Newbury Spring Festival 2012 Full Listings

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Date/May Event Venue Time Page

Sat 12 Royal Philharmonic Orchestra St Nicolas Church 7.30pm 13

Blazin’ Fiddles Corn Exchange 7.30pm 17

Sun 13 Sound Beginnings Sheepdrove Eco Conference Centre 10.30am/12.30pm 18

Morriston Orpheus Choir Corn Exchange 3.00pm 19

The Olympianist Market Place 4.00pm 21

His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts Douai Abbey 7.45pm 22

Mon 14 Fournier Piano Trio Corn Exchange 12.30pm 25

Lucinda Dickens Hawksley Shaw House 3.00pm 27

Innovation Chamber Ensemblewith the Frith Piano Quartet Corn Exchange 7.30pm 28

Tue 15 Lucy Parham & Petroc Trelawny The Vineyard 12.30pm 34

Escher Quartet St Michael and All Angels Church, Lambourn 7.30pm 36

Ballet Central Corn Exchange 7.30pm 39

Wed 16 Emilia Martensson Quartet Corn Exchange 12.30pm 40

Zeffirelli’s Otello Corn Exchange 7.30pm 42

Kinsky Trio Prague Long Gallery, Englefield House 7.30pm 43

Thu 17 David Starkey Long Gallery, Englefield House 3.00pm 45

Tibetan Monks Corn Exchange 7.30pm 46

Mahan Esfahani St Mary’s Church, Kintbury 7.30pm 48

Fri 18 Piatti String Quartet Corn Exchange 12.30pm 52

Lighthouse Corn Exchange 7.30pm 54

Milo! Karadaglic St George’s Church, Wash Common 7.30pm 56

Sheepdrove Recital Sheepdrove Eco Conference Centre 7.30pm 58

www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Diary

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Date/May Event Venue Time Page

Sat 19 Milo! Karadaglic Masterclass Corn Exchange 10.00am 60

Bollywood to Bhangra Corn Exchange 7.30pm 62

English Chamber Orchestra St Nicolas Church 7.30pm 64

Sun 20 Family Concert Corn Exchange 3.00pm 70

Sheepdrove Piano Competition Final Sheepdrove Eco Conference Centre 3.00pm 71

Joyful Company of Singers St Martin’s Church, East Woodhay 7.30pm 75

Mon 21 Sheepdrove Piano Competition Winner Corn Exchange 12.30pm 77

Hugo Vickers Combe Manor, Hungerford 3.00pm 78

Admission: One Shilling Corn Exchange 7.30pm 79

Tue 22 Julia McKenzie with Edward Seckerson Sydmonton Court 3.00pm 81

Galliard Ensemble St Lawrence’s Church, Hungerford 7.30pm 82

Mugenkyo Taiko Drummers Corn Exchange 7.30pm 85

Wed 23 Consortium5 Corn Exchange 12.30pm 86

Romeo and Juliet Corn Exchange 7.30pm 89

Brodsky Quartet St Mary’s Church, Shaw 7.30pm 90

Thu 24 Paul Moorhouse Shaw House 11.00am/3.00pm 93

Stephen Hough Corn Exchange 7.30pm 94

Harry the Piano Donnington Priory 7.30pm 96

Fri 25 Vacarescu-Tsunakawa Duo Corn Exchange 12.30pm 97

Cantabile: The London Quartet Corn Exchange 7.30pm 99

The Tallis Scholars Douai Abbey 7.45pm 101

Sat 26 Swinging at The Cotton Club Corn Exchange 7.30pm 108

Berlin Symphony Orchestra St Nicolas Church 7.30pm 110

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The Long Gallery Englefield House Theale

Johan AnderssonAfter graduating from Central St. Martins in 2008 JohanAndersson became the youngest ever person to beshortlisted for the BP Portrait Award and named as TheIndependent’s top 20 Artists. His selected work wasdisplayed at the National Portrait Gallery and in the sameyear he was also selected for the Jerwood ContemporaryPainters prize.

Since then Andersson has gone on to exhibit workalongside artists including Anish Kapoor, Tracy Emin,Sarah Lucas, Gavin Turk and Howard Hodgkin, and in2010 was selected to exhibit work in support ofBreakThrough Breast Cancer at The V&A Museum.

He has exhibited and sold on the international art marketincluding The Scope Art Fair in Basel, Cutlog in Paris, andmost recently was invited to host a solo show at the CurioGallery in Venice Los Angeles. His work has also beendisplayed in major London Underground stationsincluding Bond Street, Baker Street and South Kensington.

In 2010 Andersson was selected by SkyARTS as the ‘oneto watch’ young British Contemporary Artist to feature on asix part documentary called ‘Art of Survival’ which wasbroadcast in summer 2011. In late July 2011 Anderssonreceived a posthumous public commission to paint AmyWinehouse and during February 2012 featured onTED.com, working on his piece Jocelyn & Annie from hisSTOLEN FACES series.

STOLEN FACESIn December 2010 Andersson started work on his firstformal series, which would become known as STOLENFACES. The concept threaded through each piece is theendeavour to give representation and visibility to those

who do not conform to the artificial and image conscious(attributes so often propagated by onscreen and printedhegemony). In recognising the capacity of the globalmedia (in line with public receptiveness) to distortontological perceptions, the paintings stand both indefiance and pride, celebrating diversity in the knowledgethat we are all uniquely made.

In the presence of STOLEN FACES one interacts with anexpression that encourages intimacy, whilst challengingcontinually rising advertising milieus. In capturing bothactuality and the elusive ethereal, the fusion of subtletechnicolour has the effect of making ordinary detailsappear extraordinary. The subjects retain both anephemeral and intense presence, provoking cognitivedissonance. The sheer scale of each piece encouragesthe viewer to confront their preconceptions of identity in amanner that is uniquely uncompromising.

Andersson had toured with paintings mid-series but isparticularly excited about having the opportunity to unveilthe finalised STOLEN FACES series at the Long Gallery,Englefield House in May 2012. Eight paintings from theseries, which represent individuals marginalised bycontemporary society, will hang in place of family portraitsof prominent 17 and 18th century earls and countesses. Inbypassing the traditional London gallery circuit, Anderssonis making an eye-catching statement about theconventions by which young artists are expected toadhere, making a personal contribution to help shake-upand redefine an industry.

Opening times are 10.00am – 1.00pm on the followingdates: Saturday 12 May Sunday 13 May Monday 14 MayTuesday 15 May closed Wednesday Thursday 17 MayFriday 18 May

www.johanandersson.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Festival Art Exhibition

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St Nicolas Church Newbury Saturday 12 May 7.30pm

Royal Philharmonic OrchestraOwain Arwel Hughes conductorFreddy Kempf piano

Walton Crown ImperialBeethoven Piano Concerto No 5 Emperor

Interval

Brahms Symphony No 4

Sponsored by Greenham Common TrustAdditional support from Mr and Mrs RoderickChamberlain as part of the Contributors Scheme

Owain Arwel HughesIn a career spanning 40years, Owain ArwelHughes has conductedand recorded many of theworld's leading orchestras.In November 2007, he wasappointed Principal GuestConductor of the CapePhilharmonic Orchestrawith whom he has recentlyconducted and recorded

the world premiere of Schnittke's monumental choralwork, Nagasaki. As Founder and Artistic Director, OwainArwel Hughes is the driving force behind the success ofthe Cardiff Welsh Proms. Inaugurated in 1986, it hasbecome one of the major UK music festivals attractingorchestras and leading artists from around the world.Committed to the highest level of music education foryoung people Owain Arwel Hughes accepted the positionof Music Director of the National Youth Orchestra of Walesin 2003, the oldest such youth orchestra in the world.

