The Mystery of the Elements: new exhibition by Earthbound Women comes to Colyer-Fergusson

Wild Skies: Lucy Marks

This December, the weekend of 8th and 9th December programmes an exhilarating pair of concerts exploring witches, wizards, storms and spirits by the University Chorus, Symphony Orchestra, String Sinfonia and Concert Band.  The concerts are accompanied by an ancillary exhibition by the Kent-based art collective, Earthbound Women, exploring similar themes.

Coastal Erosion: Ruth McDonald

From Monday 31st October to Sunday 10th December, visitors to the Colyer-Fergusson gallery will be able to view a fascinating collection, entitled The Mysytery of the Elements, for which two Earthbound Women, Ruth McDonald and Kristiina Sandoe, and guest Lucy Marks will be exhibiting paintings and prints that relates to the dramatic programme of music exploring mythology, folklore and the world of witches.

Kristiina Sandoe

The artwork combines dramatic images of storm, drama at sea and wild skies with contrasting periods of calm reflection, aiming to push the boundaries of Landscape Art investigating what it means in relation to abstraction and representation, with a range of media from painting to mixed media, printmaking and collage.

Earthbound Women are bound by a passion for clay, earth, form and landscape. The painting, drawing and printmaking coming to the exhibition is a record of dreams, annotations, observations, aspirations as a series of artistic responses to life and landscape in the region.

The exhibition is free to view during the hours Colyer-Fergusson is open. Find out more about Earthbound Women here; and see the concerts on our What’s On page here. It promises to be quite a spectacle…

Dive into Moonbeam Theatre with Drama graduate Maddie Rigby

Currently on tour, and having recently performed at this year’s Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Moonbeam Theatre features former Music Society Secretary and clarinettist in Orchestra and Concert Band, Madeleine Rigby (pictured below).  Maddie studied Drama and Theatre Studies at Kent, graduating in 2021 having been Music Society Secretary (as well as Social Secretary in her second year). Moonbeam Theatre is part of the Graduate Artist programme in the School of Arts’ Drama department; here, Maddie reflects on the purpose of the theatre company, being part of the Edinburgh Fringe festival, and their recently launched DIVE playlist on Spotify.


Moonbeam Theatre are a non-profit company who create multi-sensory theatre for children with profound and multiple learning disabilities and special educational needs. We’ve been a graduate theatre company at the University of Kent since 2020 and have been facilitating workshops and shows ever since. We’ve had a busy year this year, taking our show DIVE on tour. DIVE is a multi-sensory under-the-sea adventure which encourages our participants to get involved in exploring the ocean setting of the performance. We’ve visited over 50 SEN schools, charities and community groups and this summer made our Edinburgh Fringe Festival debut.

Being a part of EdFringe was a real bucket list achievement, and having sold out shows was amazing! The reviews we’ve received from all our audiences have been incredible and we are already planning our next show, which is all about  The Garden, to tour for 2024. As a University of Kent music department alumna, I am very pleased to say I even play my clarinet in the show! [Well done, Maddie: keep playing!]

But even more exciting is that we have just released the DIVE soundtrack on Spotify; as a company we wanted to make sure our audiences had access to the music so they could continue to experience DIVE in their own spaces or simply keep listening to the relaxing sounds of our ocean setting. To create the music we worked with our music producer, Adam Pattrick, who helped us put all our ideas together. The tracks were created to be ambient and calming, but watch out for the The Chatty Clam’s Hideout as that’s the exception!


You can find the album on Spotify here. ‘Ocean Waves’ is gently hypnotic, very relaxing, and perfect for listeners young and maybe not-so-young too…! There’s the lulling, echoing ‘The Seaweed Forest,’ or the joyous ‘Coral Cove,’ sure to get young toes wriggling. Moonbeam Theatre’s website is here, or see what they’re currently up to on Facebook here.

Some Kind of Calm: meditative piano recital Tues 10 October

As part of World Mental Health Day on Tuesday 10 October, Head of Music Performance Dan Harding will be giving a free lunchtime concert exploring tranquil piano repertoire aligned with scenic landscape photography.

Come and enjoy a break from it all, with a half-hour recital of meditative piano music, including works by Olafur Arnalds, Philip Glass, Chick Corea, Richard Rodney Bennett and Yumiko Morioka.

The live piano music will be accompanied by scenic image projections in a darkened concert-hall, opening up the opportunity to immerse yourself in some breathtaking music and photography for a meditative odyssey for the ear and the mind.

You can take a listen to some of the pieces which will be included in the recital on a dedicated playlist on Spotify here  which includes the beautiful Komorebi byYumiko Morioka, the title being a Japanese word describing the effect of sunlight filtered through trees.

Admission is free, more details online here: the recital starts at 1.10pm, all welcome to enjoy an immersive experience on the day.

Header image: Unsplash / Ann Savchenko

Circle of Remembrance: new album on Spotify features Kent alumna Aisha Bové

Fresh out on Bandcamp is a reflective album, The Circle of Remembrance, by singer-songwriter Jeska Onderwater, which also features the cello-playing of Kent alumna, Aisha Bové.

