“A triumph” was how the audience of 700 obviously viewed the concert at the Anvil last Saturday. It was the first joint concert by Basingstoke Symphony Orchestra and Basingstoke Choral Society for over 50 years, and what a wonderful collaboration it was! The clear highlight of the evening was a stunning performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto by local violin soloist Rebecca Totterdell who, fittingly, has family allegiances with both societies. She is now the permanent leader of the orchestra and the rapport between Miss Totterdell and her orchestra and conductor was of particular note. She clearly felt totally supported both musically and emotionally by her friends and the result was a calm and yet passionate rendition of this difficult concerto.

We were treated to a rousing opening work – a carefully constructed performance of Wagner’s Die Meistersinger overture where the dynamics meant we could really pick out all the different tunes and how they interleaved. All sections of the orchestra excelled. This was followed by the first combination of the choir and orchestra under Stephen Scotchmer’s baton – Brahms’s ‘Song of Destiny’. The two societies were obviously completely at ease about working together, as were the Musical Directors, Stephen Scotchmer and David Gibson, who took turns to conduct during the concert. Both choir and orchestra adapted well to the different conducting styles and were totally committed to producing as near to musical perfection as possible. The concentration paid off.

After the interval David Gibson conducted Puccini’s ‘Messa di Gloria’ – generally considered to be the finest of his non-operatic works. The tenor soloist, Paul Austin Kelly and bass-baritone soloist, Nicholas Warden, both lived up to their impressive reputations. Choir and orchestra both demonstrated their versatility in this piece, managing many different musical shades and the bel canto style was impressively mastered.

A most enjoyable evening was experienced by all performers and audience alike. Let’s hope there will be more similar collaborations in the future.

Robert Smith