He has held the titles of Associate Conductor of thePhilharmonia Orchestra, London, the BBC NationalOrchestra of Wales and Principal Associate Conductor ofthe Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. As Principal Conductorof the Aalborg Symphony Orchestra, Denmark, he raisedthe orchestra's profile with major recordings of Danishmusic. Acclaimed for his direction of large scale choralworks Owain Arwel Hughes had a highly successfulperiod as Conductor of the world famous HuddersfieldChoral Society between 1980 and 1986.

Owain Arwel Hughes enjoys a long-standing relationshipwith the recording label BIS for whom he has recordedthe entire orchestral, concerto and choral output of VagnHolmboe and all Rachmaninov's symphonies andconcertos. Recent releases include Walton Symphony 1and 2 with the Orchestre National de Lille and a CD of themusic of Arwel Hughes with the Royal PhilharmonicOrchestra.

Owain Arwel Hughes’ contribution to music has beenmarked with honorary doctorates and fellowships at nineuniversities and conservatoires. In 2004 in recognition ofhis services to music and charity he was awarded an OBEand in January 2009 he was the recipient of a CBE.

Freddy KempfBorn in London in 1977,Freddy Kempf came tonational prominence in1992 when he won theBBC Young Musician of theYear competition. In 1998,his award of third, ratherthan first, prize in theTchaikovsky InternationalPiano Competition inMoscow provoked protestsfrom the audience and an

outcry in the Russian press, which proclaimed him ‘thehero of the competition’. His international career wasrapidly established and his unprecedented popularity withRussian audiences has since been reflected in numeroussold-out concerts and television broadcasts. Manyinternational débuts followed, and Freddy Kempf hastravelled all over the world to take up a wide range ofinvitations, from opening the Shanghai Concert Hall inOctober 2004 to recording Chopin’s Etudes for DVD in achâteau near Paris for BBC Television.

The 2011-2012 season sees Freddy Kempf embarking ona major new project, in which he play/directs the RoyalPhilharmonic Orchestra in a complete cycle ofBeethoven’s piano concertos in many of the UK’s mostimportant venues. Other highlights of the current seasoninclude concerts with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestraunder Andrew Litton and the RTVE Symphony OrchestraMadrid under Carlos Kalmar. Freddy Kempf alsocollaborates with the Australian Chamber Orchestra alongwith violinist/director Richard Tognetti and trumpeter TineThing Helseth in a performance at Birmingham’sSymphony Hall. Elsewhere, Freddy Kempf returns to theTokyo Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra and theVancouver Symphony Orchestra. Next season opens witha major UK tour with the St Petersburg SymphonyOrchestra.

Last season Freddy Kempf completed an extensiveJapanese recital tour including Tokyo’s Suntory Hall; suchwas its success that he returns to Japan for anotherrecital tour in June 2012. His other recital appearancesthis season include Manchester’s Bridgewater Hall,Sociedad Filharmónica Bilbao and the Great Hall of theMoscow Conservatoire.

www.owainarwelhughes.co.uk www.freddy-kempf.com www.rpo.co.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra

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Freddy Kempf records exclusively for BIS Records, hismost recent release being a solo recital disc ofRachmaninov, Bach/Busoni, Ravel and Stravinsky, praisedby BBC Music Magazine for its ‘wonderful delicate playingand fine sense of style’.

Royal Philharmonic OrchestraAcknowledged as one of the UK’s most prestigiousorchestras, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO)enjoys an international reputation for bringing audiencesworldwide first-class performances and the highestpossible standards of music-making across a diverserange of musical repertoire. This was the vision of theOrchestra’s flamboyant founder Sir Thomas Beecham,whose legacy is maintained today as the Orchestrathrives under the exceptional direction of its ArtisticDirector and Principal Conductor, Maestro Charles Dutoit.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra is London-based andperforms a prestigious series of concerts each year atSouthbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, featuring artists ofthe highest calibre. The Orchestra’s London home is atCadogan Hall, just off Sloane Square, where concert-goers enjoy an intimate atmosphere in an idyllic location.Complementing the concert series at Cadogan Hall, theOrchestra regularly performs in the magnificent RoyalAlbert Hall, presenting works of great magnitudedesigned to suit the immensity of this historic and grandvenue.

Within the UK, the Orchestra is committed to offering anextensive regional touring programme, includingestablished residencies in Croydon, Northampton,Lowestoft, Reading and Crawley. As an internationalorchestra, the RPO has toured more than thirty countriesin the last five years. Recent tours have includedperformances in Egypt, Russia, Spain, Italy, Germany,Azerbaijan and China.

The Orchestra is also recognised for its artistic workthrough a vibrant and innovative community andeducation programme, titled RPO resound. Speciallytrained members of the Orchestra, alongsideaccomplished project leaders, provide comprehensiveworkshops where music is used as a powerful andinspirational force.

Frequently found in the recording studio, the Orchestrarecords extensively for film and television as well as for allthe major commercial record companies. The Orchestraalso owns its own record label and is proud to be the firstUK orchestra to stream its entire series of concerts livefrom Cadogan Hall.

Programme NotesSIR WILLIAM WALTON (1902-1983)Coronation March: Crown Imperial

Walton's two marches were specifically written for thecoronations of George VI in 1937 (Crown Imperial) andElizabeth II in 1953 (Orb and Sceptre). They are similar inform, though Crown Imperial is the more musically direct.

After the fashion of Elgar, both Walton marches have amemorable and noble melody as their contrasting secondsection, following a strongly rhythmic opening. This wasthe kind of committed melodic gesture which in his time,Walton alone seemed capable of inventing. One otherfeature is notable in Crown Imperial. This is thedeployment of imposing brass chords, which precede thenoble theme and then in due course form the basis of theimpressive and emphatic conclusion.

LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)Piano Concerto No. 5 in E flat major, Opus 73Emperor

1. Allegro2. Adagio un poco mosso3. Rondo: Allegro

While the nickname 'Emperor' is thoroughly appropriate tothis grand concerto, it was not Beethoven's own, since itwas conceived by the publisher, composer and piano-maker Johann Cramer. The music was composed from1809 and the first performance took place in Vienna inNovember 1811, when the pianist was FriedrichSchneider and not Beethoven himself, as had been thecase in each of the four previous piano concertos. Thereason was the composer's deafness, which by this timewas so acute that he could no longer perform in public.Thereafter he wrote no more concertos, although hecontinued to compose in all the other important genressave opera.

The first movement is constructed on the grand scale,and in fact is longer than the other movements combined.The opening gesture is immensely impressive: the pianistplays three short and explosive cadenzas againstpowerful orchestral chords, and only then does theorchestral exposition begin. This generates a tremendousmomentum, with several distinctive themes which are soconstructed that they provide rhythmic-melodic unitswhich are eminently suited to development. The secondsubject group is well contrasted, and uses both the majorand the minor keys in radiating its subtle personality.

The return of the soloist soon generates a fortissimostatement of the first subject, but it is the variousadaptations of the second which are more interesting,developing into a range of possibilities which the initialpresentation had scarcely suggested. Then these ideas

www.owainarwelhughes.co.uk www.freddy-kempf.com www.rpo.co.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk


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are fully developed, until the orchestral tutti isrecapitulated. Although there is no formal cadenza in thelater stages of the movement, there is an extended codawhich further treats the main ideas and ends in amagnificently heroic manner.

The mood changes completely with the advent of theslow movement. This is constructed from two themes: asimple tune first heard on muted strings, and a series ofslow descending piano phrases linked with fragments ofthe melody. The atmosphere is peaceful and provides afoil to the surrounding movements, as the pianoelaborates and decorates the musical line, even taking asupporting role in accompanying several woodwindsolos.

