Reviews

A look at what is happening in the world of the arts.

Cooney, RTÉCO/Wagner

NCH, Dublin

Glinka - Russlan and Ludmilla Overture. Massenet - Meditation from Thaïs. Purcell - Fairy Queen Suite. Ravel - Pavane pour une infante défunte. Sarasate - Carmen Fantasy. Rimsky-Korsakov - Dance of the Birds. Dance of the Buffoons

The RTÉ Concert Orchestra's contribution to the Tuesday lunchtime concerts got off to a strong start. Before the first piece, Laurent Wagner bounded onto the conductor's podium. His air of confidence set the tone for the concert.

Elizabeth Cooney was the violin soloist in the Méditation from Massenet's Thaïs and Sarasate's Carmen Fantasy, works that test the soloist's technical and musical mettle in very different ways. With poised eloquence in the Massenet and plenty of fireworks in the Sarasate, Cooney was evidently in command of those essential aspects.

Even though some parts of the Sarasate did not convey the impression of inspired improvisation that shows this sparkling piece at its best, she always made a pleasing sound, and consistently conveyed the extraordinary energy of Bizet's themes. She is a player whose progress will be worth watching.

It was a pleasure to hear the sensitive flexibility of the RTÉCO's playing in the Massenet and in Ravel's Pavane pour une infante défunte. The whole programme was a striking example of how Laurent Wagner's tenure as principal conductor has encouraged this orchestra to aim high, and to take risks for the sake of musical expression knowing that it is possible to deliver to that standard.

The impeccable orchestral balance and the fiery rhythmic energy of Glinka's Russlan and Ludmilla Overture and two dances from Rimsky-Korsakov's opera The Snow Maiden were indicators of that confidence. So was the knowing interplay of rugged counterpoint in the Suite No 1 from Purcell's The Fairy Queen - a striking demonstration of what can be achieved when players listen closely to one another.

Martin Adams

Whelan, Collins

NCH, Dublin

By any standards the concert series Summer Sounds at Lunchtime is promising - unusually so for a time of year that tends to attract soft options. Nine concerts spread across the month of August include artists as varied as The Café Orchestra, guitarist Louis Stewart, organist Thomas Trotter, violinist Catherine Leonard, and the Con Tempo String Quartet.

The first concert was given by one of Ireland's most widely recognised sopranos, Franzita Whelan. She and pianist Dearbhla Collins presented a programme in two halves, the first devoted to arrangements of Irish songs, the second to American popular music from the 1930s to the 1950s.

Franzita Whelan has everything it takes to deliver a programme of this sort, and in Dearbhla Collins she had a suitably faithful pianist. Whelan's voice has the versatility to cope with the voluptuous, hushed tones of Gershwin's Summertime and the brassy wit of Berlin's Meet me in St Louis. She was equally in command of the simplicity called for by an unaccompanied rendering of Carrickfergus, and of the more arty style necessary for Hamilton Harty's arrangement of Sea Wrack.

At least as important as the voice is the personality. She set people at ease and encouraged them to sing along with the American songs, which they did. Stage presence, wit and musicianship: she has them in spades, and showed that touchstone of star quality - she just does it.

Martin Adams