Finn Collinson will make you forget any preconceptions about the recorder

Newbury Spring Festival: The Finn Collinson Band

at the Corn Exchange, Newbury,

on Wednesday, May 22

Review by BRIAN HARRINGTON

WHEN one thinks of the recorder, squeaky simple tunes badly played by small children might spring to mind, but nothing could be further from the reality of how the instrument sounds in the hands of Finn Collinson.

Accompanied by Evan Carson on bodhran Irish drum and Archie Churchill-Moss on accordion and acoustic guitar, this was a superb demonstration of what three hugely accomplished and talented young folk musicians can achieve.

There was a mix of traditional pieces and self-penned tracks drawn from their two albums to date as well as a selection of other tunes.

This lunchtime concert was very well attended and the audience clearly loved what they heard.

A varied programme included everything from Italian Baroque to a piece based on a Purcell composition alongside several self-penned pieces.

There were Celtic influenced reels to get toes tapping and hauntingly beautiful and evocative sections as well as some well described informative/educational input from Finn, as he described the various different recorders he was playing.

Two pieces were based on the 17th- century Playford’s Dancing Master book, while Chain Cotillion (18th century) contrasted excellently with Big Smoke , which Finn wrote, inspired by studying and living in London, and The Threshold, the title track of the latest album.

This was Finn's second Newbury show – he previously played Ace Space in 2022. His return visit earned him a well-deserved encore, comprising of two solo recorder pieces.

This concert proved that it is time to forget any preconceptions about the recorder as an instrument and accept that it can have a wonderfully varied and beautiful voice when played this skilfully.

Entertaining and hugely enjoyable.