Adjudicator reports from Secondary School Chamber Music Contest 2010 Instrumental Performance Section

 Adjudicator: Shelley Wilkinson

Group name: 4tissimo Piano: Leonardo Coghini Piano: Laura Petersen Piano: Cassandra Burton-Wood Piano: Chelsea Brown-Bayliss	Work performed: Canto Ostinato by Simeon Ten Holt
Thank you for the introduction – very informative. What a wonderfully together bit of playing. You all seemed to get in a kind of groove and it showed in your bodies. Maybe, whoever has the mounting or fading suspensions could bring out that more to give the piece more tension and release. There aren’t that many indications of dynamics in the score but the little quirky accents seem a really important part of the continuum, upsetting it in a funny way – could we have more of it?  And whoever’s on the bottom line can have more fun with the ebb and flow of the simple tune.  Just some suggestions. I think you all played together so well and were swept along, but also drove the momentum of this piece. Don’t get shy whenever some of you are left alone when the voices reduce. Keep that sense of drive going with all the same elements present (only reduced). Well done!
	Group name: Rose and Two thorns Piano: Leonardo Coghini Flute: Rose Boele Van Hensbroeke (Tawa College) Clarinet: Tyaan Singh Work performed: Trio no. 2 in A minor, first movement by C.P.E. Bach
Thanks for the introduction Tyaan. This combo works! Very well matched slurs and articulation - Rose and Tyaan - and your tuning is very good together. Leonardo, you had a very lively touch so suitable for CPE Bach. His music is typically very fragmented with tiny little themettes. You all captured the quirkiness of his writing, keeping each themette neat in its little box. Leonardo, you had the greatest job doing this because you had the links as well. Don't rush your triplets Rose (maybe, don't panic) they're actually not that fast. Great character in this performance. Thank you!
Temporal Lobes Consort (T.L.C.’s) Treble recorder: Simeon Whyle Violin: Natalie Sherley Ruddlesden Violin: Jessie King Harpsichord: Laura Petersen Cello: Giulia Bender	Work performed: Allegro, Siciliana, Bourree from Concerto di Camera in D minor by Georg Philipp Telemann.
Thanks for the great introduction Simeon and Natalie. Great start, nice sparkling opening, excellent unison tutti. Think how you could start that first note rather than Laura having to count you in. If you were all to breathe in (as if you were going to sing the first note) in the spirit as you’re going to play the first note and it’ll have so much more zest. One of the strings would be best to initiate this BUT you all breathe together. Super articulation within you all, and really “stylish” in the period performance practice sense. Great continuo playing Laura and Giulia, you fit together perfectly Giulia with Laura’s left hand, very clean and neat rhythmically and very springy. Simeon you’ve got a terrific technique for the solo part and you have a nice soloistic flair to boot. Very good articulation for all the various tonguing/slurring permutation, lots of tasteful rhythmic stretching and swing (eg. Siciliana and mostly cross fingering in the really faster passages in the Siciliana. Can I make a couple of suggestions TLCs? This is such a successful group portraying Telemann’s joie de vivre, now I want you to get more involved in this sense of liveliness – push your tutti sounds out more, start with a bang movement 1 (not just a half bang) so the bow stroke needs to have more energy (and start at the heel). Siciliana could have more of a sway to it, more from beat 1 to beat 2 and back to beat 1. Bourree could also have a stringer sense of 2 beats in the bar as well. But what a lovely performance! – Thank you

 

Group 2
Group name: Rose and Two thorns

Work performed: Trio no. 2 in A minor, first movement by C.P.E. Bach
Piano: Leonardo Coghini
Flute: Rose Boele Van Hensbroeke (Tawa College)
Clarinet: Tyaan Singh

Thanks for the introduction Tyaan. This combo works! Very well matched slurs and articulation - Rose and Tyaan - and your tuning is very good together.
Leonardo, you had a very lively touch so suitable for CPE Bach.  His music is typically very fragmented with tiny little themettes. You all captured the quirkiness of his writing, keeping each themette neat in its little box.

Leonardo, you had the greatest job doing this because you had the links as well.
Don't rush your triplets Rose (maybe, don't  panic) they're actually not that fast.

Great character in this performance.
Thank you!
 

Group 3

Temporal Lobes Consort (T.L.C.’s)
Treble recorder: Simeon Whyle  
Violin: Natalie Sherley Ruddlesden
Violin: Jessie King
Harpsichord: Laura Petersen
Cello: Giulia Bender
Work performed: Allegro, Siciliana, Bourree from Concerto di Camera in D minor by Georg Philipp Telemann.

Thanks for the great introduction Simeon and Natalie.
Great start, nice sparkling opening, excellent unison tutti. Think how you could start that first note rather than Laura having to count you in. If you were all to breathe in (as if you were going to sing the first note) in the spirit as you’re going to play the first note and it’ll have so much more zest. One of the strings would be best to initiate this BUT you all breathe together.
Super articulation within you all, and really “stylish” in the period performance practice sense. Great continuo playing Laura and Giulia, you fit together perfectly Giulia with Laura’s left hand, very clean and neat rhythmically and very springy.

Simeon you’ve got a terrific technique for the solo part and you have a nice soloistic flair to boot. Very good articulation for all the various tonguing/slurring permutation, lots of tasteful rhythmic stretching and swing (eg. Siciliana and mostly cross fingering in the really faster passages in the Siciliana.

Can I make a couple of suggestions TLCs?
This is such a successful group portraying Telemann’s joie de vivre, now I want you to get more involved in this sense of liveliness – push your tutti sounds out more, start with a bang movement 1 (not just a half bang) so the bow stroke needs to have more energy (and start at the heel).
Siciliana could have more of a sway to it, more from beat 1 to beat 2 and back to beat 1. Bourree could also have a stringer sense of 2 beats in the bar as well.
But what a lovely performance! – Thank you