When the piano begins the gradual upward tread of anew theme, the music soon 'bursts its skin' to become theenergetic theme of the rondo finale. This is in fact asonata-rondo design, since there is development of thematerial in the contrasting episodes. Thus the three mostimportant statements of the theme herald the exposition,development and recapitulation. There is fine subsidiarymaterial too, the contrasts imposing the effect of heroicgesture in the manner of the finale of the famousSymphony No. 5. Of this phenomenon there is no finerexample than the conclusion. From quiet introspectionthe piano plays a series of rising scales, triumphantlyreleasing the full orchestra.

© Terry Barfoot

JOHANNES BRAHMS (1770-1827)Symphony No. 4 in E minor, Opus 98

Allegro ma non troppo Andante moderato Allegro giocosoAllegro energico e passionate

Of all the major 19th century composers, Brahms is thefigure least concerned with the romantic programme, thefigure most committed to the treatment of the classicalideal. Accordingly, his symphonies retain the orchestra ofBeethoven and the classical four-movement plan.However, each of these magnificent compositions has itsown distinct sound-world; and in the case of the Fourth,the tragic grandeur of the finale is the crucial feature, apassacaglia (a set of variations on a recurring theme inthe bass) which he derived from his beloved Bach.

Composed in 1884, the Symphony No. 4 was firstperformed at Meiningen on 25 October 1885 by the CourtOrchestra conducted by Brahms.

Although the theme of the symphony's first subject is longand expressive, its initial presentation is phrased in pairsof notes before it is allowed to expand to its full potential.

The second subject group comprises several distinctivethemes, the finest of them a rich cello melody whichmaintains unity as much as it brings contrast. Thedevelopment begins with the outline of the openingtheme, but soon finds room for mystery and relaxationtoo, before the tensions return. The closing stages areincreasingly intense, culminating in a powerful statementwith timpani to the fore.

The beautiful slow movement is the perfect foil, theopening horn call giving way to a tender clarinet themeagainst pizzicato strings. As the music proceeds its line issustained through subtle variations of orchestral colour,until the cellos present the lyrical second theme. This finemelody is at once memorable and ideally suited tosymphonic development. The coda is especially eloquent,as was its counterpart in the preceding movement, therichly evocative return of the horn call bringing the musicto a peaceful conclusion.

The scherzo is abrupt in its rhythmic outline, unlike themore flowing movements Brahms had preferred in hisother symphonies. The principal theme displays qualitiesof great energy and vigour, while for contrast the violinspresent a more graceful contour. The tranquil mood of themiddle section does not linger, however. For the music ofthe scherzo makes a sudden reappearance, and the laterstages of the movement become more vigorous still,culminating in a brightly lit fanfare.

The passacaglia finale is one of Brahms's mostastonishing achievements. He took his theme from Bach'sCantata No. 150, ‘Nach dir, Herr, verlanget mich' ('ToThee, Lord, I lift my soul') and in the course of some tenminutes treated it to no fewer than thirty variations, withsuch integrity of design that the listener is moreconscious of flowing musical development than ofseparate interludes. As in the First Symphony, Brahmsholds back the sonority of the trombones for his finale,with the result that the music attains a new richness andpower in order to conclude the drama. Thus the closingphase is truly tragic, with no concession to romance.

© Terry Barfoot

Sponsored by Greenham Common TrustAdditional support from Mr and Mrs RoderickChamberlain as part of the Contributors Scheme

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www.owainarwelhughes.co.uk www.freddy-kempf.com www.rpo.co.uk16

Newbury Spring Festival would like to thank Yamaha forkindly supporting us with the supply of their ConcertGrand Piano - The CFX

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Corn Exchange Newbury Saturday 12 May 7.30pm

Blazin’ FiddlesJenna Reid, Bruce Macgregor, Allan Henderson, Iain Macfarlane fiddlesAnna Massie guitar/fiddleIngrid Henderson keyboard

Blazin’ FiddlesTake a group of the hottest contemporary fiddle playersfrom the Highlands and Islands of Scotland and you’vegot the award winning Blazin’ Fiddles on your hands. Inthe past decade no other band has quite captured theexcitement, passion and the sensitivity of Scottish musicas Blazin’ Fiddles, having grown from a showcase tour ofindividual fiddlers highlighting the distinctive flavours ofHighlands and Islands fiddle music.

During a performance, the audience has the opportunityto hear pieces featuring the regional styles of each fiddlerfollowed by all hands jumping in for a wonderfulexplosion of music. Fiddles and bows blaze away withguitar and piano for one of the most exciting andmemorable fiddle ensembles ever to take the stage.

European festival appearances have included TheCambridge Folk Festival, The Sidmouth InternationalMusic Festival, Lorient, Tønder Festival, the Falun Festivaland Scotland’s premier event Celtic Connections. Pastperformances have included their own project WithStrings Attached debuted at Celtic Connections 05featuring singer songwriters Eddi Reader, Justin Currie(Del Amitri) and Colin MacIntyre (Mull Historical Society).In 2005 they made a welcomed return to Cambridge FolkFestival and also played the BBC Proms at the RoyalAlbert Hall following the release of their last album‘Magnificent Seven’ which picked up the Best AlbumAward at the Scots Trad Awards 2005. The band releasedtheir fourth album, Blazin’ Fiddles Live, in the lead up totheir 10th year anniversary in 2008.

Like rare single malts, each member of Blazin’ Fiddlesdraws the distinct flavour of music from their part of thehighlands and islands. From solo to ensemble sets, theyall come together in a fiery blend that raises the roof.

www.blazin-fiddles.co.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Blazin’ Fiddles

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Concert for babies and youngchildrenA concert especially for young children given in thebeautiful Oak Room of Sheepdrove ECO ConferenceCentre on the Berkshire Downs.

A magical musical journey with song, music andmovement will be presented by operatic baritone andactor Richard Morris and the acclaimed pianist MikhailKazakevich. This year’s theme “Carnival of the Animals”will give plenty of scope for children to participate in aselection of music by Saint-Saëns and other composers.

Bring your imagination, plus a cushion or blanket, andenjoy this opportunity to explore music with your children.Home baked organic nursery food will be served aftereach concert. Ticket holders are also welcome to picnic inthe adjoining herb garden.

Supported by The Sheepdrove Trust

Mikhail KazakevichBorn in Gorky, Russia, Mikhail Kazakevich’s performingcareer began with a sensational western debut at theInternational Schubert Competition in Dortmund,Germany in 1991. Since that time he has played solo andwith orchestras at prestigious venues and festivals aroundthe world and combines his intensive concert activity withteaching which he has enjoyed since his graduation whenhe was appointed Professor at the Gorky StateConservatoire.

Mikhail will be returning to give an evening recital at theSheepdrove Eco Conference Centre on Friday 18 Maywhen his programme will include works by Dubussy,Ravel and Roussel. See page 58 for more details.

Richard Morris Richard Morris, from South Wales, studied at the GuildhallSchool and then achieved a Scholarship to the BanffSchool of Fine Arts in Canada. He returned to sing theCelebrant in Bernstein’s Mass, as part of the LSO'sBernstein Festival at the Barbican. Bernstein then askedhim to repeat the role in Boston and he has sinceperformed the role in Prague, Brno, Passau and theSouth Bank. In this country, he has worked at the RoyalOpera House, Scottish Opera, Opera North, the Almeida,Holland Park Opera, London City Opera and many more.He was a company member of the National Theatre andperformed in Euripides’s Bacchai with music by HarrisonBirtwhistle and directed by Peter Hall. He has recorded forVirgin Classics and Sony, and appeared on television andradio, both here and abroad.

