Waverley Singers

"Waverley Singers in Splendid Voice"

The following review by John Bawden appeared in The Herald newspaper on 15 November 2013:

On Saturday, November 2, in Guildford Cathedral, the Waverley Singers presented an attractive programme of music by three great masters - Beethoven, Brahms, and Mozart - all of which dealt in dramatic terms with the human response to the hand of fate.

The concert began with Beethoven's Coriolan overture. In just 8 minutes the music portrays the tragedy of Heinrich von Collin’s Shakespeare-based play with jabbing chords, tense silences and, in stark contrast, a tender lyrical second theme. The concentrated drama of this, one of Beethoven's greatest short orchestral works, was fully conveyed by the excellent playing of the Brandenburg Sinfonia.

Like the Beethoven overture, Brahms Schicksallied (Song of Destiny) is a work of marked contrasts. A serene orchestral introduction was beautifully captured by the Sinfonia, and then matched by the warm tone and finely judged phrasing of the Waverley Singers. Although there was a little uncertainty in the tricky transition to the turbulent central section, the committed singing that followed was absolutely gripping.

The main work of the evening was Mozart's Requiem. To be truly effective, a performance of this music needs to embrace its operatic qualities, and in dramatic sections such as the Dies Irae and Confutatis, choir and orchestra rose superbly to this challenge. Powerful fortes - aided in no small measure by the outstanding playing of the Sinfonia's timpanist - were contrasted with hushed pianos, and the impact was tremendous. Less successful, though, were the more reflective passages in the score, which needed a little more poise, more space to breathe, which the slightly hurried tempi did not always allow. This was most noticeable in the Benedictus, which was nevertheless beautifully sung by the excellent quartet of young soloists.

One of the highlights of the evening was the heartfelt Lacrimosa, which received a compelling and sensitively phrased interpretation. Throughout, the Waverley Singers' fine total quality and well drilled attention to detail, and the first class playing of the Brandenburg Sinfonia, made for an excellent concert.