Britten Sinfonia/Masson/Macgregor/Youssef, Bath Abbey, Bath
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Joanna MacGregor knows how to party, and I'm not just talking about the opening Party in the City for the 60th birthday of the Bath International Music Festival. The whole feel of this year's festival radiates bubbly enjoyment. It is, of course, a celebration of MacGregor's eclectic enthusiasms, with bold mixtures of artists drawn from the widest musical spectrum. Oddly, they sit perfectly in this historic city.
Bath isn't blessed with acoustically faultless buildings, and Bath Abbey is one of the worst. But somehow, a programme of Bach, Messiaen, and a world premiere by Tunisian-born Dhafer Youssef worked splendidly on its own terms. MacGregor was soloist and leader in Bach's D-minor concerto with the Britten Sinfonia strings – and how she radiated her joy. She brings real "swing" to Bach, enjoying the unusual rhythms and "blue" dissonances, pointing effortlessly to the links between centuries ago and today. Her line in the hauntingly beautiful slow movement could have been one long improvisation.
Youssef's Les Ondes Orientales was more of a mixed bag. MacGregor, commissioned by the BBC, invited Youssef to provide a piece allowing the two of them to improvise within a composition for string ensemble. He is both an oud player and an outstanding vocalist. How he achieved such high sounds is a mystery, but the acoustic favoured his fervent cries. Less successful was the piece as a whole, at times aping minimalism, generally slithering around in a globalised cultural soup.
Acoustically, the most mushy was Messiaen's Trois Petites Liturgies de la présence divine, where sound and ensemble began to resemble a John Cage composition, and there was little conductor Diego Masson could do to clear the clouds. The ondes martenot (admirably played by Cynthia Millar) would suddenly emerge far too prominently, as indeed did MacGregor's keyboard. But the Wells Cathedral School Chamber Choir and the Bath Camerata tackled Messiaen's cruelly high and exposed writing with admirable aplomb.
Festival continues to 7 June (01225 463362)
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments