Marcio da Silva and the Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra

Marcio da Silva, conductor and musical director of the Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir

Trevor Jones, guitarist, thinks about the recent performance of the Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Marcio da Silva and their next concert on November 11.

The concert on Wednesday 18th October at the White Rock Theatre opened with Beethoven’s Egmont Overture, conducted by Yuri Zhoslin. Its dark brooding opening (originally the introduction to a drama by Goethe), then becomes slightly sunnier and prepares us listeners for the Beethovian rhythm feast which came later.

The Brahms violin concerto, beautifully played by Natalia Lomeiko, is one of the greatest of concertos. It requires gravitas and musical knowledge to perform the huge first movement. The second movement needs a more personal expression to exploit the possible serenity and beauty. I must mention the oboe solo at the beginning of this movement, superbly played by the principal oboist. The third movement, which is virtually a Hungarian gypsy dance, requires a sense of fun, which Natalia demonstrated with abundance when she performed a witty duet for violin and viola with Yuri as an encore.

After the interval the symphony for the evening was Beethoven’s 7th. This is a large work and a wonderful example of Beethoven’s orchestral genius. Richard Wagner described it as ‘the apotheosis of the dance’. Marcio da Silva danced the rhythms he demanded of the orchestra. I think Wagner would have appreciated this performance.

One section which really caught my attention occurred just after the opening of the first movement. A six note motif is passed round the orchestra, and on my recordings of this it sounds quite mundane. Marcio danced the rhythm and cut the last note with a slight staccato accent, this made the motif’s journey exciting and easy to follow. It was a wonderful evening of music, which I enjoyed very much, and I do go to many concerts.

Marcio da Silva is a brilliant musician and conductor; we should be very proud that he has chosen to live and work in Hastings. If you haven’t been to an HPO concert I recommend that you do. There are cheap seats available. The sound of a live symphony orchestra is magical, and to have an orchestra this good so near to home is a real privilege. You can pay by card on the night.

Next concert: Beethoven Missa Solemnis. Hastings Philharmonic Choir and Orchestra, Marcio da Silva Conductor.

Saturday 11 November 7pm. St John’s the Evangelist, St Leonards-on-Sea.

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