Lakeside Trio 2nd Residency
19th-24th July 2010
For their second residency at the academy, the Lakeside Trio were once again an inspirational presence. A masterclass involving several of the island’s young pianists took place on one evening, and the following evening they preceded their concert at the academy with a pre-concert presentation of Schoenberg’s Verklacht Nacht. This gave a fascinating insight into the poetry which underpins Schoenberg’s music, and in particular the way that each musical motive heard is ‘transformed’ towards the end of the piece to give a beautiful sense warmth and expression to the work.
Their performance in the concert following this presentation was exemplary, in which the insights gained from the pre-concert event added a whole new dimension to the experience. The concert also included Schubert’s expansive Piano Trio in E flat, one of the fundamental works for piano trio, and Panufnik’s Piano Trio op.1, a modern but highly accessible work showcasing virtuosity from each off the instruments. The Lakeside Trio’s residency was once again sponsored by the Jersey Arts Trust.
Chetham’s School of Music Residency
24th-29th June 2010
For a week in June the academy hosted a wonderful group of young musicians from Chetham’s School of Music. The group comprised a string quartet and wind quintet, led by three members of the teaching faculty including Director of Music Stephen Threlfall.
The first event to take place was a Primary Schools Concert at the Jersey Arts Centre, coordinated by the Jersey Instrumental Music Service. Around 200 children attended this concert, which involved singing and dancing, and a memorable moment where children were invited onto the stage to sit and stand alongside the string quartet to follow their music through the performance of Shostakovich’s 6th String Quartet.
That evening, the group performed their full recital at the Jersey Arts Centre, which was well attended in particular by groups of local young musicians and their families. A wonderful variety of solo performances and ensemble works displayed the expressive and virtuosic qualities of all the different instruments on display.
The following day the group spent a full morning at Victoria College Preparatory School, firstly performing to the whole school, and then working alongside a group of children who had spent the term writing compositions to play alongside the Chethams students. That evening the Chetham’s students were joined by a large group of local young musicians to create a chamber orchestra, rehearsing Britten’s Soirees Musicales and Mozart’s Piano Concerto no. 12, with local soloist Georgina Sutton.
On the Saturday thee group met up at Durrell with all the VCP students to perform the ‘Concert in the Courtyard’. In the beautiful setting of Augres Manor’s courtyard, each of the VCP schoolchildren performed their own compositions alongside the visiting students, in front of an audience of families and holidaymakers. The evening was once again spent rehearsing the chamber orchestra.
On the final day of the tour, rehearsals in the daytime led up to the ‘Chethams and Friends’ concert at the academy, in which the chamber orchestra performed in front of a packed audience, alongside ensemble performances given by the visiting students.
The tour received the support of the Jersey Arts Trust, and by all accounts was a huge success and highly inspirational and motivating for all the local young musicians and schoolchildren involved. Plans are already in motion for next year!
Liberation International Music Festival 2010
7th-9th May 2010
Jersey hosted a wide range of star studded concerts from 7th – 9th May to celebrate the 65th anniversary of the Liberation of the Channel Islands after occupation during the Second World War. Music In Action’s second Liberation International Music Festival received support from the Jersey Arts Trust, UBS Wealth Management, Tourism Development Fund, Carey Olsen, Airtel-Vodafone and Jersey Harbours.
The festival featured some of the most exciting rising stars from Europe to the Far East playing beautiful and atmospheric music in some of island’s most iconic locations.
Performers included Elizabeth Watts (recently acclaimed for her performances at the Royal Opera House), to the multiple award winning Nicola Benedetti, and the composer and former member of Deep Purple Jon Lord. In total there are over 300 artists performing and working together from countries as diverse as Germany to China.
The Jersey International Music Festival is an important part of the cultural calendar of the British Isles featuring music in exciting and extraordinary locations.
Performer highlights:
· Violinist Nicola Benedetti the 2008 Classic FM artist of the year and 2009 Classical Brit award winner
· Elizabeth Watts – Soprano winner of the Lieder prize at the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World
· German award winning cellist Leonard Elschenbroich
· Chinese pianist Wu Qian who since the age of fifteen has performed in many of the world’s greatest venues
· Jon Lord who has sold over 150 million albums as a rockstar and is Jersey’s composer in residence
· Israeli protégé of the great Daniel Barenboim, Daniel Cohen
Visit www.liberationjersey.com for a breakdown of each of the events which took place.