Little Ensemble Makes it Big.

Aberdeen Vocal Ensemble is an independent offshoot of the Total Aberdeen Youth Choir. They gave their first concert in Kings College Chapel last night along with university organ scholar Tom Johnstone, who gave a masterful account of music by Cesar Franck.

The choir opened with John Tavener’s Funeral Ikos for Unaccompanied Choir sung unseen from the ante-chapel behind the audience. It came, therefore, as something of a shock to discover there were only eight voices.

Mozart's Ave Verum Corpus and Bruckner's Locus Iste, both beautifully phrased and with crystal clear words, were followed by John Ireland's anthem Greater Love Hath No Man.

The ensemble completed their performance with William Byrd's Mass for Four Voices. This large-scale work, sung almost without a pause, was magnificently sustained, with exceptional control of balance, intonation, instant rhythmic changes and rich sonority.
Alan Cooper (Press and Journal, June 2000)



Musica Transalpina Review.

Mass in G minor by Vaughan Williams. This was a thoroughly engaging performance, thanks to clear organ introductions, fresh-sounding solo performances by the four young voices of "AVE" and the fulsome, confident, yet sensitive and responsive singing of the chorus, which brought out the attractive English pastoral undercurrents of the music in harmony, melodies and above all rhythms.

Alan Cooper (May 2004)

Hot Mikado Review
17-20 October 2007

Artistic Director; Brian Gunnee
Director ; Jonathan MacDonell
M.D.; Iain Hingston
Choreographer; Mark Cameron

G & S is not everyone’s cup of tea, and the updating of this G & S classic had always gone a long way to make the show much more accessible. Original producer Mike Todd, retained the original
G & S plot, but changed the lyrics to reflect the times and by jazzing up the music, adding swing and blues to the occasion still managed to retain and reintroduce much original and new humour about the political situation in late thirties depression-era New York.

I was delighted to be asked to provide a report on AVE Productions Hot Mikado, as it is several years since I have seen the show and I was intrigued to see what this particular company had done with it;-and what a success this show was, with much credit to the Production Team and enthusiastic and vibrant young cast.

An up-tempo and swinging Gentlemen of Japan was the perfect introduction for Wand’ring Minstrel Nanki Pooh (Ryan Peacock), moving from second trombone to a “Rat Pack” second trumpet crooner and leading some intricate choreography that was to be a major feature of this production.
Colin Brockie as Pooh-Bah was indeed “The coolest cat in all of Titipu”, with a deep velvety voice, and a laid back stage presence that was one of the highlights of this show.

In contrast Gram Cumming bounded onto the stage with energy that made you gasp, as an effete, camp and completely over the top Ko-Ko. With high kicks, a forever smiling face and manic attitude this was a piece of stage comedy that was a joy to behold. The line “I must learn to take it like a man”, wasn’t lost on the audience either!!!

His ultimate and enforced love interest Katisha, was played to perfection by Zoe Nixon, with a mix of hot gospel and Torch Song, with an especially soulful rendition of Alone and yet Alive that drew an enthusiastic round of applause from an appreciative audience.

Putting the two characters together however revealed one of the comic highlights of the evening, with possibly the most animated and comic performances of Tit Willow and Beauty in the Bellow of the Blast that I have ever seen.

Mike Smith as the Mikado owed a lot to Marlon Brando and the Godfather (but it worked beautifully) and the “Three Little Maids” were a delight as splendidly self centred and bitchy “Andrews Sisters”.

This was a big Song and Dance show, with terrific choreography from Mark Cameron, that I suspect could only really have been done by a company like AVE;- I was exhausted just watching!
And while the six piece on-stage orchestra looked and sounded just right for this production, given the limits of the Arts Centre’s stage, I wonder whether they would have been better placed in the pit, given the fact that the stage was at times extremely crowded with lots of movement?

The finale rightly allowed the orchestra to take their own share of the applause-very fitting considering the major contribution they made, with special mention going to MD Ian Hingston for some real funky jazz piano.

Geoff Greavey, ( NODA Regional Rep, October 2007)

HOT MIKADO REVIEW

If Gilbert and Sullivan were writing today, Hot Mikado would likely be the result. This show takes a classic and gives it the musical theatre treatment.
All the original songs are there, played out by a talented five-piece jazz outfit, who whip the cast up to fever pitch through the unlikely lyrics of Swing a Merry Madrigal.
A succession of fast-moving company numbers are imaginatively staged by choreographer Mark Cameron, while Iain Hingston brings together musicians who look and sound terrific, and first-time director Jonathan MacDonell creates an exciting and fun-packed production.
Gram Cumming absolutely steals the show as Ko-Ko and the silky smooth vocals of Colin Brockie served him well as Pooh-Bah, the Lord High Master of Many Voices.
Ryan Peacock is wandering minstrel Nanki-Poo, and Jodi Otway is outsatnding as Yum-Yum, accompanied by the other Little Maids, Sarah Cleland and Jennifer Lypka
It runs at 7:30pm nightly until saturday.

Sonja Rasmussen (Evening Express, October 2007)