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On a cold and snowy night in York, a select yet healthy audience were in attendance for a wonderful display of Early Music. The excellent acoustic of the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall was the setting for a performance from The Division Lobby, a small ensemble exploring the rich and varied improvisation techniques that were developed throughout 17th Century Italy by the finest musicians working in the Church, Courts and noble houses. The ensemble bring the spontaneity of the creation of this music to the stage, delving into this neglected performance practice, deriving their improvisations from sketches and skeletal scores. They have become nationally renowned, with a recent BBC Radio 3 Early Music Show devoting a entire programme to the group.
The Programme started off with a rousing sinfonia written by the German- Italian composer Johann Hieronymus Kapsberger, showcasing all eight players. From this point already, the virtuosic baroque playing we were about to experience was becoming clear. Throughout the concert, the ensemble’s leader Paula Chateaneuf gave interesting insights into the concept of this performance practice and how they improvised by developing slow melodies into runs of short notes, known as division playing.
All the music was highly demanding, and the virtuosity of the individual players deserves a mention. The improvisation on Aria Di Firenze for two harpsichords was particularly impressive with both instrumentalists adding many embellished scalic runs, with what seemed to be relative ease.
The second half, started off once again with eight performers on display with another Kapsberger sinfonia. Of particular note in this piece were the high and quick moving parts in the cornetto lines (an early form of a trumpet but with key holes rather than valves). Following an improvised organ toccata filled with melodic flourishes, came a work written for two cornetti; Jamie Savan and Josue Melendez brought out the many qualities of the cornetto with wonderful articulation and phrasing.
As we approached the end of the concert we were given a breath taking chitarrone toccata from Elizabeth Kenny, who was gracefully accompanied on the Harpsichord by Giulia Nuti. A lighthearted approach was added to proceedings during the toccata with a brief improvised passage centred around the tune ‘The Grand Old Duke of York,’ drawing laughs from both the on looking performers and audience alike.
A final foray from all the players with the piece Passamezzo antico brought the concert to a close. The improvisation in this final piece became extremely fast and included many ornate and impressive melodic runs in the violins, pushing the cornetti players’ no doubt tired lips to the limit in the high register.
This wonderful finale capped off what proved to be a brilliant concert. It was great to see how the performers all appreciated one another’s talents and gelled together to form such a tight knit and virtuosic ensemble. It is safe to say that a very appreciative audience went home happy!
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