Live from Open Day

October 6, 2012 Daniel Harding Leave a comment

Here we are again at the #kentopenday, the October session for those who missed the mid-week one last month. As usual, we’re ready at the ‘Making Music’ stand (once again in Eliot College Hall), to let visitors know about all the music-making activities taking place at Kent this year.

(And in a novel twist, this time we’re running an informal competition with Hannah over on the stand for the School of SSPSSR for the Visitor from the Farthest-Flung Corner title: see who wins at the end of the day!)

11am: fourteen visitors to the stand so far; and the VfF-FC competition is currently being held by a lady from, well, California, although she is currently living in Brighton – we’re hoping Hannah in SSPSSR will allow us that one ?!

12pm: midway through the day, about twenty visitors thus far; no-one challenging the California-Brighton trophy, though… Lots of interest from people interested in studying Law and Architecture…

2pm:: into the final hour, visitors still trickling in over lunchtime. Bad news on the VfF-FC competition; I understand SSPSSR have had someone from Perth, Western Australia visit them; may have lost the award this time around, will have to consult GoogleMaps to ascertain distances…

3pm: and that’s it for the day! Over forty visitors came to see us: safe travelling home to all. I’m off to consult a variety of maps to find out if we were pipped to the post by someone visiting SSPSSR from Australia…

Notes on Music

It’s all kicking Orff tonight…

October 1, 2012 Daniel Harding Leave a comment

With rehearsals for the University Concert Band and Big Band having begun last Wednesday, and those for the Symphony Orchestra last Thursday, it’s all choral this week – the University Chorus starts rehearsing this evening, and the Chamber Choir tomorrow night, whilst Sing! starts rehearsing this Thursday.

Tonight, we’ll be getting to grips with Handel’s Coronation Anthem The King Shall Rejoice and Orff’s riotous Carmina Burana with the Chorus – both pieces will feature in the Grand Gala concert which will officially launch the new music building at the inaugural concert in December (details online here).

7.30pm this evening, Grimond Lecture Theatre II; open to staff and students of the University without audition, and auditioned external members as usual – see you then!

And to whet your appetites, here’s Seiji Ozawa and the Berlin Philharmonic in a performance from 1989…

N.B. For those interested in Sing! – it starts on Thursday, Rutherford Music Room, 6pm. Be there…

Jazz Booth, Notes on Music, Now Hear This!

In memoriam: Jaco

September 21, 2012 Daniel Harding Leave a comment

Today marks the twenty-fifth anniversary of the untimely death of Jaco Pastorius, the outrageously talented bass-player who redefined the role of the bass in jazz and revolutionised its technical possibilities.

Also to be heard drumming on ‘Teentown’ on the album Heavy Weather, he also showed his more lyrically melodic (yet no less inventive) side on Hejira, one of several albums he recorded with the great Joni Mitchell.

Here are Weather Report live in 1978, the heyday of jazz-fusion, with Wayne Shorter on soprano sax, Joe Zawinul on keyboards, Peter Erskine on drums, and the great man showing his melodic-playing skills.

Ave, Jaco: we salute you.

Notes on Music

At the Welcome Fayre

September 20, 2012 Daniel Harding Leave a comment

Today sees the Welcome Fayre as part of Freshers’ Week, as the various Societies flock to campus to entice this year’s students into joining.

Pictured right is what Hannah P has suggested is the new motivational means to encourage you to pay your subscription to the Music Society this year…

Members of this year’s Society Executive have been on campus since early this morning to prepare; here they are in action in the marquee in Eliot car-park a short time ago. They’ll be at the stand until the end of the day; drop by, say hello, and find out what’s happening musically this term.

Tim P, Emma M, Paris N, Kathryn R, Aisha B, Hannah L and Michael S: the Committee in action!

Be My Guest

On Course: Emma Murton on the ABCD convention

September 18, 2012 Daniel Harding Leave a comment

Each August, the budding student conductor of the Chamber Choir in the following academic year goes on the Young Conductor’s Course with the Association of British Choral Directors summer school. This year, it was the turn of second-year Scholar, harpist and singer Emma Murton; here’s her story…

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The ABCD choral conducting convention was a fantastic experience for me as a budding conductor. There were several highlights for me, including a session and performance by ”The White Rosette” and learning new tricks to the trade from Amy Bebbington – the leader of the young conductor’s course.

After settling in on the Friday into the amazing Leeds Metropolitan campus I met the other young conductors, all fantastic people I am keeping in contact with. With our free ABCD bags we pillaged all the stalls of their free samples of music and CD’s till they were bulging with new pieces and exciting new composers to explore for this year (and probably many years to come!). We then enjoyed a traditional and truly scrumptious Yorkshire meal with a round of the famous “Sheffield carols”, leaving our bellies full and voices cracked. It was then that I realised my voice was going to be running marathons this weekend!

The next morning we all arose bright and early to enjoy the warm-up session with Rhiannon Gayle, the founder of “Rock up and Sing” – a group which encourages people who have had bad experience with singing in the past to change their negative views on singing and enjoy it again. Her energetic and original warm-up’s will definitely feature in this year’s Chamber Choir warm ups, I can’t wait to use them! In the evening we all travelled to the Gala performance in Leeds town hall. It was an amazing building, full of impressive Victorian architecture and some unique musical history – from its commission and première performance of Belshazzar’s Feast to performances from Elgar and Rachmaninoff. The performance included the fantastic Swedish acapella group “Vocado” who were dressed in bright yellow trousers and bow-ties, a look I am trying to convince Dan to try for concerts this term! [Could be interesting:f or the group, or just me ? Dan.]

Throughout the weekend I experienced a huge variety of conducting and singing, with the highlight being the hugely talented group of young conductors and our workshops with Amy Bebbington. Each of us conducted completely different, enabling us to all gain new ways and techniques on choral leadership. Amy Bebbington lessons will stay with me this whole year as will the confidence the entire course gave me. It was a truly fantastic opportunity which I will treasure and use as the year progresses – watch out choir, we have some fun and hard work ahead!

Emma Murton

Building for the future

New building: look, no hoardings!

September 14, 2012 Daniel Harding Leave a comment

There was a very exciting moment partway through this week, when the hoardings around the construction site were removed; hitherto, the building has been largely hidden behind giant boards (bearing, it has to be said, though, some terrific photos of some of the Music Scholars, courtesy of @mickelous). Alas, all good things must come to an end, and the boards were taken away to reveal the exterior of the building’s reception area and practice rooms.

In the image above, the nature of the front of the building is finally revealed; the north-east corner boasts large windows around the social space, and the view continues down past the entrance lobby along the foyer; the windows along there will afford views of the foyer-space and its small performance stage. The walkway alongside will be bedecked with trees and a grassed area, in what has already been christened ‘The Boulevard’ by the Director of Music.

Above, you can clearly see the northern facade, leading around to the western-side car-park; this section houses, beyond the social space, the ground-floor practice rooms and kitchen, and above, the first-floor ensemble rehearsal rooms and staff offices.

With the move into the new building now only a few weeks away, we’re starting to get very excited indeed; we hope you are too…

Notes on Music