Concert of 11 variations

Press, 7 September 1976, Page 18

Concert of 11 variations

Music by, or about Mozart will be featured by the Canterbury Orchestra in a subscription concert in the Christchurch Town Hall on Saturday. Mozart’s Symphony ‘No. 29, described as one of his most charming, will open the orchestra’s concert on Saturday night.

This will maintain the practice in the present subscription series under the orchestra’s new conductor, Dobbs Franks, of featuring a Mozart Symphony in each concert. But the feature of the concert wilt be the Divertimento for Mozart, which will follow the Mozart symphony. The Divertimento is a series of 11 variations, written by 11 twentieth-century composers on Papageno’s aria from the second act of “The Magic Flute.” First, Michael Tatchell will sing the aria as Mozart wrote it, to refresh the memories of the audience; then the orchestra will play the Divertimento. The variations are by Gottfried von Einem, Luciano Berio, H. Erbse, P.

R. Fricker, N. V. Bentzon, R. Haubenstock, G. Klebe, G. Wimberger, Maurice le Roux, Jacques Wildberger and H. O. Henze. One of the variations is virtually a piano concerto, which will have John Luxton as the soloist. Another features two basset horns (clarinet-like instruments from Mozart’s time), and if the Canterbury Orches--tra is able to obtain the instruments, they will be used. One variation features a solo trio of horn, trumpet, and trombone, which will be played by Peter Laurence, John Snelgrove, and Brian Marston; and one is for solo soprano and orchestra. The soprano will be Heather Taylor. The concert, will conclude with a performance of “Mozartiana (Suite No. 4),” composed by Tchaikovsky but based on melodies of Mozart. This work is not often played, but the Canterbury Orchestra feels that it is a beautiful work which does not deserve the neglect which it has suffered. It also obviously fits very well in the orchestra's subscription series, which is featuring a Mozart symphony in each concert.