‘Dream of Gerontius’

Press, 14 September 1987, Page 8

‘Dream of Gerontius’

“The Dream of Gerontius,” by the Christchurch Harmonic Society, conducted by John Hopkins, at the Town Hall Auditorium, Saturday, September 12, at 8 p.m. Reviewed by Roger Flury. In celebration of 60 years of musicmaking in Christchurch, the Harmonic Society chose to perform Elgar’s “The Dream of Gerontius." Augmented by members of the Canberra School of Music Community Choir, and under the baton of a guest conductor, John Hopkins, the choir rightly stole the honours on this occasion. “Gerontius” is not a work that can be thrown together at the last minute. The paZking work done by the choir under its musical director, David Childs, t»id dividends on the night. The singing was almost always fresh-toned, secure and on pitch, whether portraying demons or angels. There were also moments of surprisingly powerful choral sound, particSarlyat “Go forth upon thy joumey.’ The long “Praise to the holiest section tius. His voice cuts through easily, and the big moments such as “Take me mr were grandly dellmj. Mog one would like a wanner tone, and his thejire orphan. But the, foundations

are there for a - fine Gerontius, and future performances will no doubt add extra depth to his interpretation. I could not warm to the sound of the contralto, Nel Huizer. Her voice is distinctive in character, but too tremulous, and insecure in pitch and rhythm. However, of the three soloists, she came closest to capturing the spirit of this sacred music-drama. It was a pity that her intentions could not be fully realised. Roger Wilson completed the line-up. His voice is a little lightweight for the important declamations of the Priest and Angel of the Agony. The resulting lack of authority was compensated for, in part, by his careful attention to the text. The whole performance began with some rather tentative orchestral playing which failed to set the right atmosphere, making Christopher Doig’s opening section all the more difficult to bring off. But as the evening progressed, the playing became more confident, even if it never really did full justice to the ebb and flow of Elgar’s miraculous score. John Hopkins held the work together skilfully, which is all one can really hope for with such short rehearsal time.

But the evening belonged to the choir and David Childs. Sixty years is a long time to survive in the difficult world of the performing arts. With the promised support of Burbery Finance, it looks as if the choir’s future is assured, which is good news for Christchurch.