Over on ‘Playing Up,’ a look back at yesterday’s rehearsal with the Chorus and Orchestra – and tenor soloist – ahead of Saturday’s Colyer-Fergusson Cathedral Concert.
Achieved was some glorious work…
All posts by Daniel Harding
Scholars Spotlight: Melissa Tortorella
A new feature, profiling this year’s Music Scholars: this week, flautist Melissa Tortorella.
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I started playing the flute when I was ten, in my last year of elementary school, but I didn’t become serious about music until high school when my participation in the school’s marching and concert band led me to private lessons. I went on to play in Orlando’s Youth Orchestra and eventually grew enough musically to participate in county and state competitions.
Although I decided to do a degree in French at the University of Florida, I couldn’t abandon music altogether. I declared Music Performance as a minor and spent four years in the University Marching Band and Symphonic Band — as well as several other for-fun groups, such as Flute Ensemble and Steel Drum Band.
Joining the musical community was a foregone conclusion when I enrolled at Kent, and I was pleased to discover a number of opportunities to make music on campus. I play the flute and piccolo in the Symphony Orchestra and sing second soprano in the University Choir. I always look forward to music nights during my week and am constantly reminded about music’s universal appeal: judging from the amount of international students that participate in musician ensembles, and as one myself, it’s clear that (excuse the cliche) music really is the world’s universal language.
Music Nation: Olympic curtain-raiser across the UK this weekend
This weekend sees not only the all-day Sunday rehearsal with the University Chorus and Orchestra for next week’s concert (end of shameless plug…), but across the country, the cultural curtain-raiser event, ‘Music Nation,’ to the London Olympics.
A joint venture between the Olympic organisation committee and the BBC, as the webpage proclaims,
Music Nation’s programme will showcase the best of the UK’s musical talent through ambitious and innovative partnerships and musical performances.
Click here to find out more: there’s also a day of programmed events being broadcast on Radio 3 on Sunday. (Those of us in the rehearsal that day will just have to catch up on iPlayer!).
Cathedral Crypt ambience captured by Chamber Choir: review
Second-year International Business student Matthew Bamford reviews last week’s Crypt Concert.
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The crypt of Canterbury Cathedral is an incredibly special and unique performance space. This intimate venue was host to the University of Kent Chamber Choir, conducted by Dan Harding and Steph Richardson.
The aim of the concert was to explore a whole day from the rise of the sun right the way through until midnight. Using a blend of sacred and secular pieces the programme consisted of madrigals, part-songs, motets and two pieces for solo piano.
From the first words of the plainsong Salve festa dies, I knew that I was in for a very enjoyable evening. This set the mood for the first section of the concert. Eric Barnum’s Dawn followed; the beginning of the piece using an incredibly simple harmonic structure. However at the end of the piece there was an interesting section where each of the sopranos sang an individual note of the scale. The composer’s idea here was to ‘create a golden light’. I think it is fair to say that this was most definitely captured.
My next highlight was the solo piano piece Un Sospiro. One of Liszt’z concert studies was expertly handled by second year music scholar Susan Li. The piece was received with rapturous applause after Li really brought out the richness of the piece.
As the day began to draw to a close, there was time for some playful madrigal singing before bed. Tutto lo di, a lively and fun piece written by Orlando di Lassus was intelligently sung by the choir. Despite the choir wanting to ‘play all day’, the long day did have to draw to a close with a beautiful rendition of this piece by Sullivan, conducted by Steph Richardson.
After twenty minutes in which to dwell on the first half, carrying a zebra print handbag (thanks Sophie!), the second half opened with the beautiful Sleep, Wayward Thoughts. The mood of the concert then headed to a more relaxed state as we heard In Stiller Nacht by Brahms. Sung in German, this piece focused on exploring the timelessness of night. This was captured well by the rhythmic sense of the choir and really was a very relaxing piece.
We were treated to another lovely piano solo, Chopin’s Nocturne in F Minor,’again received by the audience with excellent applause.
The concert ended with Eric Whitacre’s Sleep, which really is full of colour. This contemporary piece was delivered to an outstanding standard which left the audience wanted more (although I’m sure nobody was expecting the encore!).
We all thought it was over, until we had the pleasure of Harding’s arrangement of ‘Moondance’ by the legend that is Van Morrison. A completely contrasting piece to hear in the context of the rest of the programme, although everybody thoroughly enjoyed it and if like me, carried on singing it for the whole weekend.
Thank you to Dan Harding, Steph Richardson, Susan Li and The University Chamber Choir for a fantastic Friday evening; I’m looking forward to the next concert on March 30th.
Happy birthday, Gioachino!
The Director of Music writes:
We should all go round whistling something from William Tell or the Barber of Seville today, as it’s Giaochino Rossini’s birthday.
As far as I know, he is the only composer to have been born on 29 February. Not counting all the ‘substitute’ birthdays on February 28, how many birthdays would he have celebrated – or, how old would he have been today ?
On a Haydn to nothing with the cellos ?
As the cellists know, it’s green-light for this weekend’s all-day rehearsal on Haydn’s The Creation with the Choir and Orchestra ahead of the Cathedral Concert a week on Saturday.
Sunday will see the combined forces gather in Eliot Hall to rehearse together for the first time, in preparation for the concert; next week sees a particularly busy time for the University’s musicians, with rehearsals on Monday, Thursday and Friday; not to mention the rehearsal in the Cathedral itself on the morning of the day.
Details of the concert on our online diary here. It should prove to be a memorable occasion…
Still young at forty: the Brodsky Quartet celebrates at the Wigmore Hall
For anyone who can’t wait until March 23 to hear the Brodsky Quartet when it comes to the Gulbenkian Theatre, news just lands on my desk of their fortieth anniversary concert at the Wigmore Hall in a few weeks’ time, on Sunday 11 March.
In an intriguing programme, the Quartet will present their own arrangement of Ravel’s Blues, the third movement of a work originally falling as part of Ravel’s Sonata for Violin and Piano. Post-war American jazz was rife in Paris in the ‘twenties, and the second movement of Ravel’s chamber sonata revels in added-notes, ‘blue’ notes and jazz-inflected rhythms.
The programme also includes Schubert’s enigmatic Quartettsatz, Puccini’s Cristantemi, Wolf’s sunlit Italian Serenade, whilst the second half continues the French theme, given over to Debussy’s majestic String Quartet.
The concert also marks the thirtieth anniversary of the Quartet’s Wigmore Hall début, and shows that, at forty years old, the Quartet retains all the vigour and dynamism of its youth and its unique approach to programming. Expect a concert delivered with verve and panache, although there’s no mention about cake and candles. As yet…
Further details and tickets online here.
(Preview excerpts via LastFM).
New music building: latest images
New photographs from last Friday’s site visit, where construction on our new Colyer-Fergusson music building is progressing apace.
Views now of the corridor of practice rooms on the ground floor, and the developing reception foyer and social space as visitors walk in the entrance.
There’s also a photo of the new band rehearsal room: see all the new photos online by clicking the album below.