BACKSTAGE WITH…
James Crabb Accordionist
Anthony Marwood and you are performing Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending at the Petworth Festival. What makes it a suitable work for arrangement for violin and accordion?
There is already the version for piano and violin, which I took as my template. There is, though, a lot of colouring in the accordion which responds to the wind instruments and so on and which a piano can’t replicate – it’s that colouring that makes this arrangement so interesting. It is also such an intimate work, which is something the violin and accordion can express. Whenever we do a transcription like this, I am always looking for ways to bring something new and interesting to the score, and we don’t just do them because they happen to be popular works. Plus it works well within the programme as a whole, which is like going out to dinner – you want a nice starter and dessert and a satisfying main course in between. I think we’ve captured that here.
Tell us a little about Sally Beamish’s Seavaigers…
This is a concerto that was originally written for two folk musicians – violinist Chris Stout and harpist Catriona Mckay – plus string ensemble. I replaced the harp part with the accordion, while Sally enhanced the violin part for Anthony, just to add a little bit more of a challenge! It partly tells the story of the Highland Clearances of the 18th century, when people were moved off their land and went into fishing, but often had no idea about sailing. The concerto’s Lament is for those lost at sea trying to earn a living.
You begin and end with works by Piazzolla. Were these originally written for the bandoneon rather than the accordion?
They were, yes. The accordion is probably the closest instrument to the bandoneon, plus the largest accordions can have up to four voices playing on each note, which gives a really rich colour that can relate to the bandoneon too. Of course, it’s not a bandoneon, but playing Piazzolla on an accordion is all about being respectful to the style of the music, just as when you play, say, JS Bach on the guitar or the piano.
How long have you and Anthony been playing together?
Anthony and I have known each other for about 15-or-so years. We did the occasional performance together here and there and really enjoyed it, so said, ‘Why not give it a go as a duo?’ It’s quite unusual, but we really like making music together and when you have that sort of chemistry you want to do more. We are always keen to surprise the audience with music they might not expect!