JOY TO THE WORLD

JOY TO THE WORLD

Chelmsford Singers at St John the Baptist Danbury

20.12.2014

Making his first visit to the Church on the Hill, James Davy proved a genial host for this seasonal mix of old and new.

Beginning with a spectacular setting of Joy to the World from the choir, sounding fresh and enthusiastic in the charming, if slightly chilly, church. Other choral highlights were a crisply sung Sir Christemas, Sund's tender Newborn Child [sung in the original Swedish] and the timeless simplicity of Davy's own arrangement of There Is No Rose, an English carol almost as ancient as this medieval building.

The pews were packed; the congregational singing was impressive, too, joining the choir in a suitably schmaltzy version of White Christmas, and John Rutter's imaginative I Saw Three Ships, with tuneful whistling from the assembled gentlemen Josephs.

Weston Jennings, accompanying on piano and organ, gave us a Baroque Pastorale solo, and there were readings from Dylan Thomas and Robert Bridges, whose Christmas Eve 1913 seemed especially appropriate for this country church.

The old words came to me

by the riches of time

Mellow’d and transfigured

as I stood on the hill

Heark’ning in the aspect

of th’ eternal silence.

THE ARMSTRONG GIBBS FESTIVAL

THE  GIBBS MUSIC FESTIVAL 2014

at St John Baptist, Danbury

20.09.2014

An intriguingly eclectic programme for the keynote concert of this year's Festival, the fourth celebrating the work of this 20^th Century Essex composer.

The central work is Armstrong Gibbs String Quartet in G Minor, known as Kenilworth. It dates from his wartime exile in the Lakes, and has a very English feel, especially in the folk-inspired Vivace. Echoes of Elgar in the Lento, shades of RVW in the finale, where the Maestoso theme is re-stated. Played with passion and insight by Robert Atchison and David Jones from the London Piano Trio [the go-to-guys for Gibbs chamber works], with Jacqueline Hartley, violin, and Bill Hawkes, viola.

The programme ended with an energetic reading of Dvorak's much-loved Second Piano Quintet [Olga Dudnik at the piano], but it began with something much more arcane – 1919, by Ryuichi Sakamoto: six movements from his album 1996, for Piano Trio. Pretty certain I wasn't alone in not knowing what to expect. Turned out to be very enjoyable versions of his melodious movie minimalist hits, including Oscar-winning Merry Christmas Mr Lawrence, Rain, from The Last Emperor, and The Sheltering Sky, with haunting romantic lines for the strings.

This year's Festival has also featured Tea With Dr Gibbs [with soprano and pianoforte], a new eco-opera for children, a book launch and a Flute and Piano recital by Kia Bennett and Tim Carey, including a Suite by Armstrong Gibbs, two of his piano postcards from the Lake District, and a substantial sonata by the “English Rachmaninov”, Gibbs' contemporary Edwin York Bowen.

Two years to wait for the next Festival in Danbury, but you can hear Tim and Kia's programme again this Friday, 26 September, in a lunchtime concert at St Thomas, Brentwood.

ARMSTRONG GIBBS FESTIVAL

ARMSTRONG GIBBS FESTIVAL

St John's Church, Danbury

15.09.12

For the third of these biennial celebrations, Festival Director Robert Atchison brought his acclaimed London Piano Trio to the Parish Church in Danbury, where the composer lies buried.

With Olga Dudnik, piano, and David Jones, cello, he chose for this year the Yorkshire Dales Trio: very English music, evocative of a landscape Gibbs knew well, Walden, with a folk-song feel to its melodic line, the mournful Whernside, and a dancing Vivace for Woodale. Beautifully crafted for this intimate combination, and played with affection and attention to detail.

They were joined by William Hawkes, viola, for Mozart's first Piano Quartet with its exuberant finale, and by Christopher Laurence, bass, for Schubert's ever-popular Piano Quintet in A. In the Variations which give it its name, the trout stream was not particularly fast-flowing, but agreeably limpid with no shortage of sparkle.

This enterprising Festival also included a church service, a lunch, and an organ recital, in which Gillian Ward Russell sashayed down the aisle for a fascinating programme of works inspired by the dance, from Susato's Mohrentanz to Rawsthorn's catchy Dance Suite, with more than a hint of the fairground. Three Sketches by Armstrong Gibbs afforded a moment or two of quiet contemplation amongst the jigs and gavottes.

ARMSTRONG GIBBS FESTIVAL

St John Baptist Danbury

10.09.10

Last weekend saw the second festival to celebrate the work of C Armstrong Gibbs. Centred, appropriately, around the Danbury Church where Gibbs lies buried, and where he made music for many years.

The Festival began with a recital by the Griffin sisters, including some of the charming miniatures for which Gibbs is now best known. Lara gave us the Four Preludes, with a lovely evocation of water in The Trout Pool, and she was joined by Emma on clarinet for Three Pieces, including the pastoral Air, which, as she said, could well be a painting in music of the view over Danbury Common.

Festival Director Robert Atchison, a busy concert violinist and conductor on the international scene, was soloist in the Vivaldi Four Seasons in the Festival Concert, and also in Gibbs' Spring Garland. There was also an impressive performance of his little-known Concertino with Olda Dudnik as soloist.

There was also a successful Children's Concert, conducted by Simon Warne and featuring the talents of young musicians from Sandon School and Danbury Primary Schools, alongside Atchison's renowned London Piano Trio.

In the last of the summer sunshine, we gathered in the church for the final event: Choral Evensong with the St John's Singers and Paul Hagger at the organ. We heard Canticles set by Armstrong Gibbs, and sang his lovely hymn-tune, Lingwood.

photo of rehearsal for Festival Concert courtesy of Robert Atchison