Installation has begun this week of the audience seating and choral risers in the concert-hall; pictures from a visit to the construction site this morning.
See a full gallery of all the images from the project, by clicking the album below.
After an industrious summer of event and programme planning, not to mention the minor task of preparing to move to the new building, I’m delighted to say our new Concert Diary for the Autumn term has now been published online.
The Lunchtime Concert series continues, as we welcome musicians from Total Brass, sitarist Jonathan Mayer, and close-harmony group Sector7 in concerts throughout the term.
University Music Scholars will be giving an informal lunchtime concert in the first week of November – an exciting moment, as it will be the first event in the brand new Colyer-Fergusson music building and its wonderful new concert-hall!
We’ll also be gathering to raise money for Children in Need again this year; come and be part of a whacky world première with a difference, written by yours truly – all you will need is a donation and your mobile-phone, complete with three different ring-tones…
The world-famous Brodsky Quartet continue their fortieth-birthday celebrations in inimitable style, as they bring their ‘Wheel of Four Tunes’ to the Colyer-Fergusson hall. Armed with an array of forty pieces from their hugely eclectic repertoire, the pieces in this concert will be decided by the spin of a wheel in what promises to be a unique event.
Finally, the term comes to a grand finale with the inaugural Gala Concert, with the combined ranks of the Chorus, Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Choir, Concert Band and Big Band, in a spectacular evening celebrating the formal opening of the new Colyer-Fergusson music building, complete with two new works especially written for the occasion.
An exciting term ahead: find out more online here.
The latest issue of the University magazine includes the story about last term’s prize-winning musical students.
Also included is the news that Kent has been ranked 34th out of 117 UK higher education institutions in the Times Good University Guide 2013; the latest crop of Honorary Graduates recognised at last month’s graduation ceremonies, including Jools Holland; and lots more.
Scroll through to pages 4-5 for the feature.
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The floor is down in the new concert-hall, and yesterday’s site visit really set the levels of anticipation running very high. In the company of the Deputy Vice-Chancellor, Keith Mander and his assistant Marianne, the Director of Music and myself toured the construction site and saw the character of the hall really beginning to emerge.
Pictured above is the flooring, covered temporarily to protect it whilst further work carries on. Light floods in from the recessed roof-light, as well as from the large windows to each side of the hall. The overall effect is of a light, airy space, enhanced by the lightness of the wooden panelling adorning the walls.
The foyer space, shown here from the balcony at the top of the stairs to the first floor, is taking shape nicely, and will offer a terrific, intimate space for chamber performances on its modular stage.
See a full gallery of all the images from yesterday, and throughout the project, by clicking the album below.
The scaffolding inside the concert hall, which has previously provided such great opportunities for artistic photography, was finally removed last Wednesday, and here are a few photos immediately after it disappeared.
Without the scaffolding, you can really get a sense of the amount of light afforded by both the western window and the magnificent roof-light (pictured above). That first moment, seeing the hall in glory, was apparently quite intense – the Director of Music might even have shed a tear!
And finally, a shot from the balcony at the northern end of the building, looking back towards the lighting box.
See a full gallery of all the images from the project here.
It’s that time of year again: we’re here once again at the ‘Making Music’ stand for the University’s Open Day.
It’s just after 9.30, and we’ve had six visitors to the stand already, from Birmingham, Staffordshire, West Sussex and elsewhere. This time, we are handily located right next to the Gulbenkian stand and also the Accommodation Office which crucially has a couple of Chuba Chups lollipop carousels (pictured)…
We’ll be live on Twitter, keep up with all that’s happening at @UniKent_Music as well.
We’ll be reporting live from here throughout the day, follow it all on the blog here.
10.30 and we’re up to eighteen visitors to the stand, second cup of coffee of the morning and the obligatory stock of sweets which the Director of Music brings each time has just been broached; we’re now fuelled by caffeine and Maltesers. Ace…
11.30 and there seems to be a trend of visitors interested in music alongside degrees in History, Law and English. Although not all three at the same time, I should point out. Quite a few saxophonists, too; perhaps I should warn the conductor of the Big Band that, come September 2013, he may well have a Very Big Band on his hands.
