August is always a dry spell for classical music in London. It would be a brief spell after the all night Prom at the Royal Albert Hall, that a return to London would follow a week after this massive event.

This concert from the Belmont Ensemble was on the the much more popular side, essentially all the hits. The utter lack of air-con in St Martin’s made this concert feel like a drag, though the all lady players gave merriment and depth to proceedings. The Arrival of Queen Sheba by Handel is the playfulness you’d expect aside the heights of eloquence. Belmont played with clarity, not to heavy but on the right side of expectations. Bach’s Air on the G String is another eternal trapping from the great mind, clever in its melody, the players didn’t force too much and it went well. Canon in D is simply so overplayed its easy to greatly tire of it. Pachelbel’s one hit wonder (though he wrote more, people!) is a homestay of weddings and other cause for celebrations, its pacing plods, its main theme stutters.

I knew all on the set expect Handel’s Concerto Grosso in A, the first fun find. Not too long in length yet having some exponential ideas, the impact is delightful and often whole hearted. Bach at it again, with Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring perhaps the most touching of the night. I chose this at a family member’s funeral, its meticulous form is other worldly, Belmont giving it their all reaping the rewards. Ending with Summer and Winter from Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons, this is the most gimmicky of the lot. Yet, I grew up with this work and know its value. As the soloist, Helen Davies stood up to the challenge in a fiendish and tricky role. It worked for the most part, one or two passages the ensemble seemed to fall flat, yet this faded. Helen ended covered in sweat, lost in what she had just created from the concerto’s demand.

Listed in the flyer, conductor Peter G Dyson was nowhere to be seen. Was this an add on from previous marketing materials?