St Kilda Brass - By Popular Demand

A near capacity audience poured into the Kings Performing Arts Centre on Saturday night to hear the first in the Southern Victorian Charitable Trusts 2008 concert series performed by St Kilda Brass.

The evening opened with a rousing arrangement of John Williams Olympic Spirit played with Cornets and Trombones stood around the band. Following a quick reshuffle onstage the concert continued with Verdi’s Force of Destiny Overture which was full of excitement and tight ensemble playing. The bands soloists shone throughout this number, in particular John Lewis (Cornet), Marty Kibble (Flugel) and Ian O’Malley (Euphonium). The impact of these first couple of numbers was enhanced significantly by the superb use of stage lighting. This I believe is the first time the band has added a professional lighting show to one of its concerts and it certainly added to the whole atmosphere of the concert.

Principal Trombonist of the New Zealand Symphony orchestra and one of the Southern Hemisphere’s premiere Brass talents, David Bremner took to the stage to perform Guillmant’s Morceu Symphonique which was delivered with precision and panache. David’s excellent tone quality throughout the entire range of the instrument was a feature throughout together with impressive lyrical phrasing. David followed with a real ‘golden oldie,’ the Acrobat. Despite the very light and humorous nature of this piece, David’s Trombone playing class was ever present. To encore David’s first solo set he was joined by the bands Trombone section and Flugel to perform Goff Richards arrangement of I Will Follow Him. A lively number that was great fun to hear, though I’m not convinced about the bands swaying!

David Bremner with St Kilda Brass

Through Bolts & Bars got the audience’s feet tapping again before Beethoven’s 2^nd movement of the Moonlight Sonata. Unusual to hear a band perform this piece however it was delivered with real sensitivity and poise. A concert of requests would not be complete without some music from the film Brassed Off and next on the programme was Rodrigo’s Concerto d’aranjeuz performed by Marty Kibble. Marty thrilled the audience with some beautiful Flugel sounds and lovely delicate phrasing – a real highlight of the evening before the big bombastic blasts of Tchaikowsky’s 1812 Overture.

The second half got underway with the Introduction to Act III of Wagner’s Opera Lohengrin which featured the broad and powerful sounds of the bands bottom end. Next came the only slight disappointment of the evening in Debussy’s Claire de Lune. This is a very lovely piece of music that requires so much delicacy and sensitivity and that was not always present. However, In the Hall of the Mountain King certainly took the band back into their comfort zone. 

Steve Miles duets with David Bremner