It can often feel in music as though tragedy sets the agenda, valuing the dark and sad as more substantial than the bright and joyful. But true joy can have explosive impact. And a good example is Haydn’s oratorio The Creation, which exploded into the hearts of a packed audience as the closing concert in this year’s Bath Mozartfest.
The venue was Bath Abbey, which is in the throes of renovation just now but still a magnificent space. And this was a magnificent performance by the period band La Nuova Musica, conductor David Bates, with the superb Holst Singers who have some claim to being the most accomplished semi-pro choir in Britain. Technically it was immaculate. But more than this, it wore a radiant smile. It basked in goodwill. It was fun – as The Creation ought to be, given the unadulterated happiness that Haydn feeds into the score.
