Sunday, November 1, 2009

Andrew Robson's Thomas Tallis Quartet

My one cathedral gig this year. Andrew Robson's Thomas Tallis Quartet was something I knew I had to line up for. A wine in the hot square outside the WPAC, then on to the Holy Trinity Cathedral to join Andrew Robson and Sandy Evans (saxophones) James Greening (trombone) and Steve Elphick (bass) for an hour of medieval tunes with jazz lines. As we walked into the cathedral, the fans were going. Those fans with the hoses, that cool and dampen the air. The humidity in Wangaratta is high today - I was told 60% this morning - so dampening the air didn't make anything terribly much cooler.

This weekend was the first time the suite had been played live. Andrew gave us a run down of the music's history (based on the 15th Century Hymns of Thomas Tallis) and explained that we were going to hear the whole suite of 8 pieces. After a couple of tunes with breaks in between where we could applaud, the group decided to lose the breaks and allow us to hear everything without a break, from start to finish. It was lovely to see Andrew so chuffed about hearing the music live.

The space was perfect. The sounds were gorgeous. The tunes were just right for the venue. Playing by Andrew, Sandy, James and Steve was a delight. And somewhere in the middle we had a humidity enhancement with a sudden shower. Grins all around from the musicians as they heard it on the roof.

1 comment:

Samual said...

The wool tallit is also worn by women outside of the orthodox beliefs, however, often in a much less orthodox style that allows her to maintain both style and femininity.