La Mer and George Lloyd
The Ealing Symphony Orchestra, under its Musical Director, John Gibbons, is known for its exploratory programmes, not in an avant garde sense perhaps, but more in performing works that are or have been relegated as being not “interesting” enough by our professional orchestras. Gibbons has performed all the underestimated nine symphonies by Malcolm Arnold, one by one each year. He is now well underway in bringing the many merits of the George Lloyd series of symphonies to his audiences, again one each season. Tonight it was the Fifth Symphony that drew plaudits from the audience.
The concert was held at St Barnabas Church, Ealing, London on Saturday 23 November 2024 at 7.00pm.
To start any concert with Debussy’s La Mer is a bold undertaking. No chance of a warm act, instead straight into the mysteries of the sea, for all its many manifestations. This is a tricky work for any orchestra, demanding extreme concentration by every section to master Debussy’s textures in sound. The ESO passed most of the challenges with only a few mishaps that most audience members would not have grasped. The main point is how well Gibbons guided his players with such authority and expertise through this multi-layered work. There were plenty of exciting moments where the salt water inhabited our inner senses, be they calm or wild ones. It is truly one of the 20th century’s masterpieces and no one can complain they were shortchanged in the 25 or so minutes duration, experiencing so many twists and turns created by Debussy’s abundant imagination.
Before the interval we heard the Saxophone Concerto by Paul Carr, played by Rob Burton with great expertise and sentiment. This originates from an earlier Oboe Concerto and seemed right at home on the saxophone. Challenges abounded and were met by Burton with ease. The simple elegy of the middle movement, composed while Carr’s mother passed away, is the heart of the work and, here Gibbons and Burton were at one in producing a beauty of tone that was most moving.
George Lloyd’s Fifth Symphony extends to just over an hour, in line with most of his others. It is typical of Lloyd’s way with mixing heart-warming orchestration with melodic content that surely has plenty of audience appeal. Why is this tune-smith so ignored by all our professional orchestras today? In, say, the Czech Republic he would be recognised for his approachability and played regularly. In Great Britain it seems our equivalent orchestras hear him as being too easy on the ear, lacking “intellectual” snobbishness. Gibbons takes full credit in dismissing such nonsense by performing the symphonies in front of a full house. This is not to say Lloyd is entirely safe from criticism. He does tend to wander away from his symphonic goals in favour of writing too much when a little less would give credence to his claim for symphonic mastery. But dull he is not.
The orchestra is kept uniformly busy in Lloyd’s symphonies and the players always seem to relish performing his works. They give the impression they do so out of love more than an onerous duty.
The Fifth Sympphony was in five very different movements, each with a reason for being written. This allowed the orchestra to explore Lloyd’s abilities in covering so many disparate feelings in a single work. Gibbons captured this variety of atmospheres very successfully and always promoted the melodic content coming from all the sections to best effect.
Edward Clark for Musical Opinion, January — March 2025.