Bella Tromba
30-Oct-2007Featuring: Nicole Lyons, Victoria Curran, Clare Helsden & Josephine Harris
Guest Soloist: Rex Richardson
Regent Hall
Friday 19th October
The rising interest in brass chamber music in recent years has led to the formation of various groups, from fairly standard quartets and quintets through to more unusual combinations. The all-female trumpet quartet Bella Tromba was established in 2004, when the four members were undertaking post-graduate studies at the Royal Academy of Music.
As well as unearthing much forgotten music for the combination, they have also commissioned and arranged several new works. They play predominantly on C or Bb trumpets, with only the occasional recourse to piccolo or Eb trumpet for additional effect.
They opened their programme, given before a very respectable audience for a Friday afternoon, with the “Fugue in G minor” by J S Bach. As one adjusted to the unusual sonorities, one was struck by how low-lying the bottom parts were at times, frequently playing below the stave, with even the occasional bottom F, achieved with the judicious use of lip and trigger!
The sound of the groups was predominantly bright, although the lower parts produced some darker tones, the scoring sharing out the work fairly equally between the players, so that no one player was stuck at the bottom for too long. Each fugal entry was given due prominence before slipping into the background, although the parts needed to switch octaves occasionally due to the limited range available.
Their second item, in contrast, was an arrangement by James Davies of Joy Webb’s “Share my Yoke”. Once one adjusted to the familiar euphonium opening phrase appearing an octave higher than usual, it worked remarkably well, with an almost flugel-like tone on the sustained solo line, and with some effective close harmony work in the accompaniment.
Georg Telemann was a prolific writer for various combinations of instruments, including the valveless brass of his day, although it was his three-movement “Concerto for Four Violins” that Murray Greig had adapted for four trumpets. After a short, stately opening, toccata-like figures replete with running semiquavers predominated, with each part coming to the fore in turn.
Bella Tromba demonstrated a good grasp of period style, with trills and turns at the ends of phrases, and neat duet work as they divided into two answering pairs. The brief second movement was marked by some carefully pointed phrases, with balanced harmonies throughout, whilst the fugal entries in the finale showed a uniformity of approach and attack as each part joined in, building up to a very positive final cadence.
Courtesy of one of the Brass Arts Festival’s main sponsors, Yamaha Artist Rex Richardson joined Bella Tromba in two more arrangements by James Davies. “Georgia on your Mind” commenced with a slow introduction, the soloist’s melody line sitting on top of the steady pulse of the accompanying quartet. The close harmony writing was very effective, as were the slowly-moving rhythms of the backing.
One expected Rex Harrison to cut loose at any moment, but the anticipated flurries of notes failed to materialise. He certainly made up for it in “Fly Me to the Moon”, however, where his piccolo trumpet soared above the quartet, which supported the soloist with at times angular phrases as they provided the rhythmic impulse.
Perhaps the most striking item of Bella Tromba’s programme was Robin Holloway’s “Melody with Echo”. Making good use of the spatial possibilities of the hall, a solo trumpet on the stage was answered from various points of the compass, sometimes echoing the initial phrase, sometimes developing it, and with effective use of mutes. There was gradually more overlap between the parts as the music unfolded, and the music retained the listener’s interest throughout.
The first half of the recital closed with a romp through “Rondo alla Turca” (Mozart, arr Walton), with piccolo trumpet on the top line and with some effective writing in octaves, deft fingering in all the parts and a crisp, sharp attack from all four players.
A change in the programme order for the second half saw Rex Richardson take the stage for his final collaboration with the group. For “Misty”, arranged by Gavin Broom, he started on flugel, with a rich, dusky sound, before switching to trumpet for a very wide-ranging solo towards the end. The close harmonies and the astringent nature of the writing set off the solo playing to good effect.
This was followed by Koper’s “Musik fur 4 Trompeten”, a short modern work in four movements. The canonic opening moving through all four parts was reminiscent of the “Tower Music” once popular in Bohemia and Germany, whilst the second movement called for some crisp double-tonguing and unison phrasing as the music was constantly driven forward.
For the slow-moving third movement, with all players muted, a solo trumpet was answered by the remaining trio, the Eb trumpet on the top part blending well with the other players. The piece closed with the sort of finale that Malcolm Arnold would have been proud of, with a real sense of fun and mischief. The repeated rhythm of quaver/2 semiquavers built up the excitement until the music closed with a triumphant unison phrase.
Horn player Alan Civil was the composer of the brief “Hiroshi Rushi”, comprising scurrying scales and jazz-style harmonies, but also with elements of more traditional quartet writing. Speaking of tradition, Bella Tromba had felt that no self-respecting brass programme would be complete without a version of “Carnival of Venice”, so they included an arrangement by Hultmark that really put the players through their paces.
Whilst there were occasions when the accompaniment lost its shape a little, on the whole it was quite successful, thanks in no small part to their judicious choice of tempi for the different variations. There was plenty of double and triple-tonguing, and they really hammed it up in the minor key section, complete with a smear leading into it. As the man in the box might put it: “Bravo!”
After the preceding fireworks, it was good to relax with Stephen Foster’s “Jeannie with the Light Brown Hair” (Arr Harvey). Unpretentious and straightforward, it was played with obvious affection. For their final item, Bella Tromba presented “Autumn Leaves” (Kosma, arr Broom). It was as if the trumpet section from a big band had suddenly been deserted by its comrades, complete with the occasional gap for breath which one would expect the rhythm section to fill in.
One player maintained a repeated bass part, two more sustained chords whilst the fourth presented the solo as if it were improvised over the top. It marked the end of an entertaining set from this talented quartet, with many unfamiliar sounds and spectacular feats of playing. They also maintained an excellent rapport with the audience, sharing out the introductions between them, and even taking the increasing problems with the microphone in their stride.
They are definitely a group worth hearing, and they will no doubt gain more plaudits in their forthcoming appearances. They are also hoping to be able to produce a professional recording before too long.
Peter Bale
