Category Archives: Keeping It Real: reviews.

Concerts and events reviews.

Keeping It Real: reviews.

Concerts round-up: Chamber Choir at Wye and Peter and the Wolf

Leave a comment

It was a busy weekend for the Music department; on Friday, the University Chamber Choir travelled out to perform at Wye Parish Church, at which the choir premiered three movements from Between Worlds by composer / violinist Anna Phoebe as part of an exhilarating programme.

And on Sunday afternoon, we were delighted to welcome back various alumni musicians as the University Camerata came together to perform Prokofiev’s Peter and the Wolf, narrated by Senior Lecturer in Drama, Will Wollen.

(l-r): Familiar faces from yesteryear, alumni Charlotte Webb, Lydia Cheng, Cory Adams and Jasper Webb

Now to get on with the rest of this week…!

Keeping It Real: reviews.

Image Gallery: Dido and Aeneas

Leave a comment

Congratulations to all the performers involved in last Friday’s performance of Dido and Aeneas. Students and staff in the University Cecilian Choir and String Sinfonia were joined by some of the Music Performance Scholarship singers in a production of Purcell’s timeless story of love and loss, conducted by Your Loyal Correspondent.

Costumed courtiers promenading the foyer greeted audience members arriving for the performance, whilst a string trio performed trio sonatas on the foyer-stage. Below are some of the photos from the dress rehearsal that afternoon.

Special mention to postgraduate Law student and Music Scholar, Helen Sotillo, as the doomed Queen of Carthage, and third-year Scholar, Fleur Sumption, as Belinda, and second-year Drama student and Scholar, Carmen Mackey, as the evil Sorceress.

In rehearsal earlier that day
String trio and costumed Chorus set the scene prior to the performance
String selfie time: l-r viola player Adam Dooner, and violinists Jennifer Pang, Corinna Jung and Will Morgan

And here is the cast and performers taking their bows after the performance:


l-r: Helen Sotillo (Dido), Alice Shires (Spirit), Fleur Sumption (Belinda)
Keeping It Real: reviews., Music and Wellbeing

Image gallery: Olafur Arnalds concert

Leave a comment

Thanks to photographer Molly Hollman, not only for these atmospheric photos of the performers in last Friday’s Lunchtime Concert, but also for her spectacular landscape photography which featured in the performance.

A string quartet of third-year students Florence Obote, Melody Brooks, Molly Richetta (all of whom are University Music scholars or Award holders) and cellist Ken Macdonald, together with Your Loyal Correspondent at the piano, unfurled the meditative music of Icelandic composer, Olafur Arnalds, into a darkened concert-hall, against a backdrop of Molly’s photographs capturing the natural landscapes from around the country.

A rapt audience was kept spellbound during the entire performance; thanks to all the performers.

Keeping It Real: reviews.

Arts, Heritage and Tourism Minister visits Colyer-Fergusson

Leave a comment

We were delighted to welcome the Minister for Arts, Heritage and Tourism, Michael Ellis, to Colyer-Fergusson yesterday, at the formal announcement of the successful partnership bid for funding from the Cultural Development Fund to develop culture and heritage sites in the Thames Estuary region.

Pictured here is Michael looking around the concert-hall with Director of University Music, Susan Wanless, and in conversation with Director of Arts and Culture at the University, Liz Moran, and Vice-Chancellor Professor Karen Cox. Congratulations to everyone involved in the successful bid.

Images © Matt Wilson / University of Kent

Keeping It Real: reviews., Notes on Music

University Big Band featured on BBC Radio Kent

Leave a comment

The preparations to the University Big Band’s annual Christmas Swingalong were featured on BBC Radio Kent last night on The Dominic King Show.