Aisha graduated in 2013 with a BA in English & American Literature and English Language and Linguistics, and played cello in the Symphony Orchestra, leading the section, as well as playing chamber music, whilst at Kent; she is also one of the founding members of the String Sinfonia. Aisha currently teaches English on the IB programme at L’Athénée de Luxembourg.

Aisha, pictured playing in Colyer-Fergusson Hall in 2013Aisha recently had the chance to record some backing cello sounds for Jeska, who originally came from the Netherlands but now lives and works in Luxembourg.

Jeska contacted her in March when she was looking for a cellist to add some final parts to her recordings. The album was recorded in different places, mixed and mastered in again other places, including Portugal and Luxembourg. Jeska and Aisha met up at Unison studios in Luxembourg to record the cello lines.

“She gave me a lot of freedom in deciding what I wanted to play,” recalls Aisha, “ and so I added some background sounds that went nicely with her singing, but also some solo parts. As her music is generally quite calm, I saw it as my main role to add that extra layer, almost like a cushion/ carpet. We recorded the four tracks in one afternoon.”

A gently meditative album, drenched in birdcalls and sounds of nature, Aisha’s cello provides a warm counterpoint to some filigree guitar and an intimate vocal line, playing as she does on tracks 6,7,8 and 11.

“The musical memories from Kent are some of the fondest ones I have, and I believe that the variety of music-making, from orchestra, to different ensembles and even busking in the streets of Canterbury have really helped me become the musician I am today.”

The String Sinfonia performing on campus in the summer of 2013

Take a reflective listen on Bandcamp here.

Generous gift to support extra-curricular music at the University: the Ed Tyler Fund for Flute Scholarships

Thanks to the generosity of a thoughtful donor, the Music department is incredibly grateful to receive a donation made in memory of the late alumna, Edwina Tyler, in support of extra-curricular music-making.

Known as Ed, she was a keen musician and flautist, reading German and French at Kent between 1970 -74, going on after further qualifications into a career in teaching in Worcestershire. Particularly fond of her years at Kent, she returned to visit from time to time, including the University’s 50th anniversary reunion events in 2015. In her memory, the substantial gift is given specifically to provide opportunities for flautists taking part in extra-curricular music at Kent, and will support annual instrumental lessons for an outstanding flute-playing Music Performance Scholar, as well as the Flute Choir and other opportunities for players alongside their course of studies.

Concert Band flautists backstage prior to performing in Colyer-Fergusson Hall

It’s a wonderful way to support the musical life of students during their time at Kent, and will allow a particularly gifted Music Performance Scholar to develop their performing experience. Much of our extra-curricular music-making is funded thanks to the generosity of donors and supporters, who recognise the value that taking part in music offers as part of student life; rehearsals, performances and scholarship lessons do so much to enhance the lives of musical students who come to the University, and want to continue their musical experience whilst they are studying all manner of subjects. This particular gift will allow us to offer plenty of practical opportunities, both to the E H Tyler Music Performance Scholar as well as to other flute-players, helping them to flourish musically whilst they are here.

The new Scholarship will be launched in September.

Legacy to the Music Department to build choral collection in memory of Cynthia Hawes

The Music department is very grateful to have received a legacy from the late Cynthia Hawes, one of the University’s very first employees, who passed away shortly before Christmas in 2020.

Cynthia Hawes

Cynthia was Secretary to Vice-Chancellors Geoffrey Templeman and David Ingram, subsequently transferring to the Graduate Studies Office as an Assistant Registrar. An enthusiastic choral singer, Cynthia was a long-time member of University Chorus, regularly singing with Chorus in concerts in Eliot Hall (prior to the opening of the Colyer-Fergusson Building) and Canterbury Cathedral, and also sang with Canterbury Choral Society; Cynthia sang with Chorus up until 2018.

University Chorus and Orchestra performing in Canterbury Cathedral in March, 2010

Thanks to her generous legacy, the Music department has founded the Cynthia Hawes Collection, in which her Fund will be used to support the continued activities of Chorus by purchasing vocal scores for the choir to use in its rehearsals and performances.

It’s a lovely gesture from a committed member of Chorus, who was a regular performer with the choir. Thanks to this wonderful legacy, Chorus will be able to build a library of vocal scores for the choir to use, and each time we sing from them, the choir will be performing in her memory; a very special way to commemorate and reflect Cynthia’s long-standing commitment to music here at Kent.

Read more about about Cynthia here.

Celebrating student success: Music Prizes 2023

One of the many pleasures during Summer Music Week is the opportunity it affords to recognise particular outstanding contributions to extra-curricular music-making over the year in the annual Music Prize ceremony.

Following hard upon the Music Scholars’ Lunchtime Recital which took place on the Tuesday of this year’s music festival, the ceremony, hosted by Professor Dan Lloyd, Director of Education in the School of Natural Sciences, gives us the opportunity to celebrate particular talent amongst our community of student musicians at the University.

