Sumptuous conclusion to high-quality festival

by Colin Burrow, Citizen 17.8.10

Adrian Partington in his first year as artistic director has embellished the festival with programmes of high standard in both content and execution. Here he also conducted the glorious, hard-working Philharmonia Orchestra.

The Overture: Cockaigne pictures Edwardian London. Elgar's brilliant orchestration sounded less smudgy than expected - the Cathedral's notorious reverberation was somewhat tamed by the many rows of additional seating and the capacity audience.  Still though, the strings disappeared at climaxes.

Hubert Parry's music has largely become overshadowed by illustrious successors but has been a feature of this festival. His Ode on the Nativity was first performed at the Hereford festival in 1912.  Like so much of Parry's output, it has long since fallen from favour.  Amanda Roocroft's radiant soprano rose in contrapuntal ornament above the resplendent swell of the magnificent Chorus.

Parry was up against stiff competition.  Arguably Holst's finest music, The Hymn of Jesus, is unique, utterly original and totally characteristic of the composer. Its performance was spell-binding.  Magical effects were achieved with the splendid boy choristers singing from high in the gallery and then men's voices chanted from the far distance.

George Butterworth's orchestral The Banks of The Green Willow gave the chorus a break.  The refined and carefully shaped account did not neglect the anguish barely concealed beneath a ravishing surface.

A blaze of trumpets in Parry's  dramatic anthem I was Glad brought the concert and this year's festival to a sumptuous conclusion.