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Newsletter, January 2007

Recent concerts

14th October at Pershore Abbey

This was the Orchestra’s fifth concert in support of the Farmers Overseas Action Group (FOAG). It comprised three works: “Sospiri” for strings and harp by Elgar, Beethoven’s Second Symphony and Holst’s Planets Suite.

An “out of area” concert like this cannot hope to be covered in the local press, so we must content ourselves with comments from members of the audience, which included: “The best concert you have ever given” and “the orchestra seems to get better and better.” Praise indeed from knowledgeable music-lovers. It was a very happy and successful occasion and over £1000 was raised for FOAG.

 

11th November at Leonard Stanley Priory

This was a very special concert indeed, given in aid of Minchinhampton Centre for the Care of the Elderly, where Douglas Smith, the orchestra’s founder, is being cared for.

Fittingly, the central item in the programme was Mozart’s Piano Concerto in A major K488 #23, performed by Kerry Beaumont, formerly a cellist in the Orchestra for a year or so, but now Director of Music and Organist at Coventry Cathedral.

Kerry gave a sparkling account of this lovely work. It was a great pleasure to see Douglas and his wife Anne in the church during the rehearsal.

The other works in the programme were by Beethoven: the overture to “Coriolan” and the Second Symphony. This was a very suitable programme, typical of many in days gone by.

Turning a most enjoyable evening into a financially successful one, the concert netted over £1570 for the Centre.

There was one disappointment – the Princess Royal Princess Anne, who is Patron of the Centre and a keen and active supporter, had hoped to attend, but was required instead to be in London for the Festival of Remembrance at the Royal Albert Hall.

 

25th November at St Michael and All Angels, Ledbury

This concert was conducted by two guest conductors: the first half by James Slater (Beethoven’s “Coriolan” Overture and Second Symphony), the second half by Tony Washington director of the Penyard Singers, who formed the choir in a performance of Hummel’s rarely played Mass in E flat.
The audience was disappointingly small, and the bone-chilling temperature in the church was an uncomfortable reminder of days gone by, when the Sunday Players often played in Cotswold churches that lacked the benefit of a modern heating system!

 

16th December at Pittville Pump Room

This was considered by many to have been the Orchestra’s most successful Christmas concert in recent years. It followed a now familiar formula, which one could sum up perhaps as being “by children and for children.” This year’s guest children’s choir, from Berkhampstead School, gave an excellent account of themselves in carols accompanied both by piano (John Stillman, a violinist in the Orchestra) and later by the Orchestra. The music for children included a new work by local composer Philip Lane, “The Night before Christmas,” and the immensely popular “Three Little Pigs” by Paul Patterson, based upon the Revolting Rhyme by Roald Dahl.

Younger musicians were well represented: Fenella Humphreys (Making Music AYCA winner in 2005) gave a stirring and eloquent performance of Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy (which she was performing for the first time, having learnt it for the occasion at the Orchestra’s request); the Orchestra was led for the first time by Amelia Jones, Gloucestershire Young Musician 2006; and Jemima Phillips (our regular harpist as well as being Royal Harpist) treated us to a virtuoso solo piece.

The Orchestra’s collaboration with these young musicians in the early stages of their professional careers provided a very pleasing link with the many young people in the audience. If just one among them is inspired to take up music seriously as a result, we will all be pleased. It can and does happen like that.

 

David Curtis’ 50th concert

The concert at Leonard Stanley in November was David’s 50th in charge of the Orchestra since he became conductor at the end of 1999. These are some of the underlying statistics:

It also reflects the versatility and high standard of performance being achieved by the Orchestra, and is a testament to the hard work put in by players and conductor alike. It has so far been an exhilarating ride, sometimes rather bumpy, but always onward and upward!

 

The Orchestra website

(www.cheltenhamsymphonyorchestra.info)
The website has been redesigned and expanded. If you can, please take a few minutes to browse the site, which contains, among other things:

That last point is important. We have noticed over the past 2-3 years that a number of our new players have found out about us from the website (just put the words “Cheltenham” and “Orchestra” into the world’s favourite search engine).

