Black Dyke Band

Featuring James Morrison and guests
Conductor: Dr Nicholas Childs
Bridgewater Hall, Manchester
Friday 18th May

If you want to try and fill over 2100 seats at one of the countries leading artistic venues then it would be best to book acts that have genuinely broad audience appeal.

Black Dyke regularly fill most halls they appear in, but there is little doubt they took a risk or two in self promoting a double header concert tour here at Bridgewater Hall and London's Cadogan Hall last weekend. It does of course help if you have a broad and ambitious vision linked to the more prosaic virtues of ensuring you get enough bums on seats, so to book a true international music star as well as vibrantly youthful additions and an eclectic but complimentary mix of the tried and tested was both pragmatic as well as excitingly different.   Add a touch of the exotic and a genius into the goody bag too, and what do you have? A night to remember in a packed hall that's what.  Where should we have heard that before recently?

Standing room only: The Bridgewater audience awaits the entertainers
Picture: John Stirzaker

The tried and tested of course came with the hosts – perhaps the only brass band in the world who can just about guarantee the full house signs are up outside any box office in the country. The tried and tested came courtesy of an excellent pair of choral exponents in Bristol Cathedral Choir (Trinity Boys Choir from London appeared on the Saturday) and the Yorkshire Philharmonic Choir, whilst the youthful exuberance was provided by members of Wardle Schools Band.

The exotic was delivered by the dancers of the Mighty Zulu Nation Theatre Company – although on this occasion, to paraphrase the famous line from the Oscar winning film ‘Zulu' with Michael Caine and the rest of the famous Welsh South Wales Borderers at Rourkes' Drift – there weren't ‘fouzands of ‘em" – just 11 fantastic exponents of their craft.

Oh – and there was a certain James Morrison too.

There was a real buzz of anticipation in the foyer of the hall before the concert began, although backstage the anxiety levels would have been raised a notch or two after British Airways managed to lose the ‘Wizard of Oz's' bags containing his array of working tools as well as his clothes and even his electric shaver. It said a great deal about the man that he just shrugged his shoulders and went about his business as if nothing really bothered him too much.

A back up set of instruments was hastily found by the band as well as a quick dash to the local branch of Moss Bros to get a decent DJ  - not as easy as you think as Mr Morrison is not physically cast as your regulation Bondi Beach surfer.

Letting it rip! The Wizard of Oz leans back and lets go...
Picture: John Stirzaker 

Thankfully, he didn't seem to mind at all and the stage was set for the opening item – Peter Graham's ‘Summon the Dragon'. Neatly delivered, Dyke then opened the gunnels with a turbo charged whip through ‘Le Corsair' before the audience sat back to be thrilled by a performer whose almost freakish genius is allied to a wonderfully relaxed dry wit and riveting stage presence. 

James Morrison did not disappoint – a remarkable achievement given he was playing on unfamiliar instruments and a suit that just about snugly fitted.

His opening set backed by both the band and the Robin Dewhurst trio saw him reveal the full range of his remarkable talents, from the pyrotechnical to the lyrical with a snorter of an opening ‘Strike up the Band' to a lyrical ‘Blessed Assurance' and more. Whereas with even the most gifted of brass performers the listener (and especially listening players) can make a connection with their own musical abilities to what is being delivered by the artiste, it is almost impossible to do so with the Australian.

Playing instruments as varied in pitch, tone and timbre as the trumpet, trombone, euphonium, flugel and tenor horn, at times within a second or two of each other, defies the laws of musical physics (not to mention physiology) and so you are left agog with both admiration and bemusement in equal doses. Even if you hear him time and again you are just left with a permanent bewildered smile on your face.

If that wasn't enough the massed ranks then joined for the first performance of David Fanshawe's ‘Suite from African Sanctus', originally performed in 1972 after the composer had undertaken an epic trip down the River Nile recording the voices and images of the various indigenous peoples. This remarkable brass band version was undertaken by Vicky Burrett as well as Liz Lane, who added her lovely transcription of ‘The Lord's Prayer' to the five movement work that has a rather unique spiritual as well as political inspiration.

Fouzands of 'em: Not quite, but 11 brilliant dancers from the Mighty Zulu Nation Theatre Company
Picture: John Stirzaker

Each of the movements created an intense atmosphere, made rather more poignant by the images themselves, which were shown on the huge multi- media screen high in the hall. The brilliance of the colour, the almost naïve faces of the people and the underlying fact that during the period 1969 – 1971 that the composer undertook his journey, sub Saharan Africa was starting to finally emerge into the consciousness of the western world. It made for a rather reflective appreciation of what was a joyous celebration in music of cultures that are now fast disappearing.

If Fanshawe had taken his pictures in 2007 rather than 1969 you wonder who many of the traditional head dresses and diverse clothing expressions of tribal identity would be replaced with Nike football tops, baseball caps and the odd AK-47. Africa today is still an exploited continent – not just as a human resource as was the case with slavery 200 years ago, but also as a religious and political one too. This work has lost none of its impact over the past 35 years.

After a short break to literally catch the breath, the second half opened with the second premiere of the night and Paul Lovatt-Cooper's ‘Walking with Heroes'. Commissioned by the band's president Donald Hanson in memory of his father who not only taught son the virtues of how to be successful in business, but also how to play the trombone too, it was full of trademark flourishes, broad lyrical tunes and a real tub thumping climax.

A delighted 86 year old President and his wife also received a bound copy of the score from the band to commemorate the occasion and it is a safe bet that the work will find its way into many a band library the length and breadth of country in the near future – Mr Lovatt-Cooper has the knack of writing very catchy and effective works.

James Morrison returned for his second stint and once again produced the sound of collective jaws hitting the floor as the audience was completely wowed by his skills (including multiphonics) on a set that contained a superb ‘Autumn Leaves' as well as the scorching ‘Hey Jude' among others. The man even showed that he was a dab hand on the old Joanna and has even written a Hollywood screenplay too.  Unbelievable eh?

Twice the talent: Trumpet and trombone in each hand - the man's a genius!
Picture: John Stirzaker

That just left Black Dyke to produce an enjoyable concert, rather than contest inspired ‘Vienna Nights' – thoroughly enjoyed by the audience and enhanced by Professor Wilby's neat introduction, and the obligatory encore of ‘Riverdance' complete with the young urchin leprechauns Doyle and Marshall displaying their twinkle toed dancing skills.

It rounded off a truly memorable evening's entertainment and one that fully deserved the plaudits that rained on it from the audience as they left the Bridgewater Hall completely satisfied with their Friday night's entertainment.

And that was the key. Entertainment of the very highest quality all topped off by a truly inspiring showcase performer in James Morrison. This was a rare treat indeed. 

Iwan Fox.

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