Archived News for December 2010
End of term
03 Dec 2010
End of teaching term for visiting music staff at Eton: happy Christmas to all, and well done to the boys on another hectic but successful term of concerts, exams and auditions!
Christmas Carols!
04 Dec 2010
Today saw the first Christmas carols of the year, with Uxbridge Choral Society, under the baton of conductor Jeff Stewart. Their cunning planning sees them perform the same programme twice in a day, once catching the afternoon shoppers, and once as an evening affair. It was a pleasure to be back playing for these lovely people again, and as in previous years the programme was enhanced by some beautiful singing by local schoolchildren. More carols next week for Epsom Chamber Choir with Michael Stevenson.
Pilgrims' School
10 Dec 2010
In the middle of a relentless fortnight as one of the official accompanists for RAM entrance auditions (tied to a ludicrous number of soprano panels this year, it would seem…), an excuse to escape to Winchester for the day was very welcome! It was the end of term at The Pilgrims’ School, marked by their Christmas Carol Service in the cathedral. This year was particularly special, however, as it saw the retirement of Hilary Webster (Director of Music), who has been at the school since 1979. Having spent a very happy and productive gap year working in Winchester between school and university (a combined post at the choir school and the College), and having been much encouraged in the early stages of my interest in accompaniment by Hilary, I was so pleased to be able to be back for this special occasion. Delighted to see that the carol service standard is as extraordinarily high as ever!
Changed dates
12 Dec 2010
The provisional dates for two recitals at Curry Rivel Music Club (Somerset) next autumn have been moved and are now as follows: 24th September with Marcus Farnsworth (baritone) and 15th October with James Turnbull (oboe). Having performed here in 2009 with James it will be fun to be back twice in such quick succession!
Festivals next year
17 Dec 2010
Delighted to have been invited with Marcus Farnsworth to perform in both Buxton and Oundle Festivals this summer. The Oundle Festival has always been very special to me; along with generations of other organists my formative training was on the ‘Oundle for Organists’ courses (and indeed several of my closest friends today are people I met there!). It will also therefore be pleasingly cyclic to be teaching on Oundle’s new course (‘Advance!’) for current and incoming university and cathedral organ scholars in April.
¡Feliz Navidad!
21 Dec 2010
My final concert of 2010 was a glorious evening of Iberian polyphony with the Renaissance Singers, in the opulent setting of St James', Spanish Place (which I've somehow never discovered before now, despite being just off Marylebone High Street and therefore within a stone's throw of the Academy, Wigmore Hall etc etc!). Joined by The English Cornett and Sackbutt Ensemble, and with organ continuo on an instrument provided by Manders, this was a gorgeous pre-Christmas programme of Guerrero, Victoria and Padilla, entitled, appropriately enough ‘¡Feliz Navidad!’.