Music / Early Music Day: Boismortier 270. At Wesley Music Centre, Forrest, October 10. Reviewed by NICK HORN

The stage was filled with harpsichords and a shifting array of baroque flautists as we were treated to a delightfully airy tribute to the music of Joseph Bodin de Boismortier, who died 270 years ago in 1755.

This was a day devoted to the French baroque flute. The concert was preceded by a masterclass and Q&A session, and followed by introductions to early flutes (by Harry Howard) and the Wesley Music Centre’s wonderful collection of harpsichords (by Ariana Odermatt).

It was the brainchild of ANU’s Dr Sally Walker, who (with the assistance of the Friends of the School of Music and the Wesley Centre) brought one of the world’s great exponents of the baroque flute, Prof Marion Treupel-Franck, to Canberra from Germany, with the German-based Aussie Latham Horn, for a three-day residency with Walker’s students, culminating in this Early Music Day. 

There is a particular magic to French music from the 17th and 18th centuries, and the baroque flute – more refined than its modern descendents, soft-spoken and breathy – was regarded as its ideal medium (closest to the human voice).

The discerning audience showed warm appreciation of Boismortier’s capacity to exploit different combinations of flutes (solo, duo, trio, quintet), accompanied and unaccompanied, to produce music of charm, variety and grace. The smiles and glances passing between the players showed what it meant to be coming together to celebrate one of the notable composers for their instrument.

The concert opened with a spectacle: a Concerto (op. 15 No. 1) for 5 flutes –Treupel-Franck and Horn combining with four ANU students – Howard, Fin Torpy and Charlotte Blake on flute and Alex Monro on baroque viola – and Odermatt on harpsichord.

Perhaps the group would have been more firmly grounded with added bass – cello or viola da gamba – but Odermatt did a terrific job throughout the program, supporting the performers solidly and with style, taking advantage of Boismortier’s writing for harpsichord as an additional voice in the ensemble, as well as in its conventional role as harmonic support.

A number of special moments stood out. In the Doucement (sweetly) movement from the Trio Sonata (op. 7 No. 4), the music almost stood still, limpid, like drops of rain dripping from a leaf, as Treupel-Franck, Walker and Horn exchanged single notes in an intense conversation. Treupel-Frank began the Solo Suite (op. 35 No. 5) with an unaccompanied Prélude played with masterful freedom and gossamer ornamentation, and continued (with Odermatt) to demonstrate the unhurried, languid elegance of the French Baroque: short phrases, dramatic silence, gorgeous descending inégale (unequal) runs and playfully flipped graces. In an unaccompanied Duo Concerto (op. 38 No. 2), Horn and Treupel-Frank offered a masterclass in active listening, playfully swapping melodies and switching lines. 

The Early Music Day demonstrated the potential for community outreach led by elite artists such as Walker that we stand to lose if the ANU’s music performance program is further restricted.