Newbury Weekly News - May 11th 2017

Thursday, May 11, 2017

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Newbury Weekly News

Music The Mandolinquents plus guest Steve Tilston, at Arlington Arts, Snelsmore, on Thursday, May 4 THE Mandolinquents are fast becoming regulars at Arlington Arts – but you can never have too much of a good thing and they are very, very good indeed. They blend an idiosyncratic mix of superb musicianship with whimsical humour and seamlessly move between folk and classical styles, covers and self-penned tracks without missing a beat. Each time I have seen them, they have delighted their audience with a fresh and different set-list and incorporated a range of special guests. Opening the show with their own jazz-infused number Taxi Horn Rag, they immediately changed gear for When Summer Comes Again , a wistful folk piece that showcases Hilary James’ pure vocals, and followed this with a Vivaldi Allegro . Such versatility is the hallmark of truly excellent musicians and The Mandolinquents’ stock in trade. After a couple more tracks, including the traditional Appalachian folk song Wayfaring Stranger (which I first heard as a cover by US psychedelic band HP Lovecraft), guest Steve Tilston took to the stage with his multi-award-winning British folk songs. Steve is one of the best singer songwriters around and I loved his rendition of The Fisher Lad Of Whitby , a song he found the words to in a Victoran book of songs, and wrote a melody for. After the interval, The Mandolinquents returned with a brilliant version of the Oscar Hammerstein song set to Bizet’s music Beat Out Dat Rhythm On A Drum and continued to demonstrate their massive versatility with a great version of Duelling Banjos from the John Voight movie Deliverance , and, of course, their signature piece, Leroy Anderson’s Typewriter . Steve Tilston then joined The Mandolinquents on stage for some- thing of a jam session, including a stunning version of the Bill Trader song, made famous by Elvis Presley, A Fool Such As I . A marvellous evening of music. BRIAN HARRINGTON Can’t have too much of the Mandos

Brick Kiln baroque

THIS wasn’t a public recital – it was an intimate soirée, with about 20 invited guests, seated on a random assortment of chairs, including plastic garden chairs. The venue was the home of cellist Charles Medlam and his wife, violinist Ingrid Siefert, the co- founders of London Baroque, one of the world’s leading exponents Music Nathaniel Mander, harpsichord, at Brick Kiln Cottage, Hollington, on Sunday, April 30 28-year-old harpsichordist Nathaniel Mander (www.nathanielmander.com). The atmosphere made me think what it must have been like to witness a harpsichordist playing many hundreds of years ago. The piano was not invented until 1700, and the harpsichord had been around since 1397. So, for about 300 years, the harpsichord was the biggest solo instrument in existence. Concerts would have been in the Royal Courts, attended by the select few. A harpsichord concert would have attracted great excitement. It would have been a very major event in society. Mander’s recital was entirely different. I didn’t spot any men in powdered wigs and no one was dressed in expensive finery. It was very informal. But the music was the same and the best way to enjoy it was to close your eyes and imagine being part of one of those centuries-old gatherings. Mander started on the piano at the age of eight, but four years later decided he preferred the harpsichord. Even though the two instruments both have keyboards, their functionality is poles apart. The harpsichord works by plucking the strings and the piano hammers them. This results in the piano being much, much louder, and less intimate, than the harpsichord. Mander is already making a name for himself. He graduated from London's Royal Academy of Music with first class honours in 2011. And he made his Wigmore Hall concerto debut in 2012. Not a bad start. He’s already performed throughout Europe and the US. In this recital, Mander played works by Byrd (1543-1623), Tomkins (1572- 1656), Blow (1649-1708), JC Bach (1735-1782), and Haydn (1732-1809). They progressed in chronological order. He’s fanatical about his harpsichord playing and does it brilliantly. Mander will go places in that world. NICK DAVIES Choral concer t for church bells THE Hurst Singers’ Spring Concert at Silchester parish church on Saturday (7.30pm) features music by Bernstein ( West Side Story ), Mozart, Verdi, Dvorak, Bruckner and Fauré. Tickets, priced £10 (including glass of wine or soft drink), are available from Ralph Atton (0118) 970 0825, Richard Fletcher (0118) 970 0633 or on the door. Children go free. Proceeds will go to the church’s Bells Restoration Appeal. Included in the programme are Generations Chorale, who sing unaccompanied. of Baroque chamber music. We had been invited to hear

