Brass and Percussion Day
6th July 2014
Led by Pippa Lumbard and Eva Hsieh, the Brass and Percussion Day involved thirty-two young musicians aged 10-16 in a whole day of different activities. The day began with a short performance given by all the tutors, firstly featuring the brass quintet of Stuart Lumbard, Pippa Lumbard, Ken Laurens, Peter Smart, and Andrew Thompson, followed by the percussion duo of Eva Hsieh and Russell Abraham. The percussionists had fun during the day with an ‘Orchestral Karaoke’, performing the full percussion score along to a recording of Bizet’s Overture to Carmen, and all students participated in a ‘Body Percussion’ workshop:
The brass students broke of into various smaller ensembles to rehearse their music for the combined item ‘Happy’, which featured all the day’s young musicians and tutors, and was performed at the end of the day to an enthusiastic audience of family and friends:
This performance was such a rousing success that everyone agreed to perform it again as the Grand Finale of our End of Year Concert at the Jersey Arts Centre on Sunday 13th July.
Suzuki Day
5th July 2014
The academy’s annual summer Suzuki Day involved a visiting team of Suzuki string specialists from the UK to lead a packed day of musical activities for around thirty young violinists and cellists aged 5-9. As well as individual and group tuition, the day gave an introduction to Dalcroze:
There were also a variety of different activites including Musical Mind Games, Country Dancing, and a Percussion Workshop led by Eva Hsieh:
The day concluded with a Concert given by all the participating students, adults, and teachers. The visiting Suzuki teachers were Jo Mahler (violin), Sue Horridge (violin), and Richard Boardman (cello). They were joined by academy teachers Emmanuelle Dumas (cello) and Chris George (piano), and the whole event was conceived and coordinated by Vanessa Moore (violin). The links created during this wonderful event will lead to many more Suzuki day events in the future.
Royal College of Music Junior Department Day-Trip
21st June 2014
On Saturday 21st June 2014 a group of eight students aged 11-14 had the opportunity to spend a full day at the Royal College of Music Junior Department in London. Flying over in the morning, the sun was shining and the excitement was already building:
Upon arrival at RCM, their first activity was to join in the RCM JD String Orchestra rehearsal. They rehearsed Piazzolla’s Libertango, having prepared their parts in the build up to the tour. The orchestral staff and conductor welcomed them into the orchestra in a most sensitive and encouraging way, and they sat side-by-side with their London counterparts:
Following this rehearsal, they participated in a Performance Class led by Katya Lebedeva (one of the RCM JD teachers who had come previously to Jersey on several occasions with groups of students) and pianist Leanne Singh-Levett. All the students performed to each other and received feedback and advice from the teachers. A picnic lunch in front of the Royal Albert Hall then followed:
After lunch, the students had a guided tour of the RCM, which included a visit to the spectacular library, with their 10,000 strong CD collection, and an interesting collection of old books including the ABRSM Violin syllabus from 1942 (which the students found fascinating to compare with nowadays). A very engaging and stimulating session then took place at the RCM Museum, in which a series of ancient-instrument specialists gave demonstrations on keyboard, wind, string and brass instruments from different periods of history. One student even had the opportunity to play a Baroque violin:
This brought us to the end of our day at RCM, and we would like to thank all the staff involved for a simply fantastic experience. Our thanks also go to the Jersey Arts Trust for their continued support of our Projects and Events. Plans are underway for their next return visit to Jersey in the next academic year.