Supported by the Sheepdrove Trust

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Sheepdrove Eco Conference Centre Lambourn Sunday 13 May 10.30am 12.30pm

Sound Beginnings

www.kazakevich.net18


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Corn Exchange Newbury Sunday 13 May 3.00pm

Morriston Orpheus ChoirJoy Amman Davies musical directorKathryn McAdam mezzo soprano

God Save The Queen (Choir only) Morriston Orpheus ChoirCaradog Robertsarr Alwyn Humphreys RachieJoseph Parry arr Alwyn Humphreys AberystwythKathryn McAdamRossini Una voce poco fa (from Il barbiere

di Siviglia)Morriston Orpheus ChoirAndrae Crouch arr Jack Schrader Soon and very soonRobat Arwyn BenedictusMiddlebrooks/Belland arr Alwyn Humphreys What would I do without my musicKathryn McAdamPuccini Quando men vo (from La Boheme)Fernando Obradors El vitoMorriston Orpheus Choir Marx/Thompson arr Alwyn Humphreys To where you arearr Joy Amman Davies Canwn Moliannwn

Interval

Morriston Orpheus Choir Pete St John arr Joy Amman Davies The fields of AthenryKander/Nebb arr Joy Amman Davies Razzle DazzleKathryn McAdamGershwin Summertime (from Porgy and Bess)Bernstein I feel pretty (from West Side Story)Morriston Orpheus Choir Ennio Morriconearr Joy Amman Davies Nella Fantasia Lyn Harry En Route

Kathryn McAdamHarold Arlen Somewhere over the rainbow

(from The Wizard of Oz)Frederick Loewe I could have danced all nightMorriston Orpheus ChoirElvis Presley arrAlwyn Humphreys Stand by meMorriston Orpheus Choir & Kathryn McAdamMascagni Easter Hymn

(from Cavalleria Rusticana)Morriston Orpheus Choir arr Alwyn Humphreys American TrilogyJohn Hughes Cwm Rhondda

Mae Hen Wlad Fy Nhadau

Sponsored by Greenham Common Trust

Joy Amman DaviesJoy Amman Davies was born in Glanamman, Dyfed.Whilst still at school, she won a scholarship to have pianotuition at the Welsh College of Music and Drama, Cardiff,before entering the University of Wales, Bangor, whereshe studied with the Czech pianist, Jana Frenklova

Joy is in constant demand as accompanist for soloists,vocal and instrumental, and has been guest accompanistwith the Ardwyn and Polyphonic choirs in Cardiff. She hasaccompanied many famous Welsh singers, including BrynTerfel, Rebecca Evans, Katherine Jenkins, Gwyn HughesJones, Rhys Meirion and Rhydian Roberts of X Factor.She has been one of the official accompanists at the UrddNational Eisteddfod and has performed as a concertosoloist with the Chamber Orchestra of Wales, performingMozart’s famous ‘Elvira Madigan’ in the very popularcandlelight concerts. She has also appeared severaltimes on S4C’s ‘Dechrau Canu, Dechrau Canmol’ seriesaccompanying Elin Manahan Thomas, Leah Marian Jonesand Adriano Graziani.

She was appointed Accompanist to the MorristonOrpheus Choir in 1991 and her expertise in that role has

www.morristonorpheus.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

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been widely recognised. Beyond the United Kingdom,she has accompanied the Choir and its guest soloists inAustralia, Canada, Eire, New Zealand, Oman, Poland,Spain, Taiwan, United Arab Emirates and the USA,including performances at the Sydney Opera House andCarnegie Hall, New York. For three years, Joy was incharge of choral activities at Elm Tree House School,Cardiff, during which time she conducted them to victoryat the Bath and Mid-Somerset Music Festival on severaloccasions. In 2004, Joy was made a Life Member of theMorriston Orpheus Choir in recognition of her outstandingcontribution and commitment. After 16 years asAccompanist, she was appointed Musical Director in June2007

Kathryn McAdamKathryn McAdam was bornand raised in Farnborough,Kent, and graduated fromthe University of Sheffieldwith a 1st class honoursdegree in music in 2006.She joined the GuildhallSchool of Music andDrama in 2008 and is nowin her final year ofpostgraduate study, on theprestigious Opera Course,under the tuition of JaniceChapman.

Aside from her contribution to productions staged by theGSMD, which include the roles of Hermia A Mid-SummerNight’s Dream Britten, Frau Reich Die Lustigen Weiber vonWindsor Nicolai, and Laura Jolanta Tchaikovsky, Kathrynhas sung the role of Olga Eugene Onegin Tchaikovsky atthe 2010 Endellion Summer Festival in Cornwall alongsiderenowned singers Mark Padmore, Roderick Williams,Susan Bickley, and Katherine Broderick. Just prior to this,she understudied the role of Suzuki Madama ButterflyPuccini for Grange Park Opera, and also formed part ofthe chorus for their production of L’amour des troisoranges Prokofiev. Other operatic experience to dateincludes: Cherubino Le nozze di Figaro Mozart (EMFEB),Carmen Carmen, Octavian Der Rosenkavalier, Rosina Ilbarbiere di Siviglia, Ramiro La finta giardiniera, MegFalstaff, Charlotte Werther, Beppe L’amico Fritz,Tamerlano Tamerlano, Nancy Martha (GSMD operascenes), Dorabella Cosi fan tutte (SU scenes), PublicOpinion Orpheus in the Underworld, Sorceress Dido &Aeneas, Anne of Cleves Dearly Beheaded by JamieBrown, and Mrs Anna and Lady Thiang The King & I atBuxton Opera House.

Kathryn gives regular recital, gala, and oratorioperformances throughout the country having sung invenues such as St John’s Smith Square, LSO St. Luke’s,Wigmore Hall, Royal Albert Hall, and the Barbican. Mostrecently, she was delighted to win the Morriston OrpheusChoir Supporters Assocation Young Welsh Singer of theYear 2011 competition. In May 2010 she was a finalist inthe AESS Patricia Routledge competition, and reachedthe semi-finals of the Royal Overseas League Competitionin February. Kathryn was also a finalist in the GuildhallAria Competition, November 2009.

Kathryn is the current recipient of the GSMD Silk Streetaward. She is also very grateful for the generous supportof the Elizabeth Evans Trust, the Amar-Franses andFoster-Jenkins trust, and Serena Fenwick.

Morriston Orpheus ChoirOften called the unofficial ambassadors for Wales, theChoir is internationally-acclaimed as a leading exponentof male choral singing. Within the United Kingdom theChoir is in constant demand with around25 engagements a year, including concerts, TV and after-dinner performances. Although itself a registered charityand financially self-supporting, much of its work isdevoted to assisting local and national good causes, athome and overseas, such as Leukaemia Research, Actionfor Children, RNLI, Air Ambulance Wales, Royal NationalEisteddfod, Urdd Gobaith Cymru and Save the ChildrenFund.

The aims and values of the Choir, however, remainunchanged. During the whole of its existence it hasstriven to follow the advice, attributed to Sir WalfordDavies in a speech in Swansea on that same April weekin 1935 when the Choir was formed, to “make musicjoyously”.


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Morriston Orpheus Choir

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Market Place Newbury Sunday 13 May 4.00pm

The OlympianistAnthony Hewitt, his bike and a pianoin towInternationally renowned pianist and avid cyclist AnthonyHewitt is ‘The Olympianist’. To celebrate the LondonOlympics 2012 he will cycle the length of Britain, in aid ofcharity, from Land’s End to John O’Groats, with his pianotrailing in a van. His visit to Newbury is part of this epicvoyage.

