Ashling Findlay-Carroll reviews a 'bold and unique' performance.
Conductor and composer Greg Lawson leads the
Grit orchestra with energy and dynamism. He talks to the audience with an easy
charm as he recalls stories and memories with real warmth and invites you into
the world of Martyn Bennett. It feels very much like you’re sharing a drink
around a roaring fire in a highland pub.
The music swells and soars and takes us on
journey through the landscape of Scotland. We hear the mountains, the forests,
the lochs so clearly that you can almost smell the wet grass after fresh
rainfall. The rich tones of David Hayman when he joins compliment the
orchestral sound wonderfully and pulls you into the imagery further.
There is such love and care taken in the playing
of the piece that the sound created radiates joy, a feeling that permeates the
rooms and each person in it. The fact that this was rehearsed in three hours is
quite simply astounding: the orchestra play together with an electricity that
would lead us to believe they’d played this piece together for years.
Bold and unique, this epic sound leaves the
audience feeling uplifted and invigorated—a similar effect to a walk in the
Scottish countryside on a bracing spring day. As Greg points out about the
piece, ‘It doesn’t ask you to like it,’ but from the smiles and rapturous
applause, one thing is clear: we certainly do!
Part of this year’s EIF Festival. Run ended.
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