Lilburn in Concert

Besides the opera, the week before study break brought forth an abundance of concerts. After the excitement of Beethoven's Missa Solemnis on June 10th, the following Wednesday the Poly-Vic orchestra performed Shostakovich Symphony no. I at one end of town, while at the other, Rae de [unclear: Lisl] played Beethoven's hardy perennial - the Appassionata. Even after so many hearings, Beethoven has the unmatched ability to surprise and delight.

The lunchtime concert on Thursday 15th June also featured Shostakovich. The String Quartet no. 8 is his fierce comment on the fire storms after the bombing of Dresden - a powerful work, professionally and sincerely performed. But for me the most memorable work of the concert, of many concerts, was the final item - Douglas Lilburn's Sonatina for clarinet and piano, performed by June Brain (clarinet) and Margaret Nielsen (piano). Written in 1948, the work is fairly typical of the period in having a strongly tonal basis, yet has a poignant charm of its own. The [unclear: by composition] was delightful - pity it [unclear: wasn't] recorded.