What a swell party it was! With streamers and party whistles issued on entry, and with tables, complete with bowls of peanuts and chips, laid out in a cabaret style seating arrangement, the Belconnen Arts Centre was the perfect setting to celebrate the 10th birthday of the Griffyn Ensemble.   

This unique modern chamber music ensemble was formed after a get together at a well known Irish pub and has since presented nearly 200 performances of 40 entirely different programs of music with over 100 Australian premieres and 30 world premieres.

Audiences have been both entertained and musically challenged during those concerts by this adventurous group of fine players and the group has built up a large, loyal and dedicated team of followers. No great challenges for this birthday celebration however. With the lake shimmering through the glass windows as a lovely warm cloudless day moved into evening, the Griffyns gave their birthday present in the form of a tribute to American songwriter and composer, Alex Wilder. Wilder achieved rare success in the 1930s/’40s (the famed big band era) by combining three music genres: popular song, instrumental art music and jazz. That jazz influence was evident in the opening work on the program, an “Air for Flute and Strings”. Beautifully led by flautist, Kiri Sollis, the melodic lines were reminiscent of an 18th Century drawing room chamber concert but with jazz chord structure colouring.

Onto the Main Course (the music program was quite delightfully laid out as a banquet menu) and the current Griffyn Ensemble members were joined by former members Wyana and Matthew O’Keeffe, plus Sally Greenaway, (playing jazz harpsichord) for a seven piece selection, very much in the early jazz idiom. All the songs were interestingly named (for instance; “Her Old Man Was Suspicious”, “It’s Silk, Feel It!, Sea Fugue Mama” and “Neurotic Goldfish”) and all were cute, easy listening little tunes with clear imagery of when “The Children Met the Train” where a bass and bass clarinet circling around and around motif captured the picture of the crazy goldfish. All were well played with just a little balance issue when harp and harpsichord were overshadowed in volume by the winds and strings.

Prior to the five dessert selections, soprano Susan Ellis arrived in appropriate diva style popping out of a birthday gift box in true Marilyn Monroe fashion. We did get “Happy Birthday” (minus Mr President) followed by a soulful and beautiful “Blackberry Winter”, a “Take 5” like rhythm with “Dear World”, then a short 4 movement “Suite for Flute and Marimba”, delicately and cleanly performed by Kiri and Wyana. Susan sang a sonorous interpretation of the Frank Sinatra recorded “I’ll Be Around”, then an audience selected finale, a lovely working of “Little Girl Blue”.

The players distributed strawberries and yummy chocolate cake as they chatted with audience members immediately following the final song, a fitting way to end a happy, gentle and casually paced anniversary concert. The group deserve hearty congratulations for the astoundingly wide and, at times risky, variety of music they have presented during their short history. The team is now to take a six month performing break but will be back August 30 to September 3, 2017, to present a five day ‘Griffyn Festival’.   As they say – Save the Date!!