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Monday 21st April
Recital Series

London Mozart Players and Tasmin Little (Violin), Holy Trinity Church, 7.30pm

The LMP is the UK’s longest-established chamber orchestra. Founded in 1949 by the great Harry Blech, it has since had Jane Glover, Matthias Bamert and Andrew Parrott as its Musical Directors. It performs widely throughout the UK and Europe, with many of our most famous soloists, as in tonight’s concert (given in collaboration with the Shropshire Music trust and Orchestras Live).

Tasmin Little is a welcome returnee to this Series, having performed here with Martin Roscoe in 2005. A thrilling musician, Tasmin exudes personality and enthusiasm, and her exquisite playing delights audiences all over the world. The prospect of hearing her play the Beethoven Violin Concerto (on her Strad) is one to savour. The programme also includes Mozart’s happy Marriage of Figaro Overture and the Serenade for Strings by Tchaikovsky.

Review from The Oswestry Advertizer - 29th April 2008

(Strangely no mention of the Oswestry School Recital Series)

Live music by a professional orchestra is always well subscribed but even the most optimistic observer could not have predicted the huge turnout last week for the London Mozart Players directed by Tasmin Little in Oswestry’s Holy Trinity Church.

As part of the Shropshire Music Trust season, in association with ‘Orchestras Live!’, the concert featured Tasmin Little in three roles – conductor in Mozart’s overture Marriage of Figaro, leader in Tchaikowsky’s Serenade for Strings and soloist/director in Beethoven’s Violin Concerto.

The overture was a sparkling introduction played with vigour and splendid blend between wind and strings. The acoustics in Holy Trinity are very firm and would be unforgiving of any blurring of the musical lines, but Tasmin Little ensured a pacy and invigorating delivery.

The soundscape changed with Tchaikowsky’s Serenade for Strings, the strings aiming for a ‘forte’ dynamic much of the time but with much brilliant interplay between sections, most notably in the reflective ‘Elegia’.

A quite extraordinary performance of Beethoven’s Violin Concerto followed. So often this work is presented as a brilliant soloist captivating the audience with an orchestral backing but Tasmin Little gave a much more intimate interpretation where she played into the orchestra. This concerto is akin to a musical journey where the soloist leads the listener through a series of visions and with Tasmin Little these were often of breathtaking beauty – even the virtuoso passages were more beauty than bravado.

A detailed analysis of this performance is superfluous – four prolonged curtain calls reflect well how the audience reacted to excellent playing by the London Mozart Players and a solo performance that will be long remembered!

RD