Northern Tour, part 2 -November 2008

 In November we travelled even further North to windy Durham.  We were there as part of a joint venture with Southbank Sinfonia and the Samling Foundation, and were joined by Four Samling Scholars, soprano Teuta Coco, mezzo Lousie Collett, tenor Mark Chaundry and bass James Harrison, and pianist Christopher Glynn for workshops, rehearsals and concerts as part of a three-day outreach project. 

On our first day we visited two primary schools and one secondary school, and gave presentations to local children, introducing them to our instruments and different styles of music, and performing works ranging from extracts from Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty to Britney Spears's Toxic!  The following day we were joined by singers and instrumentalists from six local schools –  Ludworth, Sherburn Village, Gilesgate and Pittington primary schools, Belmont School Community and Arts College, and Durham Gilesgate Sports College and Sixth Form Centre – for rehearsals for the concerts.  Local arranger Len Young had created versions of four pieces, including a medley from Bernstein's West Side Story, and a collection of traditional Tyneside Folksongs, and the Samling Scholars, Berkeley Ensemble, young instrumentalists and massed choirs came together under the baton of Simon Over to perform these pieces in two hugely successful concerts.  Thanks to Simon and Clare Dodd at Southbank, Karon Wright and Katrina Conaty at Samling, our very generous host families, and our fantastic choirs and instrumentalists for making this a highly rewarding experience.  Thanks also to fellow Southbank Alumni Ruth Elder (violin) and Kate Aldridge (double bass) for joining us for this trip.

Despite a busy rehearsal and performing schedule, we also managed to fit in a concert of our own at St George's Church, Gateshead.  The programme was typically diverse and comprised Lennox Berkeley's String Trio, a Quartet for bassoon and strings by French classical composer, Francois Devienne, and Beethoven's Septet (again, thanks Kate!).  Thanks to a very enthusiastic audience, and Rev. Edward Underhill and Peter Chatfield at St George's for making this a thoroughly enjoyable event.

click here to find out more about the work of the Samling Foundation

Northern Tour, part 1 - September 2008

A chilly weekend in September saw the Berkeley Ensemble venture North for two evening concerts in Manchester and Sheffield cathedrals, both magnificent buildings and lovely spaces in which to perform.  We played Howard Ferguson's Octet, an intriguing and effective work that certainly has lots for the performers and listeners to get their teeth into, followed by Schubert's epic Octet, a six-movement work, and, we think, one of the finest pieces of chamber music ever written.  Thank you to Gemma and Linda Wareham for organising the two concerts, and Jon Calvert for his help with Front of House in Manchester.

click here to find out more about the work of the Samling Foundation

Siesta-ing Beauty in Tuscany - July 2008

As part of Southbank Sinfonia's festival in Anghiari, Italy, the Berkeley Ensemble was invited to give a child-friendly recital of extracts from Tchaikovsky's Sleeping Beauty.  We were joined by harpist Celine Saout, who added some typical Russian colour to our arrangements, and local English teacher Jo, who translated Paul's introductions to the instruments, and then led us through the fairytale.  Windy conditions and inadequate clothes pegs made this concert slightly more eventful than it might have been, and once again we are incredibly grateful to the staff at Southbank Sinfonia, this time for pretending to be sandbags and protecting our music stands from gale-force winds.  Luckily, a repeat performance for English-speaking children later in the week was inside!

Something old, something blue.... - June 2008

On June 19th, the Berkeley Ensemble gave their first concert as an octet in Southbank Sinfonia's Rush Hour Series at St John's Church Waterloo.  We kicked off with John Casken's Blue Medusa  for solo bassoon and ensemble.  This work was originally written for bassoon and piano as a commission for Rosie's eighteenth birthday in 2003.  John has recently arranged the piece for octet, and we were thrilled to work with him in preparation for the first London performance.  We tackled the work without a conductor, and the intricate score proved challenging but incredibly rewarding to play.  We followed this with Beethoven's genial Septet, a chamber work of grand proportions, full of different types of challenges.  We were very grateful to Philippa Davies (flute) and John Heley (cello) for coaching this work.  Thanks also to Southbank Sinfonia for their generous support, which included publicity, the provision of wine for the audience, and invaluable help at the concert.