Hub Highlights

WHITTINGTON MUSIC FESTIVAL INSPIRES ART EXHIBITION

from Lawrence Mortimer

Just drawing to a close at Oswestry’s Willow Gallery is a six-week-long exhibition of artworks inspired by the concerts of Whittington’s seventh music festival in May. The six artists involved in the project are all members of Borderland Visual Arts and had accepted the invitation to sit in on rehearsals and performances of the week-long ‘Czech Mates’ festival and to respond in their chosen media.

All of them were overwhelmed by the experience of witnessing eleven world-class musicians work another artform from the early stages of its creation into a performance masterpiece. “The ‘players’ were not only a very skilled and talented lot but also lovely people”, says Bob Knowles, whose abstract cello in cedarwood has pride of place in the Gallery window.

For Gill Crozier, it was the brilliance of the folk rhythms in Smetana and Dvořák that inspired her. “I was struck by the relationship between the physical movements of the musicians and the intricacies in the music”, she says.

Jood Gough’s first thoughts on entering Whittington church for a musicians’ rehearsal was “How can I possibly concentrate on drawing, when this utter gorgeousness is filling the building?” Judy Greaves has responded with two sculptures in slate highlighted in gold leaf. 

Karen Kirkland

from Ludlow Big Sing 2019

My role with Shropshire Music Service is always challenging with many rewards but the highlight for me this summer was the Ludlow Big Sing on Saturday 15th June 2019. It was the first year that Shropshire Music Service had organised this event as part of the Ludlow Fringe Festival. The idea of the Ludlow Big Sing is to fill the town with song during the opening weekend of the Fringe Festival. This year 8 local choirs including St Laurences C of E Primary school performed their own songs at various locations around the town and rotated every 15 minutes to a new position. The choirs then came together in the market square at the end of the afternoon and performed several joint pieces, to the delight of shoppers, parents and choir supporters. It was fantastic to hear a choir of 120+ singers of all ages performing together in the square. The town of Ludlow is very busy during the Fringe Festival and the choirs efforts were greatly received. We are organising the Ludlow Big Sing again on Saturday 20th June 2020 and we hope to get even more singers involved with this fabulous community project. 

Richard Pinsent

My name is Richard Pinsent, I am 10 years old and I play the flute. This year was my first year of playing in the Minsterley Eisteddfod and I really enjoyed myself. I played the 2nd Movement of the Poulenc Flute Sonata which is a piece I really love to play because it goes really high and also really fast at some places.

I was so lucky that I was accompanied by a lady called Rowan who was an amazing pianist and I really enjoyed playing with her. I was a bit nervous because the stage was very big and it was a big hall but luckily for me playing my flute relaxes me so once I got going I was more relaxed. I really enjoyed playing my piece and listening to the other people in my category play. I found the comments from the judge useful and he was very kind in what he said about my playing which was nice.

It is also lucky that the village hall is so close to a play park – I also enjoyed playing in the park and the cakes were very tasty too.

I was very surprised to win the instrumental bursary but it meant that I have been able to buy a brand new flute which I love and the best thing about it is that it is an open hole flute which is what I really wanted because it makes some of my pieces like ‘the great train race’ sound so much better.

I am looking forward to playing in Minsterley for many more years so thank you to everyone who organizes it for making it such a fun event to take part in. I had a really good day out, I played my flute, ate some cake and went to the park – perfect!

Romany Wood at  Theatre Severn 2019,

by Alison Smith, Radbrook Primary  School

During the Spring term Radbrook Primary School Choir participated in the performance at Theatre Severn of Romany Wood. It is a piece written by David Gaukroger and Daivid Carr. This was in celebration of the Theatre Severn having been opened 10 years ago with the same production. At that time Radbrook School also took part in the event so it was lovely for us to be involved in it again.  Sometimes as a music coordinator at a primary school I get asked why I give up my time to run a choir…..

At the start of February this year the children in Radbrook choir, who ranged from year 3 to year 6 with a complete mixture of personalities and musical ability, initially faced quite a daunting task of learning a set of quite unusual songs both the by the melodies and the words. It is an interesting composition and as the weeks progressed the children gradually began to understand the interweaving of the songs to narration.

In early March they attended an initial rehearsal at the Shropshire Music Service to combine all the 200 singers together, hear the narration live and sing for the first time with the orchestra. David Gaukroger and David Carr were at this rehearsal. The children were fascinated to find they were singing to the composer, who was playing the piano and the original narrator. “ Wow! How did he write it?”, “ I am singing what he wrote!” “ I can’t wait to tell Mum and Dad what I’ve done. I am not so nervous now” and “ This has made the rehearsal really special, I can’t wait to perform at the Theatre.” were some of the children’s comments on the day.  They were so proud of the positive and encouraging feedback they received on their singing.

In the afternoon they had their first attempt with the orchestra. The children were amazed by the richness and the volume produced by the instruments. For some it took a while for them to get used to the noise level. They also realised how much they needed to concentrate and focus to get the timing right with the conductors. Again the children increased their ability levels further becoming very involved in the process. It was noted that none of the children chatted to each other during the long rehearsal. Their attention was fully focused on the singing. On returning to school the Choir sang with renewed enthusiasm and drive realising what they wanted to achieve.

Finally it came to the final rehearsal and performance at Theatre Severn. The children were so excited beforehand and yet very aware of the need to do everything correctly. What was interesting to see is that their different ages did not matter. They were encouraging each other on and they were together as ‘a choir’.  They were determined “to get it right.” Their reactions to viewing the theatre from the stage perspective out into the auditorium was of wonder, amazement and the thrill of  going to perform.  The nerves, although slightly present, were not overwhelming or detracting from the children’s enjoyment.

The actual performance was wonderful to see as I sat in the wings and watched the whole choir of 200 singing their hearts out with the orchestra. Total concentration, enthusiasm and effort by all. The loud applause at the end recognised their achievement.  The children had grown in confidence, understood dedication, resilience, team work and aiming for perfection, and were so proud, understandably, of their final success. They were so animated after the performance and were asking straight away “When can we do another one again?!”

Exciting news from our SMEH partner Karen Kirkland Music.

Karen Kirkland will have her music performed at a top UK cathedral as part of a special project helping youngsters into music. Karen’s "A Peace Blessing" will be sung at Belfast Cathedral on May 15th 2019 during the city's Primary School Choir of the Year competition. The St Anne Trust exists to raise funds for Belfast Cathedral's musical outreach project in primary schools in a divided and deprived area of Belfast. Part of the fundraising for this project is the Primary School "Choir of the Year" competition in May each year. After the schools have competed by singing their "own choice" works they all sing together under the direction of the Cathedral's musicians (whilst the adjudicator is considering his report) David Stevens, Organist of Belfast Cathedral has recommended that this year the schools will sing Karen's "A Peace Blessing". It comes after Karen's piece was performed last year at Symphony Hall, Birmingham as part of the "Sing" Music Mark West Midlands event, involving 14 music services and leaders of 13 music education hubs across the West Midlands. Karen's work was originally composed for the "One Day One Choir" global project - an inspiring global peace initiative which uses singing together to unite people around the world on World Peace Day September 21st.