On the 30th May, the Bach Akademie Australia (BAA) presented a program centered around composers born in the same year as this orchestra’s namesake, in 1685. Such a list includes the foundational talents of Georg Friedrich Handel, Domenico Scarlatti, and of course J.S. Bach, all born months apart from each other. This was rounded out with the inclusion of Jean-Philippe Rameau, born two years before the other members, in order to represent the French tradition of court music. This program, selected by the ebullient director and principal violinist of BAA, Madeleine Easton, began with Scarlatti’s Salve Regina in A major.
Giuseppe Domenico Scarlatti, an Italian court composer, is largely famous for his 555 sonatas for keyboards which have tormented many an aspirant concert pianist. He was also the son of renowned opera composer Alessandro Scarlatti, whose operatic and orchestral influence can be evidently seen in his son’s work performed by the BAA, Salve Regina in A major, a rarity in Giuseppe’s keyboard heavy cannon. The BAA’s Salve Regina showcased the talents of mezzo-soprano Hannah Fraser, who perhaps did not explore the complete range of expression available in Scarlatti’s heavily inventive work, instead seemingly deciding on a conservative vocal style, a choice which created a strong dynamic between her and the greater orchestra. Her work beautifully displayed Scarlatti’s ability to blend the tones of the voice with an orchestra, ultimately allowing for a greater communicative unity throughout this piece.
Rameau’s Entrée de Polymnie from Les Boréades provided a French touch to this showcase of courtly music. Rameau’s life was marked by sparse achievement until after his 40th birthday, when he was shot into fame after his publication on a treatise on music theory. At 62, Rameau became the Court Composer of King Louis XV and was at the forefront of a consolidation and transformation of traditional western music theory.
The BAA’s selection of both Rameau and his piece Entrée de Polymnie from Les Boréades was a fantastic curatorial choice that enhanced the variety of courtly music displayed within the concert. It was navigated delightfully by bassoonist Ben Hoadley, and the ensemble created a mood of great pastoral serenity. The high strings especially were delicately performed, and the masterful communication between the orchestra led to a tone quality which seemed as though at points it was almost one instrument.
J.S. Bach’s Orchestral Suite No.3 in D Major immediately showcased the brilliance of Bach demonstrating his genius with a quality so superior that it seemed almost effortless or absolutely natural in comparison to the previous works. Bach’s life was marked by endless invention, reworking, and creation, and also great personal tragedy. Eleven of his children and his first wife all died before him. He was once jailed for insubordination and went blind towards the end of his life, an affliction which his attempts to rectify ultimately led to his death. It is notable that his eye surgeon, John Taylor, was a charlatan who’s surgery might have also led to the death of another member of the ‘Class of 85’, George Friedrich Handel.
Bachs’ Orchestral work did not go to waste in the hands of the BAA. Through brilliant ensemble coordination and communication, the suite’s virtues were made to shine. This was particularly notable due to the expertise again of the string section, who bobbed and jumped along through the faster movements. The second movement’s soft beauty was emphasised greatly within the ensemble through its’ communication and the leadership of principal violinist Madeleine Easton.
Next came the interval in which I walked about the venue, St James Church in the city. A quaint old place with many epitaphs on its walls for the 3rd sons of minor English lords, who were sent to Australia to brush them out of the way and met their final fate only after unleashing some further colonial hell upon the First Nations here. Upon seeing these names it seemed something out of Joseph Conrad, these germs of empires here to ever be remembered in some small sepulchral corner of Sydney. It too seemed to bend my perception of the music I had just heard into something almost absurd, startlingly stark against the history of this place, of Sydney and of Australia at large also. Before I could consider this any longer the interval ended, and the interlopers dawdled back to their seats.
After this came the Concerto Grosso No. 7 of Handel, a German-British court composer and the final member of the Class of 85’s showcase. Handel is known for his developments in Italian styles of opera, and his prolific composition of small ensemble works.
The BAA’s rendition of Handel’s Concerto Grosso No. 7 was largely unremarkable, rather settling into conventional renditions of the work. There were some moments of note, especially the descending motifs throughout the overture.
Bach then again returned with the triumphant Cantata Non sa che sia dolore, once again showcasing both his genius and the capabilities of every instrument within the orchestra. Notable especially were the performances of flautist Mikaela Oberg, who’s delightful flute darted between the various registers balanced between the upper and lower strings, and the soprano Susannah Lawergen, whose brilliant and emotive flashes showed to full effect a creative interpretation of Bach which brought both her individual emotion to the forefront while serving still to uphold Bachs’ compositional mastery.
The program, deftly chosen of both minor and major works from these composers, was a delight to watch. I stepped out into the cold Sydney air with the music still ringing warmly in my ears.