12.30pm and the prize for the Visitor from the Farthest-Flung Corner goes to Gabrielle, who has travelled from Belgium: welcome! Still trending on Historians. A visitor from Bath, sadly just pipped to the post for the VF-FC award by Gabrielle: condolences!
2pm and we’re into the final hour, having taken advantage of an ever-so-slight lunchtime lull in visitors to grab sandwiches while we could.
3pm: and that’s it for the day. Over fifty visitors finding out about all the musical activities that happen as part of the student experience at Kent; lots of interest too in the new music building which will open its doors this autumn. A wide spectrum of musical tastes and interests, including lots of interest in jazz; I can see Jazz@5 becoming a regular feature from September 2013 onwards if all theses interested come to Kent! Thank you to all who attended throughout the day, safe travelling back home.
A meeting with the architects yesterday turned into a site visit; I’ll spare you the images of myself and colleagues kitted out in the obligatory H&S hats, boots and reflective jackets and bring you instead some pictures of the latest developments:
The foyer and reception space continues to unfold; the image above shows the view looking northwards, from what will be the continuation into the Gulbenkian Theatre, looking back towards the staircase to the first floor and across what will be the foyer space; here, the small foyer performance stage will be situated, together with tables and chairs.
Above, the foot of the stairs to the upper floor; beyond it, to the left, there’s a glimpse of the social space which will located in the north-east corner, a place to meet, to work, or to wait for a performance to begin.
Moving upstairs, the two large ensemble rehearsal rooms are taking shape as bright, airy spaces with the admitting of natural light through floor-to-ceiling windows; above, one of the windows in the smaller (yes, the smaller!) of the two rooms. On concert nights, these rooms will also function as green rooms for performers.
The foyer roof-light (above) will afford lots of light into the reception space below, underneath it will be a balcony offering standing-views overlooking the foyer performance stage below.
The final image is inside the concert hall itself, from the balcony and looking northward again towards what will eventually be the choral seating. The wooden panelling (right), which will bedeck the inside of the hall, continues to appear.
Exciting times indeed. See a full gallery of all the images from yesterday, and throughout the project, by clicking the album below.
The Director of Music came in to work buzzing this morning, having been to Draper’s Hall in London last night to hear the Brodsky Quartet celebrating their fortieth anniversary in their ‘Wheel of 4-Tunes’ concert, which was broadcast live on Radio 3.
The concert, which by the sounds of it was a wonderfully engaging affair, saw members of the quartet introducing the ideas behind this novel approach to concert programming – pieces performed in the concert are selected at random by the spinning of the wheel – and talking about each of the pieces played.
As will happen when they bring the concert to Kent in the autumn, members of the audience spun the wheel to select each of the works in last night’s concert; Stravinsky’s Three Pieces, the Lutoslawski Quartet in the first half, and Tunde Jegede’s warmly evocative String Quartet no.2 (chosen in a lovely touch by Holly, daughter of viola-player, Paul Cassidy) and Mendelssohn’s op.80 in the second half (the latter chosen by the presenter of the programme, Martin Handley).
The Brodsky will be bringing the wheel, and all forty pieces on it, to the new Colyer-Fergusson Hall in November for what promises to be lively, entertaining and excitingly unpredictable event. Not even the players themselves will know what will feature in the concert; you might hear Debussy, Ravel, Verdi, Beethoven, Britten, Barber – or even one of the pieces the quartet have themselves commissioned. Hopefully they’ll even bring the umbrella with them as well (you’ll have to listen later in the concert for the significance of that…).
The concert was broadcast last night, and is available on iPlayer for a week here.
And here are the Quartet performing another work by Jegede, Exile and Return, together with the composer himself, at the Bury St Edmunds Festival.
