Musical joy and virtuosity spread to broad swathes of the population this afternoon, before Nigel Kennedy took over the Crucible stage for his evening gig, as Ensemble 360 poured playful, passionate virtuosity into a richly textured, top quality musical entertainment specially composed for the very young by award-winning composer-in-residence and canny Scot, Paul Rissman.
Inspired by the heart-warming, beautifully illustrated tales of Benji Davies, The Storm Whale is the latest children’s work to join Music-in-the-Round’s and Rissman’s growing cannon of interactive, fun-time, storytelling concerts that always prove a treat for kids and adults alike. Springing to scintillating musical life, The Storm Whale now joins Giddy Goat, Sir Scallywag and the Golden Underpants, Crazy Creatures, The Chimpanzees of Happytown, Stan and Mabel, Izzy Gizmo and the rest.
Engaging, narrator-in-charge was Lucy Drever, bravely facing seas of motley 3–7-year-olds with their adults and smatterings of younger siblings and babes in arms. Fun, humour, interactive participation, the telling of a touching story and outstanding music are what it’s all about but with never a hint of stint when it comes to polished professionalism on every front. A simple, tuneful greeting song was first sung to all and sundry, then to each of the eleven players in turn, who demonstrated the range of intriguing sounds their strings, woodwind, brass and piano can produce before all coming together in harmonious blend for some fishy Saint-Saens, some Errollyn Wallen and a chance to stand up and dance with Sir Malcolm Arnold. Once the audience had practised being turtles, dolphins, whales and fish, conjured up storms and waves, painted things blue and indulged in some clap, stomp, whoop, chomp-chomp, Lucy ran through the simple words and tunes of the songs that accompany the story (which some of the tots had already pre-practised online) and then, off they went.
With the book’s lovely illustrations projected above, the touching story was told of little Noi, his father and grandma, a beached whale, a wooden flute and a devastating storm. Loneliness, sadness, and scary, difficult times come little Noi’s way, but ultimately, the reassuring joys of love and warm friendship win out. And as the words told the story, so did Paul Rissman’s wonderful music. Luckily, he was also in the audience today, ready to catch the hundreds of giant (invisible) stars everyone threw his way.
From start to finish the rich textures and picture-painting moods of Rissman’s compositions sparkle with life and character, reflecting closely those sad, lonely moments, the threatening storms, the loss and devastation, and the warmth and tenderness of love and friendship and of the characters themselves. Each instrument comes to the fore to shine bright at some point with the added splendour of highlights from perky, piping piccolo and big, beautiful bass clarinet. Cleverly hidden little nods (possibly?) to the likes of Jaws, Keep the Home Fires Burning and Shostakovich in jazz mode bring fascination for youngsters and adults alike in an all-round excellence of rich solo moments and sectional and full ensemble blends.
Surely there can be no better introduction to live music than to hear and watch eleven stunning musicians pour passionate, world-class expertise into playing such wonderfully pleasing music on so many instruments. Odds on some will be inspired for life now by the wonder, enjoyment and magic of music and music-making, whatever their age. Mission accomplished.
Eileen Caiger Gray
