EX CATHEDRA
Birmingham
Town Hall *****
With pomp and ceremony so much in the air recently (I’m
talking about the Royal succession, not the Conservative Party Conference) it
was serendipitously appropriate that Jeffrey Skidmore should have chosen this
programme of music connected with the respective courts of King George II and
the “Sun King”, Louis XIV..
This was a smoothly, effortlessly (though obviously
meticulously rehearsed and choreographed) flowing sequence of music by Handel
and Lalande. The latter composer has long been one of Ex Cathedra’s
calling-cards, and here we relished many examples of his “royal” music,
beginning with the rolling, burgeoning kettle-drums launching the Te Deum,
heralding well-defined, well-weighted choral delivery.
Many other Lalande choral delights followed, vocal soloists
emerging as ever from within the choral ranks, instrumentalists from Skidmore’s
judiciously-assembled Ex Cathedra Baroque Orchestra contributing
expertly-delivered obbligati: Zoe Shevlin’s bassoon was a particular joy in La
Grande Piece Royale, and James Johnstone brought so many discreet colours to
the ever-present organ continuo.
The Handel complement was naturally more familiar, beginning
with a crisp, at first discreetly busy Arrival of the Queen of Sheba
(complemented by Alec Roth’s lamenting Departure of the Queen of the Sheba,
sorrowing oboes bidding each other farewell with memories of Handel’s strains).
We also heard The King Shall Rejoice, associate conductor
George Parris assured and confident as he coaxed cascading lines from the
chorus, and finally Zadok the Priest.
Such was the clarity of this account (natural trumpets and
kettle-drums so blazing with pageantry) under Skidmore that I realised for the
first time in my long life just what meretricious, rabble-rousing music this
is!