The Canterbury Festival Prize is awarded annually to a  final-year student who has made an outstanding contribution to music at the University. This year’s winner was Biomedical Science student and Music Performance Scholar, Ellie Gould. Ellie has performed numerous times throughout her time at Kent, including singing the solo verse in front of a massed congregation to open the University Carol Service in Canterbury Cathedral; a larger-than-life performance as the Queen of Hearts in a production of Alice in Wonderland: a Musical Dream-Play; singing solos in Faure’s Requiem and Handel’s Messiah; she has been a committed member of University Chorus, Chamber Choir, Cecilian Choir and Minerva Voices, and also sang a particularly challenging song-cycle by John Woolrich as part of a Music Scholars’ Lunchtime Recital. A relentlessly enthusiastic member of the music community, Ellie is also the outgoing President of this year’s Music Society; she received her prize from the Chair of the Canterbury Festival, Professor Keith Mander.

The Colyer-Fergusson Prize is awarded to a student who has made a major contribution to the organisation of music at the University; this year, the prize was awarded jointly to Music Performance Scholars Emily Toman and Nathan Sharp, both of whom are on the Music Audio and Production course in Medway. Together they have been the driving force behind this year’s Medway Music Society, energising activities in Medway by organising the weekly Tuesday night gigs at The Deep End, and also playing as the house hand, regularly learning around ten to fifteen songs each week to allow other students to take the spotlight. Their prize was awarded on behalf of the Colyer-Fergusson Charitable Trust by Professor Keith Mander.

The John Craven Music Prize is awarded to a returning student who has made a major contribution to music at the University, and this year was awarded jointly to Yuyu Hosokawa and Oliver McGinnes. Hailing from Tokyo and in her second year studying Law and Politics, Yuyu has been an outstanding member of the orchestral woodwind section and Concert Band, also playing as part of the Scholars’ Lunchtime Recital, the Crypt Concert in Canterbury Cathedral, and as part of a lecture exploring science and creativity involving Sir Paul Nurse, Director of the Crick Institute.

In his second year reading History, trombonist Oliver has been a stalwart of the brass section in both Orchestra and Concert Band, as well as playing in the Scholars’ Lunchtime Recital and the same lecture with Sir Paul Nurse, as well as in a workshop with the renowned Delta Sax Quartet. Their prizes were awarded by Professor Dan Lloyd.

The David Humphreys Music Prize is awarded to a student who has made a particularly special contribution to music-making; on this occasion, it was awarded not to a single student, but to the combined forces of Kent Gospel Choir, in recognition of their competition-winning performance in Croydon which led to their winning the University Gospel Choir of the Year competition. To receive prize on behalf of the choir were two Psychology students, Elizabeth Oyebola (President) and Simon Greaves (Choir leader), who received the prize from two of David Humphrey’s daughters, Josephine and Sophie, who came especially for the occasion.

Finally, the University First-Year Music Prize, which is occasionally awarded to a student who has made a major contribution to music in their first year, was this year awarded jointly to Masters students Sarah Strike and Teerapat Jerawattanakaset. Hailing from Florida and studying Social Psychology, Sarah has been an outstanding member of the Orchestral woodwind section, playing both flute and piccolo, and also as part of the Scholar’s Baroque Lunchtime Concert.

Teerapat, a Business Analytics Masters student from Bangkok, has similarly made an outstanding contribution playing both oboe and cor anglais in the Orchestra woodwind section as well as in Concert Band this year, and also played in the Scholars’ Baroque Lunchtime Concert, as well as with the String Sinfonia on both oboe and double-bass.

It’s a real measure of their commitment to (and enthusiasm for) fitting rehearsals and performances around their academic studies, making time during afternoons, evenings and weekends to participate in all that the Music department offers as part of the students experience at the University; their ability to manage their time effectively and still be able to practice and perform to such a high standard is a credit to them, and we’re hugely grateful for all their involvement throughout the year.

Congratulations to them all!

In pictures: Summer Music Week 2023

Another year of extra-curricular music-making has come to a close with this year’s Summer Music Week. Taking place across eight days, the series of concerts ranged from the evocative Crypt of Canterbury Cathedral to a sun-drenched trip to the seaside and Deal Bandstand, two Scholars’ Lunchtime Concerts, the ceremony for this year’s Music Prize Winners (about which more shortly…) and more, all coming to a rousing finale with the closing Saturday gala.

Here are some of the images capturing this year’s series of events; as always, our enormous thanks to everyone who took part – students and staff at a particularly busy time in the academic year, alumni, and members of the local community – in a splendid festival. There’s always a wonderful community feeling to the week, as musicians come together for the last time, some for the final performance before graduating.  To those who are leaving: ave atque vale; to those who are returning in September, see you then!

rbt
rbt

rbt

rbt

View the full album of photos from throughout the week on our Facebook Page here.

Same again next year, then ?!

Images (c): Chris Wenham / University of Kent

Additional images by Laurence Leung / Dan Harding