Sydney Festival: Temperament series | Australian Brandenburg Orchestra: Bach and the Artists

27 January, 2024, The Neilson, Pier 2/3, Walsh Bay

The Sydney festival is presenting an interesting series of seven concerts, broadly based around the music of JS Bach. In this, the fifth of these concerts, Paul Dyer and the Australian Brandenburg Orchestra and Choir presented an all-Bach program in conjunction with French dancer and painter Silvère Jarrosson, who, in direct response to the musical performances, created a work of art on stage.

The solos in the program (below) were beautifully played on original instruments by each of the members of the ensemble. These are some of Sydney’s finest early music instrumentalists. Paul Dyer on harpsichord (and continuo organ), Melissa Farrow on baroque flute, Shaun Lee-Chen, Matthew Bruce and Ben Dollman on violin, Monique O’Dea on her rich warm viola, Jamie Hey on his fretted cello and Tommie Anderson on the gentle gallichon, all played with consummate skill and musical refinement.

There were also full ensemble pieces. All the tutti works were of an impressively high musical standard, well balanced and rhythmically tight. The choral performances (both accompanied and unaccompanied) from this band of highly trained voices were equally disciplined and well balanced. Dyer’s leadership of the voices was appropriately restrained, clear and well focused, producing a lush texture from this relatively small ensemble of eight highly professional choristers.

While such musical splendour was going on, Jarrosson created his artwork by pouring large amounts of paint onto the canvas, and then tilting it up allowing the paint to run, and then layering different colours on top of each other. No brushwork involved. Lots of paint dripping from the canvas wound up on the carpet which added another interesting dimension.

Sometimes visual actions during a musical performance can seriously distract the audience from the music, effectively making it background. This was the case with the acrobatics in Opera Australia’s recent production of Gluck’s Orpheus and Eurydice. Of course Bach’s music does not need any supporting visual entertainment and I had some initial reticence about having the proposed action on stage. I need not have worried. Jarrosson, who was previously a dancer with the Opéra National de Paris, was smooth and gentle in his onstage movements. This allowed the concentration of the audience to move seamlessly between the music and the progress of the artwork. The two complemented each other with ease. The flow of the layered colours was in accord with the lyricism of Bach’s music. See the photo of the resultant work of art.

The high standard of musical performance, excellent choice of music and Dyer’s incisive leadership made this concert a delight, with a visual bonus.

PROGRAM

J.S. Bach
Prelude No.1in C major, BWV 846
The Well-Tempered Clavier, Book1

Allegro assai
Sonata No.3 in C major for solo violin BWV 1005

Andante
Sonata in E minor for flute and continuo, BWE 1034

Chorale: ‘In dulci jubilo’ (In sweet rejoicing), BWV 368

Courante and Bourée I
Suite No.3 in C major for solo cello, BWV 1009

Chorale: ‘Drum So laut uns immerdar wachen’ (Therefore let us always be awake) from Cantata – ‘Mache dich, mein Geist, bereit’ (Make yourself ready, my spirit), BWV 115

Double (Sarabande)
Partita No.1 in B minor for solo violin, BWV 1002 (transcribed for viola in E minor)

Opening Chorale from Motet -“Jesu, meine freude’ (Jesus, my joy), BWV 227

Preludio
Partita No.3 in E major for solo violin, BWV 1006

Chorale – ‘Nun ruhen alle Wälder’ (Now all the woods are sleeping), BWV 392

Bourée Anglaise
Partita in A minor for solo flute, BWV 1013

Double (Sarabande)
Partita No.1 in B minor for solo violin, BWV 1002 (transcribed for gallichon)

Chorale: ‘Lob sei Gott, dem Vater, ton’ (Praise be given to God, the father) from Cantata – “Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland’ (Now come, Saviour of the Gentiles), BWV 62

Gigue
Partita No.3 in E major for solo violin, BWV 1006

Chorale: ‘Herr, ich hoff’ (Lord I hope) from Cantata – ‘Erwünschtes Freudenlicht’ (Welcome light of joy), BWV 184

Adagio
Sonata in G minor for violin and continuo, BWV 1021

Chorale: ‘Jesus bleibet meine Freude’ from Cantata – ‘Herz und Mund und Tat und Leben’ (Heart and mouth and deeth and life), BWV 149