Your Loyal Correspondent is heard talking with the conductor of the Big Band, Ian Swatman, as well as student players Owen Kerry (Physics), Megan Daniel (Law), Fleur Sumption (History of Art) and David Curtiss  (Physics) about life in the ensemble, fitting music into their academic life, and Christmas jumpers…

Talking heads: l-r Owen Kerry, Fleur Sumption, David Curtiss, Megan Daniel
BBC Radio Kent presenter, Dominic King

You can listen to the interview online here, starting at 1 hr 28 mins and 31 secs. Many thanks to Dominic King for featuring the band on the airwaves.

Keeping It Real: reviews.

Festive image gallery: Flute Choir, Minerva Voices and the Big Band Swingalong

Leave a comment

An action-packed finale to the term; a festive sprinkling of seasonal Baroque music and carols from the Flute Choir and the upper-voice chamber choir, Minerva Voices, followed by the annual roof-raising Christmas Swingalong with the University Big Band, conducted by Ian Swatman, featuring singers Elle Soo and Fleur Sumption.

Warning: there are selfies…

Keeping It Real: reviews., Notes on Music

Old and New and the Carol Service: University music in action

Leave a comment

Two events in three days with which to catch up, Loyal Readers!

Last Saturday brought the University Chorus and Symphony Orchestra together in a programme combining music from the past with reimaginings from a modern perspective: Vivaldi’s dramatic iMagnificat, two of Handel’s bombastic Coronation Anthems, Walton’s recasting of Bach in The Wise Virgins, Matthew King’s orchestral vision of Mozart’s piece for mechanical organ, and Respighi’s light-footed Ancient Airs and Dances Suite no.2.

The University Chorus and Orchestra in rehearsal during the afternoon

Director of Music Susan Wanless wielded the baton in front of the assembled masses to a packed house, and it was lovely to welcome back some familiar faces and musical alumni to take part in the performance.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last night, it was the turn of the University Chamber Choir to participate in the Carol Service, an evocative event at Canterbury Cathedral bringing together members from across the University community in a programme of lessons and carols to explore the season of Advent.

Second-year Music Scholar, Hannah Ost (pictured here in rehearsal), launched the service in energetic fashion conducting Gaudete.

Elsewhere, Your Loyal Correspondent directed the eighteen-piece choir in a lyrically colourful setting of Lullay My Liking by Will Inscoe, a sixth-form pupil at St Edmund’s School, and a deft Ding Dong! Merrily on High. Earlier on, second-year postgraduate Law student and Music Scholar, Helen Sotillo, ushered in the Christmas season with a clarion-clear solo verse of Once In Royal David’s City – as it lifted into the upper reaches of the Nave, the season unfurled above the heads of the assembled congregation, stood in  an expectant, candlelit hush.

Next up: tomorrow brings a Christmas lunchtime concert with the Flute Choir and Minerva Voices, and later the annual festive knees-up that is the Big Band’s Christmas Swingalong. Well, it IS the season…

Keeping It Real: reviews.

Hannah’s American Diary: Part Two

Leave a comment

Reporting in from the French Woods Festival of the Performing Arts as part of Camp America, the second entry in the diary of Music Scholar Hannah Ost…

So the first of my three, three-week sessions at camp has come to an end. I can’t believe it but I’m now halfway through the second! Each day seems to pass by so slowly but looking back I can’t believe how fast it has actually gone.

Both of the shows for which I am Musical Director have opened and closed and went down very well with each audience. The little kids in Snow White were very cute and even though some of them are only eight, we still managed some two-part harmony with them! James and the Giant Peach was fantastic – I played Keyboard in the pit orchestra for that as well which was tough since I didn’t have much time to learn the score. It all came together in the end though and we had a fabulous three-night run during the festival weekend at camp.

Moving onto this session, I am the Musical Director for a show called Junie B Jones and along with my other MD, we have taught just over half the show in twelve one-hour rehearsals! Our dress rehearsal is next week; I am busy learning the piano score for the show as I will be playing in the pit for that show too.

That’s about all I have for now. I will bring another update after this session ends!

Read the first entry in Hannah’s American Diary here.