The stage of the Dunedin Town Hall was filled with cello players yesterday when Cellists of Otago, directed by Heleen du Plessis, gave of their very best, presenting a recital of popular classics and musical favourites for a large audience. The event had been planned since pre-Covid and hopefully there will now be repeats in future years.
The opening number was a Peter Adams arrangement of Iron introducing blended rich tone and pizzicato, with accompanying percussion from Alex Burchell, followed by an arrangement of Arrival of the Birds (Johannsson). A leisurely delivery from a group of eight Bachianas Brasilieras No 5 by Villa-Lobos, demonstrated some excellent dynamic shading, as did a Shostakovich prelude arrangement by du Plessis. An arrangement of the well-known Schindler’s List featured solo cellist Sophie Hamer.
Ryan sang with well-balanced cello accompaniments. Her Villa-Lobos Cantilena was exquisite, with an unbelievably strong hummed final verse. Other solos with cello accompaniments were Hine e Hine and Tarakihi. Ryan also contributed an unaccompanied solo of Pokarekare Ana — such a strong and emotional performance which soared magnificently throughout the auditorium.
After a short interval, 40 less experienced cellists came on stage and "joined in", beginning with a performance of Peter Adam’s arrangement of the rhythmic Mellow Cellos Tango. The final numbers of Gospel Train, The Cello Song with percussion and French Folksong (Nelson) with strong unison passages conducted by Adams, were strong and resonating and completed a programme dedicated to the joys of cello playing.
