Review: Northern Chords Gala Concert, The Sage Gateshead

Mar 23 2010 by David Whetstone, The Journal

THE second Northern Chords chamber music festival ended triumphantly with a gem of a concert in the intimate Hall Two.

For many people, myself included, there is no instrument to beat the cello. It is said to most resemble the human voice.

Cellophony, then, was a rare treat. Very rare, in fact. You could probably go a lifetime without hearing eight cellos being played in unison.

The talented octet, seven young men and a woman, put the instrument through its paces, seeming to throw caution to the wind.

They played fast, they played slow, the melody passing from one to the other and back.  sometimes with dizzying speed.  Every now and again they all swapped seats. It was mesmerising.

After the interval, 15-year-old Jessica Ng, the newly-crowned Northern Chords Young Musician of the Year, sat at the grandest of grand pianos for a short recital, demonstrating why she was judged best of 10 finalists in Saturdays competition.

Jessica, who attends Prudhoe Community High School,  will play again tonight at The Journal Culture Awards at the Gala Theatre, Durham.

As a wonderful climax, cellist Jonathan Bloxham, Gateshead-born founder of the festival, took the stage with yet more music college friends for a sparkling performance of The Carnival of the Animals by Saint-Saons.

The musicians seemed to enjoy it as much as the audience, which summed up the spirit of this fresh and youthful festival.

Rob Langley, senior partner of principal sponsor Watson Burton, encapsulated   the mood when he spoke of  the importance of beauty and music in a time of recession.