Australian Chamber Choir – Water Music
Sunday 15th November
Performed by: The Australian Chamber Choir’s ACC5 directed by Lucien Fischer
Amelia Jones and Ailsa Webb – Soprano
Elizabeth Anderson – Contralto
Anish Nair – Tenor
Lucien Fischer – Bass
In Covid 19 times the vocal icon of Melbourne, the Australian Chamber Choir, has had to be compliant with health requirements and give only broadcast concerts. It has performed as an octet to comply with social distancing regulations on the concert platform. Their latest incarnation was ACC5 and what a little jewel it is! And thank goodness for Melbourne Digital Concert Hall for providing them the platform for music to survive in these constrained times. ACC5 gave a suitably sweet and concise concert based on water themes – music to feel comfortable with and maybe enjoy with a glass of fine Victorian riesling or chardonnay.
Starting with a simple setting of Ave Maris Stella constructed by Tasmanian-based Jonathan Wallis the ensemble moved on to the major work of the concert, Missa Ave Maris Stella from 1576 by Tomas Luis de Victoria. Clever programming and just as delightful was the performance. And a special mention goes to soprano Amelia Jones for her beautiful solo line in the Agnus Dei of this Mass. All five singers enjoyed the opportunity to sing into the lush acoustic of the Loreto Mandeville Hall Toorak Chapel. Music of the baroque and before is the repertoire championed by Douglas Lawrence, the director and founder of the choir, and it is this music that suits these singers just perfectly. Mr Lawrence was sadly indisposed for this concert but the musicians and the listeners found a most able ally in the direction of Lucien Fischer.
After the solemnity of the opening works a little levity appeared in the form of contralto Elizabeth Anderson’s charming arrangement, a little reminiscent of the Swingle Singers, of the Air from Handel’s Water Music. The singers had fun as they did later in We’ll meet again which is a ‘shoutout’ to future times when concerts will be live again. More music set in a simple vein were Three Afro-American Spirituals, Down by the river to pray with perfectly weighted solos by bass Lucien Fischer, tenor Anish Nair soprano Ailsa Webb and then Amelia Jones. Deep River and Wade in the Water showed all the singers to be at home in this emotional music as they were in little gems by Johann Sebastian Bach and Orlando Gibbons.
I have reviewed the Australian Chamber Choir live in concert with full forces, on CD (my review of their Christmas CD appeared on classikON here a few weeks ago) and now on Melbourne Digital Concert Hall as a quintet and it is an ensemble that always delivers great performances with style and elegance.
Alan Holley
