Monday, 25 July, 2022

On 25 July, 2022, the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment performed 17^th and 18^th century music at Oxford Town Hall. This enchanting evening brought to a close the Botanic Garden's year of celebrations, and marked the day on which, 400 years ago, the founding stone was laid and botanical sciences in Oxford began.

At this time, music was commonly written as accompaniment to theatrical performances and dances, with the motifs representing specific elements of a scene. Program music follows this compositional style, with some of the most iconic pieces from this era featured in this spectacular concert.

Seasons of Enchantment

• Antonio Vivaldi: The Four Seasons
• Francesco Geminiani: The Enchanted Forest
  
  Leader / Soloist: Matthew Truscott

Though the idea of program music was still very new at the time, Vivaldi's Four Seasons is especially characteristic with its evocative sonnets (which Vivaldi himself likely wrote) accompanying each movement. The lyrical performance by the OAE reflected every detail recited by narrator, Daniel Bates.

The first stanza begins, 'Festive Spring has arrived', and the OAE opened the first movement with the clarity and crispness of a bright, spring day. The 20 musicians in this Baroque ensemble filled the hall with a sound as rich as a full-bodied orchestra.

The violins then lead in an imitation of birdsong, playing trills that fluttered, danced, and reverberated around the ornate, domed ceiling of the Victorian building. The hall awash with colour, this was a multi-sensory experience of sight and sound. The combination felt immersive, and drew the mind's eye to the imagery of the sonnets.

When the orchestra rejoined, they conveyed the flowing stream with expressive dynamics, ebbing and flowing in unison, and sweeping the hall along in their powerful current. As thunder rolled in with a low tremolo buzzing furiously, and lightning with swiftly ascending scales, the sensational virtuosity of the soloist, Matthew Truscott, emerged with dexterous arpeggios captivating attention in all the drama of the storm.

Matthew is a versatile violinist who shares his time between period instrument music and ‘modern’ performance, having appeared alongside some of the finest musicians in both fields. He has directed orchestral performances in venues around the world, including Carnegie Hall, Amsterdam Concertgebouw, Berlin Philharmonie, Vienna Musikverein, Hamburg Elbphilharmonie and at the Royal Festival Hall and BBC Proms in London.

With musicians of such calibre getting the very best out of the historic instruments they play, it is of no surprise that just midway through the first movement it became clear this concert was something special. The sound was as immediately extraordinary as the players' expressive proficiency: the period instruments possessed a remarkable timbre that breathed new life into Vivaldi's most-loved works.

As the movement progressed, the storm quietened, giving way to the sweet murmur of leaves and plants. Here, the orchestra lulled the audience into a dreaming world, playing softly as the goatherd sleeps. The fine detail and close correlation between the musical and poetic passages, allegro, largo, allegro, elucidated exactly what it was about spring that Vivaldi's work intended to evoke.

Delightfully, the movement ends with a festive dance in celebration of Spring's brilliant appearance: an apt and charming introduction that set the mood for the rest of the evening in celebrating the UK's oldest botanic garden.

The Four Seasons

La Primavera (Spring)

I. Allegro
Festive Spring has arrived,
The birds salute it with their happy song.
And the brooks, caressed by little Zephyrs,
Flow with a sweet murmur.
The sky is covered with a black mantle,
And thunder, and lightning, announce a storm.
When they are silent, the birds
Return to sing their lovely song.

II. Largo e pianissimo sempre--
And in the meadow, rich with flowers,
To the sweet murmur of leaves and plants,
The goatherd sleeps, with his faithful dog at his side.

III. Danza pastorale. Allegro--
To the festive sound of pastoral bagpipes,
Dance nymphs and shepherds,
At Spring's brilliant appearance.

L'Estate (Summer)

I. Allegro non molto--
Under the heat of the burning summer sun,
Languish man and flock; the pine is parched.
The cuckoo finds its voice, and suddenly,
The turtledove and goldfinch sing.
A gentle breeze blows,
But suddenly, the north wind appears.
The shepherd weeps because, overhead,
Lies the fierce storm, and his destiny.

II. Adagio; Presto--
His tired limbs are deprived of rest
By his fear of lightning and fierce thunder,
And by furious swarms of flies and hornets.

III. Presto--
Alas, how just are his fears,
Thunder and lightening fill the Heavens, and the hail
Slices the tops of the corn and other grain.

L'Autunno (Autumn)

I. Allegro--
The peasants celebrate with dance and song,
The joy of a rich harvest.
And, full of Bacchus's liquor,
They finish their celebration with sleep.

II. Adagio molto--
Each peasant ceases his dance and song.
The mild air gives pleasure,
And the season invites many
To enjoy a sweet slumber.

III. Allegro--
The hunters, at the break of dawn, go to the hunt.
With horns, guns, and dogs they are off,
The beast flees, and they follow its trail.
Already fearful and exhausted by the great noise,
Of guns and dogs, and wounded,
The exhausted beast tries to flee, but dies.

L'Inverno (Winter)

I. Allegro non molto--
Frozen and trembling in the icy snow,
In the severe blast of the horrible wind,
As we run, we constantly stamp our feet,
And our teeth chatter in the cold.

II. Largo--
To spend happy and quiet days near the fire,
While, outside, the rain soaks hundreds.

III. Allegro--
We walk on the ice with slow steps,
And tread carefully, for fear of falling.
Symphony, If we go quickly, we slip and fall to the ground.
Again we run on the ice,
Until it cracks and opens.
We hear, from closed doors,
Sirocco, Boreas, and all the winds in battle.
This is winter, but it brings joy.

This concert formed part of the Oxford Festival of the Arts, 2022.