On a chilly Yass afternoon, Sunday August 12, soprano Greta Bradman, accompanied by Stewart Kelly on piano, gave a wonderful performance to the Yass Music Club in Memorial Hall.
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Yass fell in love with Bradman for her graciousness and extraordinarily beautiful voice; the easy manner in which she shared her unique skills in a wide variety of music, from classical operatic arias to traditional folk, plus a variety of lyrical songs from a range of genres.
The concert began with three operatic arias, the first two from Verdi’s Rigoletto with Gilda’s aria – Dearest name (Caro nome), expressing a young girl’s forlorn love as she meditates on her love, followed by Vanne, lasciami as Leonora’s aria from Il Trovatore in which she showed her mastery of bel canto; the dialogue between voice and piano in the hall was quite stunning.
Quite stunning
The third aria was the Bell song from Lakme, deriving a Hindu setting in which Lakme is forced to sing to lure the trespasser to identify himself, and in which Bradman’s technical mastery of the voice was perfect.
The remainder of the first half comprised the exquisite Vocalise by Rachmaninoff and Dvorak’s ethereal Song to the moon; the art of the singer in her interpretation of these pieces held the audience in raptures.
At interval, Yass Hospital Auxiliary served a fine afternoon tea and the traditional raffle was drawn with Margaret Carr winning the first CD and Janine Wade winning a CD, generously donated by Greta.
The second half began with Aaron Copland’s arrangement of Simple gifts, followed by Benjamin Britten’s arrangement of the traditional Scottish folk song O waly waly; the Thomas Moore arrangement of The last rose of summer; concluding with Rimsky-Korsakov’s The nightingale and the rose, Henry Bishop’s Lo! here the gentle lark, Ernest Bishop’s When I have sung my songs and Bradman sang several encores including Home sweet home.
As well as providing a very sympathetic accompaniment to Bradman, Stewart Kelly played two delightful piano pieces, the lovely and lyrical Schubert Impromptu in A flat and Elgar’s haunting Salut d’amour.
Bradman made special mention of the appearance and acoustics of the hall, and remarked on what a special performance space it provided.
To mark Yass Music Club’s appreciation of Bradman, president Peter Crisp presented her with a piece of Crisp glass as a remembrance of Yass and the great appreciation we all felt for her.
She had provided us with a wonderful musical experience with her great and unique talent, and the charm of her voice will always resonate with the club.
The club’s next concert will be on Saturday October 20.
