UNIVERSITY RECITAL

Press, Volume CV, Issue 31012, 18 March 1966, Page 17

UNIVERSITY RECITAL

Just Recorder ' Consort The University of Canterbury recital yesterday afternoon was given by the Rolf Just Recorder Consort— Pauline Drain, Margaret Buchanan, Les Brown. Michael Shorter. Jennifer Jameson, Mary Montgomery, and Rolf Just. These players should add attractively to musical life here, and made an impressive beginning in this recital. The programme contained | works by older composers such as Schmezler, an Austrian, Dalia Gostena and Bertali, Italians of the seventeenth century: Faber and Handel—and contemporary works by Britten, Fricke-r, and Genzmer showed that writing for the recorder does not belong only to the past. Already this new group has achieved a very good standard of ensemble playing both in rhythmic cohesion and in balanced blending of tones. The playing in the slow and reflective movements kept a gently flowing pace and had mellow and plaintive tonal quality—attractive to the ear and soothing to the spirit. The lively movements were vivacious and flexible, giving the impression of merry little fountains at play. The texture of sound suited the modern works well and their harmonic piquancy and strength of pattern were well 'served by the interesting and I competent playing. | Accompanied by a harpsiI chord played by Mr Wallace I Woodley, and a 'cello played by Miss Ellen Doyle, Mr Just gave an impressive rendering of a sonata by Handel. Both in style and in interpretative strength he showed a skilled understanding of the work and never pressed the instrument beyond its reasonable capabilities. It is possible that the hall is rather too large for that particular ensemble of instruments to be heard ■ completely satisfactorily, but it suited the recorder groups I well. —C.F.B.