Temple Ensemble

The Temple Ensemble who played for Cockermouth Music Society’s first concert of the 2019-2020 season combined youthful enthusiasm, vitality and musical excellence to give us two great works of the chamber music repertoire.  Mozart’s Clarinet Quintet was delightfully bright and carefully prepared with Poppy Beddoe’s clarinet leading the group, who have all studied at the Royal College of Music.  This was followed by Schubert’s Octet, a monumental work lasting about an hour.  The players combined to give us a lovely performance, each player contributing in a way that never overshadowed the general texture of the music – the give and take between the cellist and the double bass being particularly pleasing.  There were plenty of solo moments which enhanced the general flow of the music and the audience showed their appreciation of a great evening.