This was my second year at the Innovate Skelmanthorpe Brass Band concert. After seeing their brilliant performance last year with Hayley Westenra, I was excited to see them performing with another Classicalx featured artist, Alfie Boe and extra guest Becky Jane Taylor.
Although Huddersfield Town Hall is quite large, it does not have the impersonal atmosphere of a large arena and so, when you take your seat, you really do feel relaxed and amongst friends.
The performers are more than just a dot on the horizon and the intimacy of this, really adds to the enjoyment of the concert. This concert really was a family affair too and it was nice to see the audience made up of people of all ages from very young children to senior citizens, everyone seemed to enjoy the friendly and welcoming atmosphere.
Owing to prior commitments, the usual conductor, John Roberts was unable to lead the band, but they were left in the capable hands of Les Beavers, who is a legend in the brass band world and kept us entertained throughout the evening with his stories, jokes and lively banter with Alfie Boe. Indeed, the whole evening seemed very informal and relaxed and yet the band and singers all gave a very professional performance.
The concert started with the band playing Folk Festival from Shostakovitch which was a great piece to open with and the sound produced by the band was very impressive. This was then followed by one of my favourite pieces, the overture to The Barber of Seville by Rossini which in parts was played with such speed that the fingers of the players seemed to be a blur.
The band then concluded the first section with 49th Parallel by Vaughan Williams.
Les introduced the first of the special guests that evening, which was to be Alfie Boe. He spoke a bit about Alfie's musical background, the many places that Alfie had performed and also the accolades he has achieved to date.
Alfie then came on to a rapturous applause and started his set with 'A Living Prayer', taken from his album "Onward". This is a wonderful song and one I have heard Alfie sing in concert before. I find the lyrics very moving and Alfie's voice really emphasizes the words to make them particularly meaningful.
Alfie's next song was the well known hymn ' Be Still My Soul', which, like his first song was performed to a backing track, but this didn't detract anything from the performance and was quite beautiful.
Before his next song Alfie chatted to the audience a bit and made some friends by throwing sweets into the crowd. He also said how backstage he had been discussing the difference between musicians and singers. Turning to the audience, he said how he had heard the band sing and he could now state for the record that they are definitely musicians! With that he turned to the band and flashed them a cheeky smile which brought many laughs from the band and the audience.
Alfie was then joined on stage by Les and they performed the brilliant anthem 'I Vow to Thee My Country'. This song is also included on Alfie's album Onward and so I have heard him sing this many times,but I was eager to see how Alfie's voice would blend with the band. The result was astounding, so much so that it gave me goosebumps. Alfie and the band complimented each other perfectly, neither one being more prominent than the other but rather in complete harmony and it made you feel quite patriotic.
This song also proved to be quite a hit with the audience and there were general murmurs of consent around me at how wonderful Alfie's voice was and how good he sounded with the band.
The Band had a second guest artist with them this year, Becky Jane Taylor. Becky followed Alfie on stage to perform her first set which consisted of 'The Water is Wide', 'God Help The Outcasts' and then a piece by Handel which was accompanied by the band. Although only 18yrs old, Becky has been singing since the age of 6 and when you see her perform, you would not believe that the voice belongs to a teenager as it sounds so well developed. The Band also complimented Becky's voice very well and Becky said how honoured she was to have been invited to sing with them, particularly as her Grandfather hailed from nearby Heckmondwike and would have loved to have seen her perform near his hometown.
The Band concluded the first half with Fanfare and Flourishes by James Currow and Two Movements from Hymn of the Highlands by Phillip Sparke. Both pieces were well suited to the Brass Instruments and the band certainly excelled themselves by playing both with great flourish and enthusiasm.
After the Interval, the band opened with the theme tune to 'Stingray' by Bram Gray, this proved to be a popular number as many people in the audience were humming along with the music. They then played a more relaxing piece by Kenneth Downie called, 'In Perfect Peace' and demonstrated that brass instruments can be both lively and relaxing.
The band were then rejoined by Becky Jane Taylor who sang; 'You Raise Me Up', 'By Your Side' and 'Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again' from Phantom of the Opera.
Les then reintroduced Alfie, who came on to great applause and whistles from the crowd. He teased the crowd for a few minutes by taking his jacket off and folding it very carefully, only to throw it on the floor the next minute. Alfie then sang the beautiful 'Gaelic Blessing by John Rutter and although Alfie does have a very powerful voice, he showed with this piece that he can also sing the gentle and softer pieces too and this one was quite breathtaking. Great applause followed this and he chatted to the audience again whilst waiting for the conductor to re-appear on the stage for their next song. Alfie told the audience about his upcoming role with the ENO singing in Kismet and urged people to go straight home after the concert as he was appearing on Parkinson that night, singing the song 'Stranger in Paradise' (also due to be released as a single on June 25th).
After a few moments, Les had still not appeared and Alfie looking slightly worried, joked that this was the best joke that Les had done all evening. This had the audience in fits of laughter and when Les finally re-joined the band, Alfie asked him if he'd been delayed in the bar. Les and Alfie continued for a few minutes with some gentle teasing before the band joined Alfie to perform the well-known piece 'You'll Never Walk Alone'. The sound was incredible and Alfie invited the audience to sing along too. It is hard to describe the atmosphere at this point because of how wonderful it sounded, but as I looked around, I saw a few people with tears in their eyes and yet, thoroughly enjoying it all the same.
Alfie then left the stage to calls for an encore from the audience and great applause and cheering.
The band finished the evening with a song that is going to be on their new album 'Comedy Tonight' by Stephen Sondheim and 'Coronation Scene' from Boris Godunov by Mussorgsky. The audience showed their appreciation by cheering and applauding very loudly and were rewarded by both Becky and Alfie returning to the stage for an encore with the band. Les asked Alfie and Becky if they were ready and Alfie couldn't resist doing a few stretching exercises on the stage much to the amusement and delight of the audience.
To close the concert, they sang a medley of songs from the musical West Side Story including 'Tonight', 'One Hand', 'One Heart' and 'Somewhere'.
Hearing the band and both artists performing together was nothing short of spectacular and it seemed they certainly saved the best for last as the resulting sound was fantastic.
Finally the band and peformers took their bows and Alfie and Becky received gifts from the band before a final wave to the crowds and the end of another successful concert.
It was a wonderful evening of entertainment and music and I hope to join the band again for next years concert.
