Retrospect Trio, Julia Doyle, Wigmore Hall | reviews, news & interviews
Retrospect Trio, Julia Doyle, Wigmore Hall
Retrospect Trio, Julia Doyle, Wigmore Hall
A young ensemble make a mature statement with Purcell's chamber music
Tuesday, 15 February 2011
Julia Doyle: Musicianship of almost too faultless assurance
Their record label describes them rather laboriously as “a Baroque super-group of four superstar Baroque instrumentalists”, but the Retrospect Trio don’t need any fancy titles to prove their quality. Bringing together violinists Sophie Gent and Matthew Truscott (leader of the OAE) and Jonathan Manson on bass viol (principal cello of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra) under the direction of young harpsichordist Matthew Halls, this ensemble is all about unshowy musicianship. Joined last night by soprano Julia Doyle they offered up some of the best Purcell London is likely to see this year – with performances from Mark Padmore and the Britten Sinfonia, not to mention Scholl, Jaroussky and Ensemble Artaserse still fresh in the ears, that’s saying something.
Their record label describes them rather laboriously as “a Baroque super-group of four superstar Baroque instrumentalists”, but the Retrospect Trio don’t need any fancy titles to prove their quality. Bringing together violinists Sophie Gent and Matthew Truscott (leader of the OAE) and Jonathan Manson on bass viol (principal cello of the Amsterdam Baroque Orchestra) under the direction of young harpsichordist Matthew Halls, this ensemble is all about unshowy musicianship. Joined last night by soprano Julia Doyle they offered up some of the best Purcell London is likely to see this year – with performances from Mark Padmore and the Britten Sinfonia, not to mention Scholl, Jaroussky and Ensemble Artaserse still fresh in the ears, that’s saying something.
Stripping back harmonic flesh to expose the grind and tumble of joints beneath, this is music that crunches in the ear and prickles on the tongue
Explore topics
Share this article
Add comment
Subscribe to theartsdesk.com
Thank you for continuing to read our work on theartsdesk.com. For unlimited access to every article in its entirety, including our archive of more than 15,000 pieces, we're asking for £5 per month or £40 per year. We feel it's a very good deal, and hope you do too.
To take a subscription now simply click here.
And if you're looking for that extra gift for a friend or family member, why not treat them to a theartsdesk.com gift subscription?
more Classical music
Kolesnikov, Hallé, Elts, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - the dude who dazzles
Fun French music forms a foil to naked, virtuoso pianism
Fauré Centenary Concert 5, Wigmore Hall review - a final flight
The master of levitation in transcendent performances from Steven Isserlis and friends
Ohlsson, BBC Philharmonic, Storgårds, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - grace and power in Brahms
A time-travelling journey through the Austro-German Romantic tradition
Fauré Centenary Concert 1, Wigmore Hall review - Isserlis and friends soar
Saint-Saëns is no also-ran in the opening event of a wondrous homage
'His ideal worlds embraced me with their light and love': violinist Irène Duval on the music of Fauré
On the centenary of the great French composer's death, a fine interpreter pays homage
Aci, Galatea e Polifemo, La Nuova Musica, Bates, Wigmore Hall review - thrilling Handel at full throttle
Vibrant rendering filled with passion and delight
Hallé, Wong, Bridgewater Hall, Manchester review - Bruckner’s Ninth completed
Kahchun Wong takes Manchester audience on an epic journey
The Orchestral Forest, Smith Square Hall review - living the orchestra from the inside
Immersive concert explores the plight of the British rainforest through music
Classical CDs: Leaves, prisms and sub-bass
A great pianist bows out, plus two cello discs and a new organ's first outing
First Person: Bob Riley on Manchester Camerata's championship of a Centre of Excellence for Music and Dementia
Making a difference out of the musical ghetto
Aurora Orchestra, Collon, Drumsheds review - surround-sound magic in the super-club
On a vast dancefloor, the chance to listen from inside the orchestra
Kaleidoscope Chamber Collective, Wigmore Hall review - warm and colourful Bartók and Brahms
Versatile chamber ensemble excels in clarinet-focused repertoire
Comments
...
...