2003 WASBE Conference

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herein are those of the
authors and not
necessarily the opinions
of WASBE.

Conference Article Archive

Saturday, 05 July — Review: Nanset Wind Orchestra [NUMK], Larvik, Norway

WASBE Council member Odd Terje Lysebo put his money where his mouth was on Friday afternoon. After at least two conferences of contributing to the Art of Programming panels, he demonstrated exactly what it was that he preached. A concert programme, he compares to planning a fine meal in that each piece must work together with those around it to provide a complete musical experience. This he did with the Nanset Wind Orchestra in spades.

Opening with Egil Hovland’s Fanfare and Chorale awoke the taste buds with bold fanfare melodies and meaty chorale passages. The angularity of the fanfare theme led well into Shostakovich’s “Suite from The Priest and his Blockhead Servant.” This was an amusing and dramatic suite made up of the wind and percussion movements of the larger orchestral work which stand alone brilliantly. The Russian folk flavour moved us easily into the final course of the first half, Laurence Bitensky’s Hebrew-spiced Awake, you sleepers! for Trumpet and Wind Ensemble. Soloist Robert Murray gave a thoroughly convincing performance of an interesting work that explored the gamut of trumpet sounds.

After a brief intermission to cleanse our palates, we returned for an equally inspired second half. Opening with Yngve Slettholm’s Déjà Vu got us into a contemplative frame of mind as the composer describes the moments before eternal sleep. This was followed by Ole Schmidt’s Hommage a Stravinsky which brought us back with wit and was an endless list of quotes of Stravinsky and his contemporaries. The piece de resistance however was in our dessert, Husa’s Les Couleurs Fauves. What a rich and decadent desert it was. I had heard much about this work prior to coming to the conference but had not had an opportunity to hear it. It certainly went beyond any expectations I had had for it. A wonderfully full and controlled performance brought this fulfilling meal to a very satisfying close.

I came away from this programme feeling thoroughly satisfied, despite the fact that I did not like all of the pieces. The way the programme was structured allowed me to accept the pieces I did not identify with and appreciate them. This was a stark contrast to some programs this week which offended me for making me sit through overblown, monotonous exercises in meaningless repetition and lack of direction. Lysebo had commented earlier in the week that a piece can kill the effect of those works placed before or after. I think in the case of the Nanset programme, some works actually held up others and lifted the great works to an even higher level.

The ensemble itself is a marvel in itself. A non-auditioned community band simply doesn’t play at the high level of technique, ensemble and musical maturity as Nanset where I come from. There is a consistency of approach and performance that is truly inspirational.

Thank you, Mr. Lysebo, for a truly enjoyable and thought provoking afternoon.

Marc Crompton