Janacek Sonata I:X:1905 From the StreetBeethoven Piano Sonata No 8 in C minor Op 13

PathétiqueSchubert Impromptu in E flat Op 90 No 2Chopin Fantasie - ImpromptuChopin Polonaise in A flat Op 53 HeroicRachmaninoff Prelude in G minor Op 23 No 4Liszt Hungarian Rhapsody No 2

The Olympianist’s Newbury visit is supported by West Berkshire Council

Anthony HewittAnthony Hewitt’s communicative and virtuosic pianismhas won him many plaudits worldwide, and as a recitalist,concerto soloist and chamber musician he has performedto much critical acclaim. His diverse repertoireencompasses all styles ranging from Bach to Benjamin,and he champions contemporary composers withfrequent new commissions. His enterprising projectsinclude the founding of the Ulverston International MusicFestival, now in its eighth year, which brings artists ofinternational repute to a small Cumbrian market town.

Career highlights to date include orchestral engagementswith the National Symphony and Princeton SymphonyOrchestras in the USA, and the Royal PhilharmonicOrchestra and Northern Sinfonia in the UK. He has givenfour recitals at Wigmore Hall, and appeared across theUSA including at Carnegie Weill Recital Hall.

His discography includes 'Protégé' (Divine Art Records),the first coupling on CD of the Liszt and Reubke Sonatas.This unique recording was described in InternationalRecord Review as "magisterial", and received aGramophone recommendation.

Highlights of upcoming concerts include an appearancewith the English Chamber Orchestra at the Royal FestivalHall, Beethoven’s Triple concerto with the BrightonPhilharmonic, and a solo recital at Wigmore Hall.

His 'Olympianist' project has resulted in over thirtyengagements - solo and orchestral - including with theManchester Camerata, here at the Newbury SpringFestival and at the Swaledale festival. When he performsoutdoors it is on a specially adapted van which he hascoined ‘Van BeethoVan’.

The Olympianist event is supported by West BerkshireCouncil and is part of West Berkshire – Enjoy!,celebrating the year 2012 across the district with moreopportunities for all to take part in cultural and sportingactivities (www.westberksenjoy.org.uk).

Anthony is undertaking this herculean endeavour in orderto raise money for some of his favourite charities,supporting the Mayor's Fund for Young Musicians,Musequality, Get Kids Going!, the National Austistic Societyand CLIC Sargent. He hopes that the scale and adventureof his Olympian effort will inspire, and aims to raise at least£20,000 for these charities. If you wish to make a donationplease go to: www.classicfm.co.uk/charity/olympianist/

www.olympianist.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

The Olympianist

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His Majestys Sagbutts and CornettsThe Grand TourJeremy West cornettJamie Savan cornettAbigail Newman alto & tenor sackbutAdam Woolf alto & tenor sackbutSteve Saunders bass sackbutBejamin Bayl continuo

EnglandMatthew Locke (1621-77) Suite for His Majestys

Sagbutts & Cornetts

William Byrd (1540-1623) Fantasia

Peter Phillips (1560-1628) Pavane & Galliard Dolorosaarranged by Jamie Savan

John Munday) Fantasia Faire Wether(b c.1555; d 1630)

GermanyJohann Schein (1586-1630) Padouana

Johann Vierdanck Sonata 31 Als ich einmal (1605-46) Lust bekam

Matthias Weckmann Toccata(1616-74)

Samuel Scheidt Canzon a 5(1587-1654)

Interval

SpainGiovanni Pierluigi da Vestiva i colliPalestrina (1525/6-1594)with divisions by Bartolomé de Selma y Salaverde (fl 1613–38) and Adam Woolf

Francisco Correa de ArauxoTiento(1584-1654)

José Ximénez (1601-72) Batalla del sexto tono

Italy Andrea Falconieri Passacaille a 2(1585-1656)

Girolamo Alessandro Sonata a 4Frescobaldi (1583-1643)

Giovanni Gabrieli Toccata(c.1554-7 - 1612)

Giovanni Gabrieli Canzon Quarta a 4 (1608)

Andrea Gabrieli O Sacrum Convivium(?1532/3-1585)

Sponsored by The Sackler Foundation and Sir Hugh andLady Stevenson

His Majestys Sagbutts and CornettsHaving celebrated its first quarter century in 2007, HisMajestys Sagbutts & Cornetts continues in the same spiritas always: aiming to bring the sound of its nobleinstruments, through pan-European repertoire from the16th and 17th centuries, to new audiences via recordings,radio, television and live performance.

The group’s illustrious-sounding name is taken fromMatthew Locke’s “five-part tthings for His MajestysSagbutts and Cornetts” that were probably played duringthe coronation celebrations for King Charles II in 1661.Essentially a recital group comprising two cornetts, threesackbutts and chamber organ / harpsichord, HMSC oftenjoins with singers and string players, and is frequentlyasked to take part in projects with choirs: Sir John EliotGardiner’s Monteverdi Choir, the BBC Singers, ExCathedra, the choirs of Trinity, King’s and St John’sColleges, Cambridge, as well as those of WestminsterAbbey, St Paul's and Westminster Cathedrals, London.

Recent highlights in the group’s 25 year career haveincluded two performances in London’s Royal Albert Hallat the BBC Proms. Here the group joined The TallisScholars and The BBC Singers in Striggio’s newlyrediscovered Mass in 60 parts; and, for the BBC’s uniqueand inspired “brass day”, HM appeared on stage with theBlack Dyke and Grimethorpe Colliery brass bands. At theSouth Bank Festival, His Majestys joined The KingsSingers in the Queen Elizabeth Hall, a musical encounter

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Douai Abbey Upper Woolhampton Sunday 13 May 7.45pm

His Majestys Sagbutts and Cornetts

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which had been some five years in the planning. Thisyear His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts will play in Girton,St John’s and Kings Colleges in Cambridge, at WadhamCollege Oxford, The Sage Gateshead, The Royal AlbertHall at the BBC Proms, St Paul’s Cathedral, The ThreeChoirs Festival, Versailles, The Concertgebouw, PisaCathedral, Würzburg, Regensburg, Granada, Washingtonand New York (amongst many others!).

HMSC’s first commission of a work from a livingcomposer, Martyn Harry, made possible by a grant fromthe Performing Rights Society (UK) will be completed thisyear too.

Programme NotesThe Grand Tour

The education of an English gentleman in theseventeenth century was not considered complete unlesshe had undertaken the Grand Tour: a journey of culturaldiscovery through continental Europe. We begin our ownGrand Tour itinerary this evening in England beforesetting sail across the North Sea to Germany. After theinterval we begin in Spain, and arrive in Italy via Naples(then a Spanish kingdom). We then continue our journeynorth to Venice, traditionally the final stop on the GrandTour, and, fortuitously, the European centre of cornett andsackbut playing par excellence in the sixteenth andseventeenth centuries.

Our programme commences with the music ‘for HisMajestys Sagbutts and Cornetts’ by Matthew Locke.Arguably the most famous composition for ourinstruments, this suite of dance movements was possiblycomposed for the coronation of King Charles II in 1660.William Byrd requires no introduction of course: he wasthe most celebrated English composer of his era. He isone of a number of composers whose music for keyboardis preserved in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book. PeterPhilips’s Pavane and Galliard ‘Dolorosa’, originally writtenfor a five-part instrumental consort, also appears as akeyboard arrangement in the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book,with the addition of florid and imaginative ornamentation.Not to be outdone, we have borrowed from thisornamentation in making our own arrangement of thispiece for cornetts and sackbuts. Incidentally, Philipshimself provides a link with continental Europe, as hespent most of his career working in the Low Countries.Also from the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book is John Munday’sprogrammatic Fantasia, subtitled ‘Faire Wether…Lightening… Thunder’, which accompanies our journeyacross the North Sea in what could often (and still can!)be treacherous conditions.