Suggestions for additions etc should be sent to the Webmaster (as shown at the foot of each page of the website).

 

From Andrew Chapman, the orchestra’s de facto composer-in-residence

I love Sibelius. No, not the balding Finn and his vast tracts of icy semi-quavers but Sibelius the music notation software. If this immediately brands me as something of an anorak may I try and explain.

I write music. I have done so, on and off, since I was a raw youth. The first piece that I ever composed was a duo for two clarinets. It lasted all of 45 seconds and took me many hours and much pencil licking to complete. I was encouraged to try something more ambitious. It was then that I discovered the remorseless statistic of composing: 2% inspiration and 98% perspiration. The sheer tedium of copying out pages of semi-quavers, working out transposing instruments (they take idiosyncrasy into a totally different realm) and then doing it all again to create a full score.

It took ages and I did not have the time to do it. There was one year when I wrote the music for a Christmas play - a very modest affair which I scored for about six instruments. I spent every night of the week before Christmas kneeling on the living-room floor, surrounded by sheets of manuscript paper, scribbling away. I have to report that this was not popular at home, my duties in respect of tree decorating, present wrapping and the like being seriously neglected.

So when a life change came along (some call it retirement) time was freed up to spend composing. By that time I had heard about Sibelius.

Sibelius, as I have said, is music notation software. That means that the little dots and squiggles that are written music can be entered on to a computer screen, edited and then printed as clear, legible copy for musicians to read. But the sheer sophistication of it is staggering. I can enter the notes from a keyboard (musical or computer) or by loading the cursor with, say, a crotchet and dropping it in wherever I choose. Easy as pie. Passages can be copied just as you can copy and paste text in your word processing program, parts can be transposed at a press of one key (oh joy!) You can listen to what you have written and modify or correct. It is much like painting a canvas in oils, dab a bit on here, scrape a wadge off there until you get what you are after.

The system was devised by twin brothers who, bizarrely, are called Finn. To complete the association all the file names are *.sib (for Sibelius but also for sibling). They were music students but also computer buffs. Fed up, as I was, with the endless copying of parts they vowed to make an end to it. Now they have a multi-million pound, internationally renowned product.

There is one task that this wonderful system does not do. It does not compose for you. In the end you still have to decide which note goes where, how long or short it is, how loud or soft it is and whether it is played on the contrabassoon or the gamelan. No, that is up to you, the composer. Nowadays 50% inspiration and 50% perspiration, altogether a better ratio.

Want to know more? Go to www.sibelius.com - and if you want to see and hear some of my music follow the links to .... Andrew Chapman.

 

Concerts in 2007

Of particular note in 2007 are:

9th June, the performance of a new work by Andrew Chapman (Three Movements for Orchestra) (see above) and of Mahler’s Third Symphony (the “biggie” of the year);

13th October, the appearance with the Orchestra of Oliver Coates (cello), winner of the MM Award for Young Concert Artists 2006 (following in the footsteps of Samantha Ward (piano, 2004 winner) and Fenella Humphreys (violin, 2005).

16th December, a welcome return visit by Samantha Ward who gave an impressive performance of the Grieg Piano Concerto in 2005. She appears to have been equally impressed with the Orchestra, and asked if she could come and play with us again (and agreed to accept a lower fee for the privilege!).

This will also be the 400th concert to be given by the Cheltenham Sunday Players/CSO since it all began in 1969. Mark Foster (conductor from 1970 to 1999) has agreed to make a guest appearance, conducting a piece of his choice.

 

AGM of Friends set for 22nd March 2007

The 2007 AGM of the Friends will take place on 22nd March at Prestbury St Mary’s Junior School, following the AGM of the Orchestra (at about 9.30pm).


Items for consideration at the AGM should be sent to the Honorary Secretary not later than 1st March 2007. Address: Ron Nourse, Berry Brow, Bushcombe Lane, Woodmancote, Cheltenham, GL52 9QQ, email: ron@nourse.fsnet.co.uk