Toad Lane Concerts: Telemann Baroque Ensemble

Telemann Baroque Ensemble

This splendid company of music makers has become a regular feature of St Mary in the Baum’s midday music. The line-ups may vary and draw on a vast repertoire, so no two concerts are the same, but the quality is consistently great.

On Wednesday 7 September there was a sizeable group of six players: a string quartet with solo flute and the obligatory harpsichord for that distinctive Baroque sound.

Peter Collier directed his troupe from the harpsichord with aplomb and functioned as compère providing us with witty, informative background and context to the music.

Experienced solo flautist Alastair Roberts led Quantz Flute Quartet in D and Telemann Flute Sonata in G, with various combinations of the other highly skilled players Elaine da Costa and Sarah Snape violins, John Goodstadt on viola, and Roger Bisby on cello, who also alternated with Handel’s Quartet in G and Correlli’s trio sonata for strings and harpsichord.

They all combined in a delightful performance of Boccherini’s Flute concerto in D - strictly speaking more Classical than Baroque, perhaps demonstrating the fulfilment of the rise of purely instrumental music through that exciting period?

All extremely able and experienced performers and soloists, their playing certainly lifted the music from the page. More significantly their ensemble playing proved once again that the whole is greater than the sum of its parts.

Yet again, glorious music-making in the wonderful acoustic of St Mary in the Baum. The next appearance of the ensemble will be on 16 November.

The Queen’s Award-winning Toad Lane Concerts are every Wednesday at 12.30pm at the Grade 1 listed church of St Mary in the Baum, Toad Lane, Rochdale, OL16 1DZ. Entrance fee is £6. No refreshments available now, but the venue is Covid-19 compliant. Contact 01706 648872 for further information.

To see details of forthcoming Toad Lane Concerts, click here.

Dr Joe Dawson