Notes on Music

In pictures: Summer Music Week 2021

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It was marvellous to get back to music-making at the end of term, to bring musicians and audiences together for the annual musical farewell to the University’s academic year. Many thanks to the University photographer, Matt Wilson, for capturing the events throughout the course of the week.

Big Band: Sunday Swing

 

Music Scholars’ Lunchtime Recital
(read the programme here)

 

Music Scholars’ Evening Recital: Canterbury Cathedral

(read the programme here)

Closing concert: Music for a Summer’s Day

(read the programme here)

With thanks to all the performers, audiences, staff and technicians who made this all possible. An especial farewell and thanks to all those who were performing for the final time.

Images: © Matt Wilson / University of Kent

Notes on Music

Summer Music Week: Big Band Sunday Swing and Scholars’ Lunchtime Recital

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The first two events in this year’s Summer Music Week have got the series off to a flying start; at the weekend, the Sunday Swing with the University Big Band, conducted by Ian Swatman, and vocalist third-year Elle Soo, went down a storm!

The event was also the inaugural livestream direct from Colyer-Fergusson and had a lively online audience watching at the time – since then, it has gone on to garner (at the time of writing) well over 800 views – if you missed it, you can see it below or watch it here:

Yesterday saw the first of two Scholars’ Recitals (the second takes place on Friday in Canterbury Cathedral); a selection of this year’s Music Performance Scholars presented a programme including a classic number made famous by Etta James, some sparkling French flute repertoire, and closed with a vivacious duet for two violas by Telemann.

l-r: Weiqi (Arthur) Zhang; Euan Bonnar; Charlotte Cane; Kira Hilton; Joanna Adaran; Beth Chapman

Many thanks to all the performers involved in both events; it’s great to be back making live music in Colyer-Fergusson once more and welcome audiences through the doors; and it’s not over yet…

Summer Music

Big Band livestream test a success

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The Big Band was rehearsing on Sunday ahead of its event on Sunday 6th June, Sunday Swing, which will launch this year’s Summer Music Week.

Willing victims as always, the players, conductor Ian Swatman, together with third-year Social Anthropology student and singer, Elle Soo,  gamely agreed to allow us to use the opportunity to test the livestreaming facility, in order to share the concert online (a limited audience capacity means we aren’t able to accommodate the usual Full House that greets the Big Band events).

Whilst the ensemble was working, the technical crew was working tirelessly behind the scenes to set up and test the cameras, microphones, lighting and streaming platform around the musicians; and I’m pleased to say that it worked. There were some spine-tingling moments as live music lifted into the concert-hall once more after so many months without it, and it was lovely to see the audience-seating back out in the hall, something we’ve not seen since March 2020!

Thanks to Thomas, George and Joe, we’re delighted to say that, for those who can’t join us in person at 2.30pm this Sunday, we will be able to share the event live online. Watch the event live on YouTube here (see also below) – thanks to Ian and the players for heroically acting as our digital guinea-pigs as we usher in the new Digital Age in Colyer-Fergusson Hall…

rbt

 

Minervan Miniatures, Notes on Music

#MinervanMiniatures: Five preludes by Nannie Louise Wright

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Our sonic cabinet of curiosities exploring forgotten piano repertoire written by women, Minervan Miniatures, presents five preludes by American composer Nannie Louise Wright (1878/9 – 1958), from her collection 12 Preludes Op.25.

This selection ranges from Wagnerian grandeur to dazzling Saint-Saens-esque virtuosity that disappears in a flash, and a fascinating prelude ‘For The Left Hand Alone.’ The entire set is a marvellous addition to the canon of prelude-writing, in the tradition including Chopin, Rachmaninov and Debussy, and surely deserves to be better known. We’ll be rectifying this as part of a planned recital series next year…

Summer Music

Summer Music Week: back in the hall for the first time since November…

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Rehearsals for Summer Music Week were especially welcome this week, as the ensembles returned to the concert-hall for the first time since last November.

Orchestra returns to the hall

All week, the hall has been reinvigorated with the sound of Concert Band, Big Band, Chamber Choir, String Sinfonia and Orchestra rehearsing for the series of events in a few weeks’ time; and several of the Music Scholars have been working on chamber music as well.

Concert Band back in action
String Sinfonia

It’s a welcome return to live music-making, hearing the building resound to ensemble music once more.

String-playing Music Scholars

It’s good to be back!

Music Scholar, Joanna

 

 

Scholars Spotlight

Scholars’ Spotlight: Michael Lam plays Schumann

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Our series highlighting some of this year’s Music Performance Scholars continues with first-year Kent and Medway Medical School Music Performance Scholar, Michael Lam, playing Schumann.

In this single-take performance, Canadian pianist Michael performs a selection of movements from Schumann’s Album für die Jugend  (Album for the Young) , Op. 68.

Filmed in Colyer-Fergusson by KMTV.

Watch performances by other Music Scholars and Award Holders in the dedicated Playlist here.

Minervan Miniatures

Nostalgia from Brazil: a waltz for #MinervanMiniatures

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Musical nostalgia from Brazil in today’s #MinervanMiniatures piece rediscovering forgotten piano repertoire written by women composers.

Today, it’s ‘Souvenirs du Passé‘ by Emilia P Dormund, published around 1904; the piece appeared in O Malho, a satirical weekly publication in Rio de Janeiro between 1902 and 1954; until 1926, the magazine regularly published a piano composition as part of its content.

Enjoy this lyrical, slightly melancholic waltz, a musical memory of the past…

 

Listen to more in the series’ playlist here.

Because it does. Doesn't it ? Blogging about extra-curricular musical life at the University of Kent.