Midsummer Festival review: Wonderful reworking of Vivaldi's Four Seasons at Opera House
Eloisa-Fleur Thom and 12 Ensemble at Cork Opera House for Max Richter Recomposed, part of Cork Midsummer Festival. Picture: Jed Niezgoda
★★★★☆
The Four Seasons, composed by Vivaldi c.1720 is a seminal work from the Baroque era, that European style of the 17th & 18th centuries characterised by ornate details and layers of flourishings.
In architecture think Palace of Versailles. In music think Bach & Vivaldi, both of whom Max Richter cites as his earliest influences, from the age of 3 when his family moved from Germany to Bedford in England. Later adolescent influences would be electronic music building his own basic music synthesiser; and the Bedford live music and punk scene - think Cork city in the late 1970s. And then, possibly most significant of all, the minimalism and modernism of post-classical music - think Philip Glass.
Vivaldi’s original masterwork is a universally known and loved standard of popular classical music. In reworking this 300-year-old masterpiece through the modem of modern classical music, Richter wanted to reconnect with his personal boyhood joy and affection for the original work, to reclaim it from the jaded world of advertising and telephone tones.
‘Recomposed’ exists in two arrangements for Stringed Orchestras, one which includes Electronic Instrumentation and one without. It is the acoustic arrangement that audience at the Cork Opera House enjoyed on this magical Midsummer evening. This performance by the 12 Ensemble was well attended and there was much enthusiastic applause throughout. The young and genial virtuosos smiled, but only took their bow after the final movement of the final Season; at which point the audience responded with a standing ovation, and rightly so.
The 12 Ensemble are a dynamic collective of young musicians formed in 2012 by the lead violinist Eloisa-Fleur Thom, and Max Ruisi. The core group of 12 musicians have established a reputation for exhilarating performances and collaborations with contemporary artists such as Nick Cave, Jonny Greenwood and The National. With such an impressive track record, the music of Vivaldi and Richter are in good hands.
Dressed in simple black, the 20-strong orchestra filled the wide stage. Almost-imperceptible changes of deep hues above framed the music and the musicians perfectly. The lead violinist was out front of the harpsichord and the group of cellos and bass; marshalled on the left and right flanks were the violins and violas. Also on the right, the gigantic harp which only rarely rose to carry a lead melody.
With so much firepower in the ranks of violins and violas there was more bandwidth for those modern loops and phasing. More leaves whirling longer and further in Winter. More sonic butterflies in Summer. At times late in each movement the musicians seem to the jamming on those 300-hundred-year-old riffs. Finding the groove and the driving, incessant rhythm of time passing. The interplay between the high and exquisite tone of the lead violin with the harpsichord and the deeper tones of the viola and cellos were moments of delight, with some gypsy slides thrown in for good measure.
Was that the musician herself? Was that Richter? Was that Vivaldi? Was that wonderful? I can answer that last one for certain - yes. Baroque or Modern? Both. ‘Vivre La Difference’ and curiosity of comparison.
The hour long performance concluded with an evocative performance of Richter’s ‘On the Nature of Daylight’, a musical meditation. On the day of Summer Solstice - this was a perfectly timed programme; the musical zenith of Cork Midsummer Festival.
