![]() |
Arcadia Players "The Finest Baroque Ensemble in the Pioneer Valley"Ian Watson, Artistic Director Concert review excerpts from the past decade |
Amherst, MA, 30 March 2008. Arcadia Players, directed by Ian Watson, brought its 19th season to a close in Grace Episcopal Church on the Town Common here yesterday evening with a well-crafted historically-informed performance of an all-Haydn program that elicited shouts of “Bravo” and brought listeners to their feet more than once ... This was a fabulous finale to a fine season. Audiences are growing in size and talking about what they hear – there’s a “buzz,” as they say, and are undoubtedly anxiously anticipating the 20th season in the fall. You may read the full text of this review at Classical Voice of New England.
"Arcadia Players concert warm and
sparkling," December 2000
(from the Springfield Union-News)
"Arcadia Players present buoyant
Handel's Messiah," December 1999
(from the Springfield Union-News)
Despite illness in the singers' ranks that sidelined one and sent another home in mid-performance, the Arcadia Players presented a brilliant millennial "Messiah" Wednesday evening at St. Brigid's Church. The zest and buoyancy that has always characterized their interpretation of Handel's masterwork coupled with a resonant richness of orchestral core sound in this first of three performances ... You may download the full text of this review for a modest fee at The Republican Archives
"Arcadia Players off to sound start," October 1999
(from the Springfield Union-News)
"Healthy helping of Mozart's Music,"
September 1998
(from the Springfield Union-News)
In celebration of their
10th Anniversary, the
Arcadia Players have dropped their ticket prices (to $10 for general
admission) and make their programming more generous than ever. Saturday
night at South Congregational Church, Arcadians offered
their enthusiastic audience a healthy helping of Mozart's music,
featuring an interesting new edition of the "Requiem," preceded by
selections of his rarely heard Masonic music for male chorus. The
succulent centerpiece, the charming, whimsical Concerto for
Two Pianos in E-flat, K. 365, was brilliantly executed by soloists
Margaret Irwin-Brandon and Monica Jakuc. They carried on its
spirited conversation on individually voiced replicas of early-19th
century forte-pianos ... You
may download the full text of this review for a modest fee at The Republican Archives
"Arcadia Players
recreate 1700s court," May 1998
(from the Springfield Union-News)
Back to
Arcadia Players Home Page
![]()
December 27, 2001
Seymour Rosen, for The Journal, Bravo
NORTHAMPTON -- The Arcadia Players Baroque Orcestra, Chorus and Soloists delighted and awed audiences with its holiday season concert at St. Brigid's Catholic Church in Amherst, Christ Church Cathedral in Springfield, and St. Mary's Catholic Church in Northampton. For the second year, its Christmas performance was Johann Sebastian Bach's Christmas Oratorio, Parts 1, 2 and 3, plus the final chorus of Part 6.
I saw the concert at St. Mary's, and the spirituality of the chorales was perfectly suited to the soaring interior of the church. Of the 15 singers in the chorus, most performed solo pieces in turn and did so beautifully. John Salvi's sonorous bass recitative was particularly impressive, along with the women's choir in Er ist auf Erden kommen arm (He comes to the earth in poverty) and contralto Kayla Werlin's moving Schlafe, mein Liebster, geniesse der Ruh (Sleep, my dearest, enjoy the slumber).
The entire chorus was outstanding in the beauty of their singing and the clarity of their German phrasing. This is the 13th season for the Arcadia Players under the direction of its founder, Margaret Irwin-Brandon. The Players' traditional Christmas fare, Handel's Messiah, is now performed at Easter, for which it was originally composed. Irwin-Brandon, a "hopful visionary and optimist," has found the revision well-received by audiences. She noted to this reviewer the special characteristics of the instrument ensemble, one of only five or six in the country. The antique instruments played with passion and precision by the orchestra are from the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, or are exact replicas of the originals. Thus, the sound is as Bach's audiences would have heard it.
Irwin-Brandon notes that the Baroque instruments are not as predictable or streamlined as their modern counterparts. The three natural trumpets have no valves, and the oboes are fingered primarily on open holes. The strings of the violins are strung in gut and the bows are shorter and more flexible than the modern counterparts. Among the many fine players, the virtuosity of Dana Maiben on the violin, and [Jesse] Lepkoff on the flute, was notable.
The cantatas that were played focused on the
first, second and third Christmas days. Irwin-Brandon, who conducted
the concert while playing the harpsichord, describes the parts of the
Oratorio: the first part portrays the world rejoicing at the
news of the long-awaited birth of the baby Jesus; the second part,
the stories of the shepherds and the angels; and the third, a shadow
of the tragic events ahead for the newborn babe. The final chorus is
a musical celebration with an elaborate orchestral score underlying a
four-part chorale. We are most fortunate to have the Arcadia Players
presenting this outstanding musical event to us annually.
Call 413-534-8888 or email info[at]arcadiaplayers.org
for more information, and to receive a season
brochure.
Back to Arcadia Players Home Page
![]()