Yorkshire Imperial & Kaleidoscope Singers
15-Nov-2004Musical Director: John Hinckley
Gracie Fields Theatre, Rochdale
Saturday 30th October, 2004
The Gracie Fields Theatre, in Rochdale, contained a near capacity audience for the annual concert in aid of the Rochdale Heartbeat charity. Magnificent in their black uniforms, with red and gold highlights, the members of the Yorkshire Imperial Urquhart Travel Band, conducted by John Hinckley, filled the stage and raised the roof with a sound that fully justifies their reputation as one of the most entertaining concert bands around.
The band struck up in a traditional manner with the march 'High Command' and continued with 'Academic Festival Overture' by Brahms. The audience certainly warmed up to what was a great start to the evening.
The first soloist of the night was the band's Principal Cornet player, Alan Fowler. Alan has a reputation for being one of the most technically accomplished players around and he didn't disappoint with a tremendous rendition of Gorrell's and Carmichael's 'Georgia on My Mind'. Alan's flare for improvisation and showmanship was evident, with excellent technique and sense of style.
In a complete change of mood and form, the next item featured the whole cornet section with the performance of Bach's 'Air from the 3rd Suite' with the cornets stood in a wide arc around the back of the band.
Renditions of Shostakovich's 'Galop', and Rosza's 'Parade of the Charioteers' followed before the band welcomed its second soloist of the evening, the band's Soprano Cornet player, Richard Hanson. Richard performed the operatic classic 'Nessun Dorma', from Puccini's Turandot, with great aplomb. Next, the band chose to perform a piece by one of the most popular and successful composers of the former Soviet Union, Aram Khachaturian's 'Extracts from Symphony Nš3'. To bring the curtain down on the first half the band handed over to the Kaleidoscope Singers for a fabulous choreographed and fine performance of music taken from the 'Phantom of the Opera'.
The Yorkshire Imps are always eager to promote new music of different styles and from a variety of musical arenas and the Imps got the second half off to a flying start with a very stylish interpretation of 'Malaguena', with a real Mexicana panache to the performance.
To change the character of the hall to a completely different musical sphere, no concert would be complete without a band item taken from one of the famous musicals. Andrew Lloyd-Webber's 'Don't Cry for Me Argentina' followed and proved to be something very special.
This led to another set by the Kaleidoscope Singers who showed what a great set of performers they are. They produced another choreographed set, which was expertly performed. Their presentation was nothing but inspiring and it was certainly appreciated by everyone present judging by the prolonged applause they received.
Jane Freeman, the band's Flugel Horn player, was up next and showed the audience what a great soloist she is with a memorable performance of 'Misty'. Toe tapping renditions of two old favourites, 'That's a Plenty' and 'Miller Magic', followed before the band's final soloist of the evening took centre stage.
The traditional solo 'Rule Britannia', by John Hartmann, was the music to be played, quite ironically by a Frenchman, the band's Solo Euphonium player Cyril Bonhard. This was Cyril's debut performance as a soloist with the band and he rose to the occasion magnificently giving the large audience and the band a quality performance to remember, and the ovation at the end, from the band as well as the audience, said it all.
In a fitting close to the evening, the audience joined the band and the Kaleidoscope Singers for a rendition of 'Jerusalem' and Elgar's 'Pomp and Circumstance Number 1' but the audience were clamouring for more and after three renditions of Elgar's famous march the band left the stage leaving the audience only wanting more.
David Marshall