All the German composers represented here wereprofoundly influenced by the musical developments inVenice, the fruits of which were taken to Germany bysuch musicians as Heinrich Schütz who had studied first-

hand with such composers as Gabrieli and Monteverdi.Johann Hermann Schein was a predecessor of Bach at StThomas’s in Leipzig; Samuel Scheidt worked as acomposer and court organist in Halle. Both publishedsubstantial collections of idiomatic instrumental musicsuitable for performance on cornetts and sackbuts.Johann Vierdanck was himself a cornettist (as well as aviolinist and organist) and published a collection ofCapricci in 1641 (from which the Sonata Als ich einmalLust bekam is taken), suited to performance by theStadtpfeifer – the professional town wind bands thatwould play daily from the church towers. MatthiasWeckmann was arguably the most gifted of Schütz’spupils, and his compositions reflect a keen interest indevelopments in the Italian avant garde of the mid-seventeenth century.

The second half of our Grand Tour itinerary commencesin Spain with music by Bartolomé de Selma y Salaverde,a virtuoso bassoonist (and Augustinian friar) who washimself extremely well-travelled: he was at the court ofArchduke Leopold in Innsbruck during 1628-30. Vestiva icolli, one of the few secular madrigals of Palestrina wasused as a basis for improvisatory settings by numerousperformer-composers during the late-sixteenth and early-seventeenth centuries. This five-voice madrigal iscomposed in two halves, the first half of which Selma setfor soprano and bass instruments; we play the secondhalf in a virtuosic setting for all five instruments by AdamWoolf, thus continuing the historical tradition ofperformers supplying their own ornamentation to suchpieces. Francisco Correa de Arauxo had a colourfulcareer as organist and priest in Seville, Madrid andSegovia, interspersed with various lawsuits and sometime spent in prison.

Andrea Falconieri was a Neapolitan lutenist who workedin Northern Italy, Spain and France before returning toNaples in 1639, where he published his only collection ofinstrumental music in 1650, from which this Passacaille istaken. We then head north to Rome, where the greatorganist Girolamo Frescobaldi had become something ofa tourist attraction himself, such was the fame of hisimprovisatory performances. Then, as now, Frescobaldiwas renowned as a composer of keyboard music, but hiscompositions for instrumental ensemble deserve to bebetter known.

As we approach the city of Venice it seems appropriate tohand this narrative over to Thomas Coryate, an Englishcourtier who undertook the Grand Tour in 1608:

Such is the rarenesse of the situation of Venice, that itdoth even amaze and drive into admiration all strangersthat upon their first arrivall behold the same … The fairestplace of all the citie (which is indeed of that admirable andincomparable beauty, that I think no place whatsoever,

www.hmsc.co.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk


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eyther in Christendome or Paganisme may compare withit) is the Piazza, that is, the Market place of St. Marke.Truely such is the stupendious glory of it, that at my firstentrance thereof it did even amaze or rather ravish mysenses. For here is the greatest magnificence ofarchitecture to be seene, that any place under the sunnedoth yeelde.

Giovanni Gabrieli was organist and head of theinstrumental ensemble at St Mark’s basilica, and as suchhe is perhaps the single most important figure in thehistory of the cornett and sackbut ensemble. Cornettsand sackbuts formed the nucleus of his orchestra, whichbecame the model for the constitution of instrumentalensembles in European chapels for a generation. Hisuncle, Andrea Gabrieli, was Giovanni’s teacher andmentor, and also a wonderful composer in his own right. 13

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We hope you enjoy the auditory delights of our GrandTour as much as Thomas Coryate, who, upon hearing themusic of the Gabrielis in Venice, wrote:

I heard the best musicke that ever I did in all my life … sogood, so delectable, so rare, so admirable, sosuperexcellent, that it did even ravish and stupifie all thosestrangers that never heard the like. But how others wereaffected with it I know not; for mine owne part I can saythis, that I was for the time even rapt up with Saint Paulinto the third heaven.

© Jamie Savan 2010

Sponsored by The Sackler Foundation and Sir Hugh andLady Stevenson

nsf Wining & DiningMorning Coffee : Lunch : Afternoon Tea

Pre-Concert drinks

Early evening meals : Late suppers

after page 96

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Corn Exchange Newbury Monday 14 May 12.30pm

Young Artists Lunchtime Recital 1Sulki Yu violinPei-Jee Ng celloChiao-Ying Chang piano

Fauré Trio in D minor Op 120Bridge Miniatures for Piano Trio (selection)Ravel Trio in A minor

The Young Artists Lunchtime Recital series is sponsoredby The Headley Trust

Fournier Piano Trio

Formed in 2009, the Fournier Piano Trio is rapidlyemerging as one of the UK's leading young piano trios.Winners of both 2nd Prize and Audience Prize at the 6thTrondheim International Chamber Music Competition in2011, the Trio continues its second year as LeverhulmeChamber Music Fellows at the Royal Academy of Musicand is mentored by renowned pedagogues ChristopherElton, David Takeno, Thomas Brandis and MichaelDussek.

They recently made their critically acclaimed PurcellRoom debut as part of the 2011 PLG New Year Seriesand are winners of a Philharmonia Orchestra MMSFRecital Award and a Tunnell Trust Award. Recentperformances include recitals at the Purcell Room, StJames Piccadilly and Holywell Room in the UK andabroad in Germany, France and Holland. They alsoappeared at the Trondheim International Chamber MusicAcademy and Festival in Norway, performing Fauré'sPiano Quartet No.2 with Lawrence Power.

In October 2011 the Fournier Piano Trio made itsWigmore Hall debut, under the auspices of the KirckmanConcert Society, when they performed the world premiereof a new work by acclaimed British composer GaryCarpenter. They will return later in 2012 for the Park LaneGroup Monday Platform Series. Future highlights alsoinclude a tour of Scotland as part of their Tunnell TrustAward and their debut recording of British contemporarytrios including Timothy Salter's Piano Trio for USKRecordings.

They have played in masterclasses for Ralph Kirshbaum,Martin Lovett, Gabor Takacs-Nagy, Leif Ove Andsnes,Daniel Hope, Susan Tomes and Menahem Pressler. TheTrio was recently appointed as Artist-in-Residence atWolfson College, University of Oxford.

Programme NotesGABRIEL FAURÉ (1845-1924)Piano Trio in D minor, Opus 120

Allegro ma non troppoAndantinoAllegro vivo

Gabriel Fauré was one of the most important Frenchmusicians of the later 19th and earlier 20th centuries. Hisbest-known composition is probably his beautifullyrestrained setting of the Requiem, but he was alsoparticularly inspired in chamber music and as a songwriter.

The Piano Trio is one of Fauré's last compositions, writtenafter his retirement from his illustrious teaching career.During his final years ill health and even money worrieswere affecting him, and for his benefit a special concert ofhis works was given at the Sorbonne in June 1922. Firedwith renewed enthusiasm by this event, he returned tocomposition at the request of his publisher JacquesDurand, writing the Piano Trio during the autumn andwinter, and it was first performed by Alfred Cortot,Jacques Thibaut and Pablo Casals in June 1923.

The Piano Trio confirms that Fauré’s powers remained attheir height, and its three movements reveal a conceptionof chamber music on the large scale. In keeping withwhat had become his preferred approach, Faurécomposed the inner movement first, before turning to theremainder. The trend of the first movement is from initialrestraint towards intensity of expression. The music isskilfully developed along classical lines, with twoimportant themes, an extended cantilena introduced bythe cello, and a shorter oscillating phrase on the piano.The development is masterly in its controlled integrationand sense of growth.

