English Haydn Festival opens in Bridgnorth

The 19th English Haydn Festival opened in Bridgnorth last night without its celebrated conductor.

Anthony Halstead was taken to hospital last weekend with a heart problem and with a bank holiday in between, finding a replacement proved almost impossible.

Since Halstead is such a part of the period instrument movement as horn and harpsichord player, advisor and conductor, the task was even tougher.

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But happily, help was right at hand.

Violin soloist at the grand opening concert in St Leonard's Church, Simon Standage is Professor of Baroque violin at the Royal Academy of Music, and stepped in to also guide the English Haydn Orchestra through fine performances of Haydn, Bach and Boyce.

Festival organiser Mike Proudman said: "It was fortunate that Simon was already booked to lead the orchestra and felt he could step in to both roles. In the 18th century, that's how it would have been done anyway. Haydn would have conducted from the harpsichord."

The pattern will be repeated on Friday and Saturday when conductor Halstead was also due to front the musicians.

Last night, from Joseph Haydn's delightful Symphony No 6 in D – Le Matin – to his Symphony No 71 in B flat, around a couple of hundred appreciative concert-goers ticked off an excellent start to this year's festival.

Le Matin has that joy of the morning , the urgency of a new day and a technique which Haydn used to awesome effect for perhaps his most famous work of all – The Creation.

Bach's Sinfonia Concertante in A provided an entertaining exchange bet- ween Standage and Pavel Serbin on the violoncello.

The evening's third composer, English born William Boyce, is highly rated as an 18th century master. He also composed the British and Canadian naval march, Heart of Oak.

The festival continues until Saturday and as well as lunchtime events, includes The Eroica String Quartet tonight, The Haydn Orchestra again on Friday night and the Grand Jubilee Concert on Saturday with Standage and Serbin once more taking centre stage. In true concert spirit, the show will go on.