Henry Saywell bass

Ensemble Molière
Flavia Hirte (flute); Alice Earll (violin); Catriona McDermid (bassoon);
Kate Conway (viola da gamba); Satoko Doi-Luck (harpsichord)

BREMF Players
Alison Bury leader
Baroque Collective Singers
John Hancorn conductor
Satoko Doi-Luck orchestrator

Jean-Philippe Rameau – 1683-1764
 Suite from Dardanus
    Excerpts from Thétis
    Suite from Les Indes galantes

Mademoiselle Duval – c.1718-c.1775
Les Génies ou Les Caractères de l’Amour