The slow movement is the longest of the three, and isdominated by the beautiful cantabile theme which on itsfirst appearance is presented in turn by the strings. This ismusic of eloquence and real tenderness, confirming thatFauré’s creative powers had not diminished with thepassing years. There is a contrasting central section,featuring syncopated rhythms in the piano, the tunemoving higher and higher until it is skillfully combinedwith the principal theme. The coda is extended andparticularly serene in mood.

www.fourniertrio.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Fournier Piano Trio

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The urgency of the final movement, Allegro vivo, isintensified by its brevity. Fauré was compelled to explainthat the resemblance of the opening gesture toLeoncavallo’s Pagliacci was ‘pure coincidence’; and inany case he did not admire the verismo style. The pianotakes the music forwards with answering phrases, to forma substantial introduction before the arrival of the principaltheme after sixty bars. Once again the cello delivers thetheme, which is soon worked in conjunction with asecond subject, more motivic in character. Despite therelatively gentle nature of much of the Trio, the finalstages are emphatic and resounding.

© Terry Barfoot

FRANK BRIDGE (1879-1941)Miniatures for Piano Trio

Valse RusseHornpipeMarche Militaire

Over the years Frank Bridge has probably been bestknown as the teacher of the young Benjamin Britten. Infact he was himself a hugely talented composer, as wellas an excellent performer on the viola and a conductor ofgreat talent, who was particularly admired by Sir HenryWood.

Bridge composed these miniatures during 1906-7. Hewas an experienced chamber music player as violist ofthe English String Quartet, and a particularly adeptcomposer for smaller ensembles. His miniatures aredelightful compositions, always imaginative. In this musicwhich has neither the bravura of the concert hall, nor theelegance of the salon, there is no lack of challenge for theperformers. Artur Schnabel’s famous advice, ‘Too easy forstudents, too difficult for artists’, certainly applies here.

© Terry Barfoot

MAURICE RAVEL (1875-1937)Piano Trio in A minor

1. Modéré2. Pantoum: Assez vif3. Passacaille: Très large4. Animé

Ravel completed his Piano Trio at the end of August 1914,complaining that he had done 'five months' work in fiveweeks, because I wanted to finish my trio before joiningup'. In fact he had been planning to write such a piece forsome while, and on one occasion had gone so far as tosay that the composition was complete apart from itsthemes. Acknowledging the challenge of writing for thisinstrumental combination, he dedicated the score to hisformer counterpoint teacher at the Conservatoire, AndréGédalge.

The opening movement is a free sonata form with anunusual rhythmic metre of 8/8 time, and three unequalbeats to the bar. The principal theme is introduced by thepiano and echoed by the unison strings, while the secondsubject recalls the Pavane of Mother Goose and is giveninitially to the strings. The trend is for the piano right handto be pitched between the violin and the cello, who areoften separated at a distance of two octaves.

The high-spirited second movement is entitled Pantoum,whose unusual title refers to a vocal declamation in Malay.There are three themes: first, a staccato rhythm with avirtuoso violin part, a more expressive section in whichthe piano has a chorale melody, and a third theme isderived from the first. Towards the end of the movementthe roles of the piano and the strings are exchanged.

The Passacaille is flexibly developed. The theme passesfrom the left hand of the piano to the cello and finally tothe violin, at which point its contour begins to vary. Witheach statement the theme moves to a higher register, untilat the centre of the movement it disappears altogether.The arch form is an ascent followed from the climax by adescent in which the theme gradually returns to itsoriginal low pitch.

The finale is brilliant and is constructed as a free rondo.The effect is dazzling: for instance, while the violin andcello are trilling in a quasi-orchestral display, the pianoproceeds independently. The conception is founded uponthe subtle interplay of quintuple (5/4) and septuple (7/4)times, and typifies the intensity with which Ravel workedon this composition, as his letters reveal: 'I have neverworked with more insane, more heroic intensity. In fact, Iam working with the manic assurance and clarity of amadman.'

© Terry Barfoot


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Fournier Piano Trio

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Shaw House Church Road Shaw Monday 14 May 3.00pm

Dickens at 200 – An Illustrated Talk

Lucinda Dickens Hawksley will talk about her new bookCharles Dickens, a definitive illustrated guide to the manand his works which she has written to commemorate hisbicentenary.

Supported by the Englefield Charitable Trust

Lucinda Dickens HawksleyLucinda Dickens Hawksleyis an author, art historianand public speaker, with aspecial interest in literatureand art from the 19th andearly 20th centuries and inthe history of London. Sheis also an award-winningtravel writer with a love ofthe environment:cetaceans are one of herpassions and she is a

volunteer speaker for the Whales & DolphinsConservation Society.

As a great great great granddaughter of Charles andCatherine Dickens, Lucinda has grown up with an interest

in her family history. For the last decade she has been aPatron of the Charles Dickens Museum in London andmore recently Lucinda has been made Patron of theNorwegian Pickwick Club!

Programme NoteLucinda Dickens Hawksley was asked to write a book tocommemorate the bicentenary of her great great greatgrandfather’s birth. He was born on 7 February 1812; theyear 2012 is a celebration not only of his life, but of thevast and exciting legacy he left behind him.

A unique aspect of Lucinda’s new book is that there are alarge number of removable documents which can betaken out of the book and examined. These includefacsimiles of letters, manuscripts and even his will, as wellas some of Charles Dickens’ visiting cards, familyphotographs and many other fascinating artefacts.

Charles Dickens is the definitive illustrated guide to theman and his works. It follows Dickens from earlychildhood, including his time spent as a child labourer,and looks at how he became the greatest celebrity of hisage – and how he still remains recognized as one ofEngland’s greatest celebrities, even in the twenty-firstcentury. The book also takes an intimate look at what hewas like as a husband, a father, a friend and an employer;at his longing to be an actor, at his fascination withdetective work and at his travels: across North America,during a year spent living in Italy and his regular trips toFrance. Alongside Dickens himself, you will meet hisfascinating family and his astonishing circle of friends –and will discover when and how life and real-lifepersonalities were imitated in Dickens’ art. The cast ofcharacters in this book embraces an incredible array offamous – and occasionally infamous – Victorians.

Charles Dickens was not only a superb novelist, he wasalso a brilliant campaigning journalist, a philanthropistand a social reformer. This book, which includes somestunning images, many of which have not been seenbefore outside the Charles Dickens Museum’s archives,shows the enormous changes Dickens helped to bringabout, both in his local society and the world at large.

Supported by the Englefield Charitable Trust

www.lucindahawksley.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Lucinda Dickens Hawksley Festival Talk 1

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Innovation Chamber Ensemblewith the Frith Piano QuartetRichard Jenkinson conductorClaire Prewer soprano

Debussy Prelude à l’après-midi d’un fauneWagner Wesendonck Lieder

Interval

Mahler Symphony No 4

Sponsored by Dinks Ltd

Richard JenkinsonRichard Jenkinson studied with Florence Hooton, RaphaelWallfisch and William Pleeth. In 1994 he was awarded thecoveted Gold Medal by the Guildhall School of Music &Drama and followed this up with a top prize in Vittorio GuiChamber Music Competition in Florence, Italy.

In 1994 Richard left the Irish Chamber Orchestra to joinSimon Rattle and the City of Birmingham SymphonyOrchestra as principal cello. Richard has also been invitedto guest lead the cello sections of the Philharmonia, Halle,Northern Sinfonia, BBC Scottish and Royal LiverpoolPhilharmonic orchestras. He plays regularly with theBirmingham Contemporary Music Group (BCMG). Sincejoining the CBSO, Richard has combined hiscommitments with the orchestra with solo and chambermusic. These activities have included founding theInnovation Chamber Ensemble. Richard is also a memberof the Frith Piano Quartet which plays around 25-30concerts a season across the UK. Solo cello concertshave included many recitals across the UK and inGermany, Italy, Switzerland, Malta and China. He hasmade many radio and TV appearances and for ten yearsRichard was a professor at the Guildhall School of Musicand Drama.

