1st concert:
(3 / 5)

2nd concert:
(4 / 5)

3rd concert

(4 / 5)

To experience Bach Brandenburg Concertos in one day is formidable. Only once before have I heard it live, Florilegium in Cardiff back in 2018, notably we heard them in in descending order. You are easily won over by its pristine harmony, the playful sport within its players, the cleverness of the whole thing. Few would deny Bach’s genius, this is a fine example of it. Yet would the allure be kept spread out over a day?

Chamber Domaine has done just that with three concerts at Wigmore Hall. We are also treated to living composers who have reacted to these concertos and their impact on composition. Luke Styles and his ‘A Brandenburg’ is essentially just an arrangement of Bach’s eternal Toccata and Fugue. It’s all there and the frilly addition of ornament question if this can be regarded as a whole new composition.

We then lead into the Brandenburg Concerto No 1, our first of six on this day. I wouldn’t say this is the best out of the set, there are charming passages and the players feel like they are warming into the whole venture. Conductor Thomas Kemp leads with a lucid control, that  much is known. This short opener ended with ‘Sequel’ by Brian Elias. Written in 2020, to Taylor this was a world away from what we had just heard, its instrumentation remained the same as the concertos. Irregular rhythms and an all round sense of unease permeated the work, Sarah Burnett got intense bassoon solos and the harpsichord worked particularly well in the concoction. Amazing how different a sound can be.

A two and a half hour rest saw a return of the 2nd Brandenburg Concerto. Trumpeter Alison Alty gets many delights in a soaring solo, high and mighty. I imagine this is not easy to play, there may have been some scratches, but was mainly delightful. Purist would scoff at the inclusion of new work interspersed through some of the concertos. Aaron Holloway-Nahum added more atmosphere with ‘as the soul recedes in what the years bring’. The harpsichord strings got stroked in this solemn piece.

Michael Price and The Malling Diamond gave Alty got more special, sweet writing, following with the glowing notes Deborah Pritchard’s sacred offering of her Illumination. Zoë Martlew had the most evocative selection with Bacharolle. With humming and whistling, steamy pizzicato and the ghost of Bach haunting the space. I was impressed with this most. With the Third Brandenburg Concerto, entirely stings with harpsichord, this is more famous and endearing than the past two. Perhaps the most condensed, its clarity unwavering, the mood chirpy and heartfelt.

An even bigger break, would then see a final evening concert to conclude both the old and new together. Fatigue had kicked in by the night and I’m having a hard time trying to recollect Daniel Kidane and his Concerto Grosso. I’m recalling flair and fun, some audience members seemed irked by its nature. The fourth Brandenburg Concerto had alluring recorders thanks to the celestial efforts of Louise Bradbury and Annabel Knight. They really are a fine addition, adding to the pot harmonies of great respelandance.

Florence Anna Maunders really got the memo in writing for these specific instruments. The earthy sinew of her Big Koncher’ah was very telling, Paul Edmund-Davies on flute was a fiery performance, many attacks and trills for the eternal woodwind. The fifth concerto might be the most famous, on harpsichord Sophia Rahman had brows held high for her glorious solo (I’ve always marvelled at Karl Richter’s take). For me, this is the defining moment of the set.

Joseph Phibbs and Bach Shadows went both ways in music making, traditional and experimental. I think I saw Kepm blow a partly whistle. Fun all round. We hear bird song in tape before going into Gold and Precious Silver by Stevie Wishart. Not quite as attentive as I’d have thought, this would be last newer work in a telling selection of today’s composers reacting to Bach. The sixth Brandenburg Concerto is maybe the most refined, just for stings. Lead violin Tom Pigott-Simith held great swavs of momentum in tiny solos, quivering tremeloes and a ringing vitality throughout the day. It was quite an achievement hearing all this music in a day. The adjustments to the stage were also considerable as Thomas Kemp, the musicians and stage hands all frequently altered the changing space.

A pleasure to have spent a day with these musicians.