Contemporary sax quartet hits all the right notes
An eager audience listened raptly in Brodick Hall to the warm bright brass sounds conjured by youthful quartet Sax Ecosse on Saturday night.
Organised by Music Arran, this latest of a series of top musical performances brought much-anticipated delight to Arran’s strong community of music lovers.
Sax Ecosse is the name of the group which was founded by the two female members back in 2004. The group’s instruments span a full range of saxophone ‘voices’: soprano, tenor, alto and bass.
Each is a fine piece of polished metalwork, glinting gold under the lights, as the performers wrestle with their musical masterpieces. The performers took it in turn to introduce each work to the audience – highlighting links back to the golden age of the saxophone in US clubs, back in the 1930s.
Once the concert got under way, unfamiliar and memorable sounds punched stridently through the hall. Many of the pieces performed were written for saxophone performance and not widely aired. While Grieg’s Holberg Suite is regularly performed and broadcast, the arrangement for saxophone quartet came as a refreshing surprise, with the brass instruments giving a unique and compelling sound.
Only towards the end did a staccato passage yield what might have sounded to a passer-by like a traffic jam of classic cars – with the flamboyant honking that might be expected under such circumstances.
Living around Glasgow, the ensemble found it a pleasure to be able to hop on a train and be wafted over to the warm reception the members enjoyed on Arran. This has included being treated to homemade apple cake, with local apples, and overnight accommodation with local music supporters.
The grateful listeners applauded loudly and, after a delightful encore, departed contentedly into a still, clear Brodick night.