Chris Jagger

Picture: RichardMarkham

Moves like Jagger ... Chris Jagger and his Kronies play their socks off and have ACE Space jumpin’

comforting ballad and seamlessly flowed into the JJ Cale classic Cajun Moon, which facilitated Kit Morgan’s robust interpretation of the classic interplay of Jagger’s harmonica and Mackrell’s fiddle. And then on to another classic in Bob Dylan’s Memphis Blues . Jagger was able to really show his vocal versatility in interpreting Dylan’s voice admirably, backed with a musical intensity by Morgan and Mackrell especially, perhaps giving the song a more melancholic feel than the original. Morgan took possession of the stage with a truly haunting version of Jimi Hendrix’s Little Wing, doing real justice Music Chris Jagger and the Kronies, at ACE Space, on Friday, April 18 Keith Howard, who supplied the foundation on double bass. Both played well, contributed neatly-constructed solos and, if the overall effect was a somewhat thin sound, it was because the singer really could have benefitted from a flute or sax soloist alongside him and a good drummer to round out the rhythmic thrust. As a three-man team though, they all worked hard and well on a good selection of standard tunes, familiar to everybody. Jones seemed happiest and most at home on songs associated with Peter Jones, at the Angel, Woolhampton, on Saturday, April 29 Jazz

to his hero, topped off with a deft touch from the fiddle player. A couple of self-penned country ditties was followed by an excellent Bobby Bland’s I Woke Up Screaming . A heavy Chicago blues number with a driving beat was followed by a more upbeat Road Runner, which had us clapping along. Seemingly encouraged by the crowd serenaded her across the dance floor to an up-tempo little Mexican number, followed by a couple of his own rock numbers whose sheer force propelled us onto the dance floor, where we remained jumping about in sheer delight until it was time to tread softly out into that good night. They will be back, watch this space. JIM CROCKATT participation, Chris plucked a signoretta from the crowd and Frank Sinatra and he had certainly managed to assimilate many of the little tricks of phrasing and delivery that the master crooner had pioneered. He did well on You Make Me Feel So Young then switched to a taste of the blues, singing trumpeter Kenny Dorham’s Since I Fell For You . There was certainly plenty of variety with some scat singing on Paper Moon , a bit of R&B on a Ray Charles composition, a lively Caravan and Nature Boy, at an unusually bouncy tempo. The novelty song Straighten Up and Fly Right , associated with Nat King Cole, had him a little worried that he would confuse the animals in the lyric, but he sailed through it without slandering either the monkeys or the buzzards. DEREK ANSELL

THE return from the inimitable Chris Jagger and his indefatigable Kronies was greeted with high expectation from a packed ACE Space audience. They were indeed taken to new euphoric heights as the band played their socks off from 8pm through to 10.45pm, with just a 20-minute break. claiming complete ownership of each and every song, from Scottish ballads to whimsy Irving Berlin and soft country, Americana and Cajun, cumulating in hard, relentless rock. He was backed by the driving beat of drummer Steve Laffy, kept on track by bassist Dave Hatfield and with superb lead guitar of Kit Morgan, topped by the haunting sounds emitted from the fiddle played beautifully by Elliet Mackrell. He kicked off the set with a slow, Jagger was able to show off his diversity of music styles, while VOCALIST Peter Jones told the audience at the Angel Inn that he had travelled all the way from London to appear there. “And I made it in one day,” he continued. Well, the trains must have been running faster than usual on Saturday, I suppose. The singer began his recital looking rather like a slightly older Graham Norton and although a little hesitant on his first selection, I Remember You , he soon settled down. He used impressive phrasing on the slow ballad, Then I’ll Be Tired Of You and was soon exercising his warm baritone voice on Sweet Lorraine . Next up was a version of Close Your Eyes, in which his delivery was smooth, in spite of a slight nasal effect in his voice. Martin Pickett was the accompanying pianist, along with

Variety spices up life at the Angel

TheMandolinquents