In William Walton's Belshazzar's Feast, if you are going to have two brass bands in addition to a double chorus and large orchestra, you may as well as the have the best bass-baritone soloist you can find: Sir Bryn Terfel. The Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra literally pulled out all the stops for their performance to conclude the evening in the Philharmonic Hall.
Beginning was Anna Meredith’s Nautilus. Written in 2011 for electronics and rescored in 2021, this quasi-minimalist piece, with echoes of John Adams in terms of texture, timbre and musical development, provided a curious and refreshing opener. Conductor Adam Hickox handled this piece, with its changes of metre, with absolute confidence. This accessible six-minute work was deservedly well received.
Joining the orchestra and Hickox next was violinist Ning Feng for a performance of that crowd-pleaser, Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto. Playing his “Vieuxtemps Hauser” Stradivarius, the tone was a little inconsistent across the range; on the E string the tone was beautiful, contrasting with the G string which is where the real richness and depth of colour was. Feng generally took the three movements briskly, although the first movement focused more on the molto appassionato than Allegro.
Hickox allowed the RLPO to shine in their episodes, but they were very much overshadowed by Feng who, although technically flawless, used the concerto as a showcase for his undoubted virtuosity; this wasn’t really a musical partnership. A very impressed audience wouldn’t allow Feng to leave without an encore, which they got in the form of Paganini’s Caprice no. 1.
After the interval, the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Choir were mostly in fine voice in Walton's cantata. In the opening verse, the tenors and basses, despite their smaller number, made a strong opening, with clear diction and a pleasing tone. When the sopranos entered, their tone sadly failed to match that of the lower voices. This happened on several occasions, but by the end of the work they had certainly found their voices.
Terfel was not only a formidable orator of the piece; he gave a real characterisation, bringing his larger than life personality to Walton's work. With great enthusiasm and projection Terfel was very much the star of the night. When needed, he brought subtlety and expression, flawless diction and intonation, and the warmth of his voice was everything we’ve come to expect from him.
Hickox did an admirable job, his vision for the work clear and convincing. His conducting of the choir was incredibly clear and RLPC followed him wholeheartedly. They were well rehearsed and throughly prepared, however there were the occasional moments the orchestra overpowered them, which was slightly disappointing given the strength of the interpretation. The two brass bands were placed in boxes at opposite sides of the auditorium, which helped distinguish their roles with insight and vision.
The evening concluded with a rendition – in both Welsh and English – of Happy Birthday. Terfel looked humbled, but what better way to spend your birthday? Pen-blwydd Hapus, Bryn!
