KZNPO SEPTEMBER SINFONIA

Durban concert goers can look forward to a musical shot in the arm when the KZN Philharmonic presents the acclaimed Dutch reed quintet Calefax in its next Sinfonia Concert on September 11.

Calefax has been described as a 'classical ensemble with a pop mentality'. It is noted as much for the engaging informality of its performance style as for its innovative and imaginative programming and the brilliance of its playing. The virtuoso reed quintet performs standing up, often from memory, with its members introducing their programme to the audience.

"The sheer sound was fabulous,” wrote Ivan Hewett in The Daily Telegraph, “but what set the seal on things was the electrifying performance ... these players brought it off time and again, and played with lovely stylish grace. The whole thing was a joy, and I doubt whether I've seen all year a performance prepared with such loving care."

Celebrating its 25th anniversary this year, Calefax is renowned for the fresh and rigorously eclectic approach it brings to its music-making. This sees its members adopting an extraordinarily creative, ‘hands-on’ policy of selecting repertoire that spans no less than eight centuries, from early music, renaissance, baroque, and romantic works to jazz or world premières.

Chosen repertoire is arranged, recomposed and interpreted by the members of the group, superbly offsetting the rich sonic potential and unique aural palette of an ensemble of oboe, clarinet, saxophone, bass clarinet and bassoon. Predictably, the results have wowed international audiences wherever the virtuoso Calefax players have performed, transcending the distinctions between new music forums and early music festivals.

Works to be heard in the group’s typically wide-ranging programme include music from Bach and Vivaldi, to Mendelssohn, Shostakovich and Richard Strauss, laced with contemporary compositions by Sweeklink, Kevin Volans and Mayke Nas.

Sponsored by The Dutch Embassy and Houtkapperspoort, the Dutch reed quintet Calefax’s Durban concert ends its current two-week tour of South Africa.

The performance takes place at St Thomas’s Anglican Church, Musgrave Road, Berea, on September 11 at 11h30. Tickets R45 (R30 students and scholars) available at the door.