Two polished Coast ensembles, some hot tunes and a demonstration of the versatility of the clarinet marked the opening concert of the Festival of Wind Music held at the Heritage Playhouse last weekend.
The third annual festival presented by the Sunshine Coast Music Society celebrates the best of both brass and woodwinds and strives for a varied program of classical, jazz and even pop music.
The Coast Wind Ensemble opened the show with Sarah Harding on flute and Yvonne Mounsey on clarinet. Mounsey remained on stage for the whole set and she was joined by clarinettist and bassoonist John Storer. The two worked well together, especially on their sonata by little-known composer Roberto Valentino. Though he reportedly wrote during the Baroque period until his death in 1735, his music harkens back to an earlier Medieval time. The two musicians switched moods with View of the Blues by Gordon Lewin that Mounsey dedicated to the late band leader Lyle Carter who always encouraged her to swing more.
Mounsey, Storer and Harding were joined by Alice Westlake on oboe and Beverly Burgoyne on French horn and closed their set as a quintet with a smooth blend of instruments on Franz Danzi's Quintet, Op.67, No. 1.
The musicians who make up the Coast Jazz Septet boast an impressive number of years of stage experience. If this were the '60s we'd call them cool cats. John Fredericksen on trumpet organized the group for this debut performance. Ken Grunenberg on tenor sax and Carl Montgomery on alto sax were given a good workout. They were joined by Bill Wishlow on trombone, Boyd Norman on bass, Tim Enns on drums and the vibrant piano of John Parker Toulson. They moved with ease from popular jazz standards to the hard core, like John Coltrane's Moment's Notice, and they seemed to have a special affinity for Duke Ellington. After performing a terrific Sophisticated Lady, their encore was another Ellington tune. These guys are ripe for a jazz festival sign up.
Though the S.C. Music Society's goal is to promote local talent, the festival usually brings in an off-Coast band for variety. The 35-member Delta Concert Band, under the direction of Jim Tempest, features musicians from all over the Lower Mainland who meet regularly in Ladner to rehearse and keep up a vigorous concert schedule.
Their presentation, according to Music Society president Allan Crane, was as good as other more well-known bands and, following their performance on Sunday afternoon, Crane considered this festival to be the best yet.
