WOC kicked off the evening with a warm program made brighter still by their colourful coordinating scarves. With four different sizes of clarinet; bass, alto, Eb and the standard Bb, augmenting the range of the sound, they made an exultant start with the energetic Spanish Aragonaise, contrasted with the second piece, the distinctly French gentle lullaby Berceuse. The loss of the lyrics was more than made up for in the two show tunes; Summertime from Porgy and Bess and On My Own from Les Miserables by the highly expressive playing in the melody line. The first of the Cuban dances was equally lyrical, whilst in the second we could imagine the sound of castanets accompanying it. Copenhagen brought the program to an exciting and satisfying end.

(Maddy Southey)

WOC’s Programme:

Aragonaise (from Carmen) – Bizet

Berceuse – Fauré arr. Marks

Summertime – Gershwin arr. Marshall

Two Cuban Dances – Cervantes

On My Own – Schonberg arr. Marks

Copenhagen – Davis arr. Reinier