Robert Macfarlane mused whether the performance was a concert or a gig, as the audience settled in for an evening of classical-meets-folk at Milton Court. By the end, melodeon and harmonica player Will Pound had decided the encore—a lively arrangement of the Sailor's Hornpipe—would be 'a rave', drawing polite laughter from the well-behaved crowd.
The duo Stevens & Pound, billing themselves as 'left-field folk', brought high-energy, rhythmically driven virtuosity. Percussionist Delia Stevens danced between instruments laid out like a jumble sale, including mixing bowls, a toy piano, guitar, vibraphone, drums, and shakers, often playing two or three at once.
Their reimagining of Holst's Planets Suite, titled The Silent Planet, featured poetic narrations by Macfarlane and improvisations from Britten Sinfonia soloists. Conductor Clark Rundell led each movement, with striking effects: terrifying conch shell blasts for Mars, bright horn flares in Mercury, and a whirlwind hoedown for Venus. However, the piece sprawled noisily, with movements sliding into each other, and Ian Gardiner's orchestration lacked the finesse of Holst's original. The new movement, Earth, threaded with All Things Bright and Beautiful, offered brief respite before another syncopated romp.
The first half showcased older folk-classical meetings, including Britten's English Folksong Suite and Grainger's Lincolnshire Posy, performed by Britten Sinfonia's wind and brass joined by Sinfonia Smith Square members. A Stevens & Pound medley transformed folk tunes into funky tango and bluegrass. Fragmentary and ambitious, it was undeniably fun.
