By Ellen Lew
Having been out of the flute-world loop for little a while, and given the high calibre and world-wide renown of the artists, I feel rather unqualified to review the VFG’s 50th Anniversary Gala Concert, except as a lay listener. So instead of writing a concert review, I wish to share a few of my thoughts/reminiscences as I sat back and enjoyed the evening.
How wonderful to see so many people in attendance! From my understanding, it has sometimes been difficult to get sell-out audiences at VFG events but on this night, it was great to see the seats filling up. It was lovely to be welcomed at the front desk by Annette Sloan, a stalwart member of the Victorian Flute Guild, who has served in many roles so marvellously over many years and continues to do so. Also of note in attendance (and please excuse me for not mentioning any other “famous” people I didn’t see or don’t know!) were Fred Shade and Margaret Rogers. Seeing Fred made me think about other players/teachers of his era – Vernon Hill, John Jones and David Bloom. Where are they now? As I recalled with Fred, in 1978, I attended a VFG Event called “Flute Focus ‘78”. It may have been one of my first Guild concerts but it created a long-lasting impression. It featured the four flautists of the MSO and I have never forgotten it. Ever since that concert, I have wanted to play the Reicha Flute Quartet in D Major. I bought the music but to this day, I’ve never seen or heard it performed again and I’ve never found 3 other people who wanted (or were able) to play it with me. (I’m not even sure I’d be able to play it now!)
Seeing Margaret Rogers reminded me of her late husband, Jim Scroggie, who worked tirelessly for the Guild as a foundation committee member and Honorary Treasurer. Margaret has also done so much for the Guild, most recently as past Editor of “The Flautist” and Honorary Treasurer. I remember meeting Jim when I first joined the Guild in the late 1970s. (In later years we played together in the Victorian Flute Ensemble.) He always wore the blue jacket with the VFG logo on it. I also had (and still have) one of these jackets and was proud to wear it. In those days, we performed Christmas Carols in the City Square and at Chadstone Shopping Centre. Back then (makes me sound ancient!), Chadstone was a single strip of shops, roughly from where Target is now, to the other end where Myer is. About half way, there was an open-air stage and that was where we performed the Carols…in our blue VFG jackets.
But on to the concert. What can I say? The Victorian Flute Ensemble was tight and professional. The extended techniques used in their pieces brings their playing to a whole new level and younger audience, whilst the classical favourites keep the older, more traditional listeners happy.
Jessie Gu sounded like an angel – pure and beautiful. Her movements, rather than being a distraction, brought additional feeling and character to the works.
I loved Ian Clarke’s pieces. I could visualise the African sunrise in “Orange Dawn” and the whales slowly circling deep in the ocean in “Deep Blue”. I really enjoyed “Curves” too, particularly the “curvy” sounds in the first movement and the speed and dexterity of the last movement. Aren’t we so fortunate to not only be able to look up and replay these compositions on YouTube, but also download the sheet music? That being said, I miss spending hours at Allans Music in the City, browsing through music and trying out pieces on the piano in the store. How times have changed.
Matthias Ziegler– I never knew that a flute could sound like a stringed instrument. And did people notice how he used pedals to create loops and harmonies with himself?
There are no words to describe how I feel about the stories and experiences behind Wissam Boustany’s music. I wish I’d taken time to attend previous VFG events where Wissam was the principal guest artist so that I could learn more about him. And whilst thinking about other things I’ve missed; I wish I’d been to Dookie camps. I’d always thought about it but I didn’t know anyone else and was quite shy back then. I also wasn’t a big fan of camps. My loss.
As a pianist, I am constantly humbled by Leigh Harrold’s abilities. How does he manage to learn so many accompaniments plus practise his own repertoire, teach and speak? He’s truly amazing. We are so fortunate to have him in our midst. I think it would be very interesting to interview him and see how he fits everything in. The accompaniments in the Gala concert were so complimentary to the flute parts, especially the Ian Clarke pieces.
Alice Bennett’s history of the Guild brought back memories of Leslie Barklamb. His grand-daughter Katie and I went to the same school. Katie was much younger than I was and Mr Barklamb was teaching her the piccolo. Some Fridays, he would pick both of us up in his old Volvo and I would have my lesson at his home in Glenhuntly Road. I remember he would always ask me what I wanted to play for him and mostly, we would just concentrate on that one piece – or just a tiny portion of that piece. Perhaps not the best teaching method for someone like me, as I would never choose the pieces that needed the most work!
Ah, it was a memorable night. Playing in the Massed Flute Ensemble so capably organised (as usual) by Carolyn Grace, was fun and the result sounded really good from where I stood (apart from a couple of misplaced E and A flats on my part). Thanks to everyone who was involved in organising the event. It was well worth it. Let’s hope we don’t have to wait another 10 years for the next one. And in the meantime, I should make more of an effort to attend Guild events so that in my Senior Years, I’ll have more memories to reminiscence about!
