May 2011 – Liberation International Music Festival


Liberation International Music Festival


May 6th-9th 2011


The third Liberation Jersey Music Festival featured ten internationally acclaimed artists, performing beautiful, dramatic and atmospheric music in stunning settings side by side with Jersey’s own choirs and musicians throughout the island. Organised by Music In Action, the academy hosted many of the visiting musicians and was the centre for all rehearsals and educational work. Pictured here is the Jersey Chamber Orchestra rehearsing with conductor Daniel Cohen:

 

Jersey Chamber Orchestra Rehearsal


During the course of the festival, many Masterclasses took place giving academy students the opportunity to receive tuition from the visiting international soloists. Pictured here are Piano and Violin Masterclasses given by Qian Wu and Alexander Sitkovetsky from the Sitkovetsky Trio:


Liberation Masterclass 1


Liberation Masterclass 2


The festival itself was a huge success, attracting sell-out audiences to some events, and drawing the attention of BBC Radio 3, who came over to the island to record the Liberation Celebration concert at the Jersey Opera House on Monday 9th May. Visit www.liberationjersey.com for information on this year’s festival, and to keep updated on plans for next year as they develop.

 


 

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April 2011 – Project Week, Escola Das Artes Residency


Project Week, Escola Das Artes Residency

March 28th-April 2nd 2011

The term was brought to a close with a wonderful busy week of musical activities centering around the visiting group of young musicians and teachers from the Escola Das Artes, Madeira. The group comprised a brass quintet and string septet, led by violin teacher Vladimir Proudnikov, brass teacher Fabien Filipe and the conservatoire’s director Ines Jardim.


St Thomas's Church


The group’s first day involved a concert at the Town Hall followed by a performance for Portugueuse Mass at St Thomas’s Church (pictured above). The group even got their instruments our for a spot of impromptu ‘busking’ in the church’s Welcome Centre following the service (pictured below).

 

Welcome Centre busking


Following this, the tour was based on two main activities. Firstly, during the mornings they visited various schools, including VCP, D’Auvergne, JCG and Springfield, and by the end of the week they had performed to over one thousand children in total! Their visit also fell during the week of the VCP Music Competition, and so the Madeiran students also had the opportunity to help adjudicate various sections of the competition (pictured below).


VCP Music Competition


Secondly, each evening they were joined by academy students from the Upper Intermediate and Advanced departments to form a chamber orchestra, rehearsing together towards a concert at the end of the week. One of the particularly entertaining highlights was the use of one of the academy’s Harmoniums (pictured below), an antique chamber organ which involved pumping air through the pipes with foot pedals whilst playing!


Harmonium rehearsal


During the week, students from the Junior and Lower Intermediate departments also had Improvisation and Composition workshops with Russell Abraham, giving some new musical ideas. The term concluded with the End of Term Concert on Saturday 2nd April. Our thanks go once more to the Jersey Arts Trust for their support of the academy’s projects.

 

 

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March 2011 – International Music Forum and Competition, Madeira


International Music Forum and Competition, Madeira

March 5th-12th 2011

Chris George and Emmanuelle Dumas were invited to become members of the international jury brought together in Funchal, Madeira, for this competition (pictured below at the competition’s closing ceremony). The organisation behind the event, entitled ‘Art in the 21st Century’, is a Ukranian non-profit organisation that runs musical forums throughout Europe for various age groups and instruments. This particular forum had children coming with their families from Russia, China, France, Lithuania, and the UK, among many others. In addition to the competition element there was also a whole host of concerts throughout the week. The next forum is due to take place in Finland this summer, and discussions are currently taking place with organisation to see if the forum can visit Jersey in future years too.


Madeira Forum Jury

 

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January 2011 – JAM Cello Ensemble


JAM Cello Ensemble


January 29th 2011

The Spring Term also saw the launch of a new ensemble, open to all cellists on the island, and combining both adult and junior age groups. The Cello Ensemble is a unique type of instrumental ensemble in which a group of around ten cellos are divided between the high and low parts to create a full string sound. The academy’s cello ensemble will meet for occasional projects during the year, and the next is planned for this term. The ensemble’s launch session took place on Saturday 29th January, preceded by a performance of Bach’s 1st Suite for solo cello given by visiting international cellist Guy Johnson (pictured far left with the cello ensemble).


JAM Cello Ensemble

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January 2011 – Launch of the Infant Department


Launch of the Infant Department


January 2011

The Spring term saw the launch of the academy’s new Infant Department, with morning classes for toddlers aged two and upwards, and after-school classes for children in Reception and Key Stage One. The toddlers classes are led by Mim Poingdestre, who is vastly experienced in this style of tuition, bringing boundless energy to the classes. These sessions are for toddlers with their parents/carers, and mix up singing, dancing, clapping, and playing on a huge range of different mini instruments. Caroline Finch leads the Reception and Key Stage One groups, where more focus is given to notation and aural training, and the children will get the opportunity to try different musical instruments. We hope that the youngest children can grow up through the academy system, and have the fundamental musical foundations in place before choosing their own instrument.


Infant Dpt Toddler class

 

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January 2011 – Rococo String Sextet Residency


Rococo String Sextet Residency


January 26th-30th 2011 

The Rococo String Quartet were resident at the academy in the Winter term, but they returned this term with friends! The Rococo String Sextet gave an after-school concert with just one work in the programme; Brahms’s beautiful String Sextet. This provided an excellent opportunity for students to experience one of the large-scale musical forms of the Romantic period, and an interesting question and answer session followed about the work itself and also the musician’s backgrounds. The Jersey Chamber Orchestra concert that week at the Opera House in which the sextet performed was the orchestra’s first complete sell-out, so congratulations to Music In Action on this acheivement!

Rococo Sextet concert

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