Claire PrewerClaire Prewer won a Scholarship to the Guildhall Schoolof Music & Drama where she studied on the A.G.S.M.performers course and subsequently on the OperaCourse. Since leaving the Guildhall, Claire has sung in awide range of styles and genres. Recent oratorioperformances have included Elgar's Kingdom and DavidFanshaw's African Sanctus in Worcester Cathedral, Orff'sCarmina Burana, Handel's Messiah, Mendelssohn's Elijah,Bach's B Minor Mass and Brahms' German Requiem.

Opera roles have included Prokofiev's War & Peace,Britten's Rape of Lucretia, Poulenc's Les Dialogues desCarmelites, Humperdick's Hansel & Gretel, Mozart's DieEntfuhrung aus dem Serail. She also appeared as DonnaElvira opposite Benjamin Luxon in Mozart's Don Giovanni.Recent concert performances with orchestra haveincluded Richard Strauss' Four Last Songs and Dvorak'sSong to the Moon (Exeter Cathedral), Chausson's LeTemps des Lilas, Puccini arias from La Boheme, MadameButterfly, Turandot, Catalani's La Wally, Wagner'sLiebestod and Shoenberg's Pierrot Lunaire. She has alsoperformed Villa Lobos’ Bachianas Brasileiras no.5 with theCity of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra 'cello section.

Frith Piano QuartetThe Frith Piano Quartet was formed in 2001 by a group oflike-minded musicians who wanted to explore the wealthof wonderful music written for the piano quartet medium.The group comprises the pianist Benjamin Frith, violinistRobert Heard, violist Louise Williams and cellist RichardJenkinson. The quartet's first concerts were at the CBSO'sCentre Stage Series in Birmingham where they performedthe complete piano Quartets of Brahms, Fauré andMozart. The Frith Piano Quartet has a keen interest inperforming unjustly neglected works that are not so oftenheard in the concert hall. These have included the pianoquartets of Weber, Mahler, Richard Strauss andMendelssohn. British music is an important part of theQuartet's work and their repertoire includes quartets byArthur Bliss, Frank Bridge, William Walton and GordonJacob, as well as those by living composers.

Innovation Chamber EnsembleThe Innovation Chamber Ensemble was formed in 2002by the principal string players of the City of BirminghamSymphony Orchestra to make a unique ensemble whostrive for performances of the highest calibre. This'conductor less' group ranges in size to a maximum ofsixteen string players and incorporates both enthusiasmand many years of experience from working withworldclass musicians such as Sir Simon Rattle, SakariOramo and indeed the CBSO's exciting new musicdirector Andris Nelsons.

I.C.E. was launched to the world in September 2002 withconcerts firstly in its orchestral home of the WestMidlands and then at the Wigmore Hall in London. The

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Innovation Chamber Ensemble with the Frith Piano Quartet

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concert in Birmingham created major press and radiocoverage and prompted Blue Rhythm Records toapproach I.C.E. about recording the event live forimmediate release. The recording called ICE on Firefeatured on Classic F.M. as CD of the week. TheInnovation Chamber Ensemble has played live on BBCRadio 3 and ICE on Fire has also received air time onBBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 2, and many regional radiostations. The group has also appeared on BBC 4 and theCreative Channel Network television.

Programme NotesCLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918)Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune

Debussy began to compose the Prélude à l'après-midid'un faune in 1892, but it was not completed for a furthertwo years, by which time he had already commencedwork on his opera Pelléas et Mélisande. The premiere ofthe Prélude took place on 22nd December 1894, andbrought the composer a considerable success, theperformance being encored by popular demand.

Stephane Mallarmé’s poem was the inspiration behind themusic, and initially the poet was doubtful about a musicalevocation of his work. In the event, however, he was mostimpressed, writing to Debussy: 'Your music is notdiscordant with my text, except in that it goes even furtherinto nostalgia and into light, with sensitivity, with disquietand with richness.' This extract from the poem gives anindication of its nature:'O nymphs, let us bring back to life those many differentmemories. My eye, piercing the reeds, fixed on eachimmortal figure as it slaked its burning in the coolingwaters, crying in frustration to the forest sky.'

The Prélude evokes 'the desires and dreams of the faune,in the heat of the afternoon'. The opening phase has fourpresentations of the somewhat oriental theme, which is somemorably introduced by the flute. This theme proves tobe a recurring point of reference. At the centre, the musicreaches to a rich-toned climax, until at length subsiding toa more intimate focus.

The return of the initial flute theme creates a rarefied anddream-like atmosphere, and with this recapitulation,Debussy indulges in the further possibilities of thematerial. The coda is more magical still, encouragingMaurice Ravel to describe the work as 'the only music Iknow which is absolutely perfect'.

© Terry Barfoot

RICHARD WAGNER (1813-1883)Wesendonck Lieder

1. Der Engel2. Stehe still!3. Im Treibhaus4. Schmerzen5. Träume

Otto Wesendonck was a wealthy Zurich merchant, and heand his beautiful wife Mathilde were so impressed whenthey first heard Wagner's music that they invited thecomposer to visit them. One visit led to another, and therelationship grew closer. Wesendonck, and still more hiswife, fell under Wagner's spell. For example, they paid offhis debts and five years later, in 1857, Wagner was givenlodging in a house called Asyl (Refuge), which waslocated in the grounds of Wesendonck's villa.

It was at this time that Wagner turned his attention to anew and potent operatic project. The special character ofTristan und Isolde, beyond the impetus to compose it,sprang from the new influences in Wagner's life; and themost important of these was his relationship with MathildeWesendonck. She believed totally in his genius and, aswork progressed, he played her his composition sketchesfor Tristan. He said of her: 'She will remain my first andonly love; it was the summit of my life.'

The five Wesendonck Lieder were composed on poemsby Mathilde. Two of the songs have a deeper significance,as 'studies for Tristan und Isolde': Im Treibhaus (In theconservatory) anticipates the desolate intensity of the ActIII Prelude, while Träume (Dreams) relates to the centre-piece of the opera, the Act II love duet.

© Terry Barfoot

1. Der EngelIn der Kindheit frühen Tagen Hört ich oft von Engeln sagen,Die des Himmels hehre WonneTauschen mit der Erdensonne,

Daß, wo bang ein Herz in SorgenSchmachtet vor der Welt verborgen,Daß, wo still es will verbluten,Und vergehn in Tränenfluten,

Daß, wo brünstig sein GebetEinzig um Erlösung fleht,Da der Engel niederschwebt,Und es sanft gen Himmel hebt.

Ja, es stieg auch mir ein Engel nieder,Und auf leuchtendem GefiederFührt er, ferne jedem Schmerz,Meinen Geist nun himmelwärts!



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The AngelIn childhood's early days,I often heard them speak of angels,Who would exchange Heaven's sublime blissFor the Earth's sun.

So that, when an anxious heart in dreadIs full of longing, hidden from the world;So that, when it wishes silently to bleedAnd melt away in a trickle of tears,

So that, when its prayer ardentlyPleads only for release,Then the angel floats downAnd gently lifts it to Heaven.

Yes, an angel has come down to me,And on glittering wingsIt leads, far away from every pain,My soul now heavenwards!

2. Stehe still!Sausendes, brausendes Rad der Zeit,Messer du der Ewigkeit;Leuchtende Sphären im weiten All,Die ihr umringt den Weltenball;Urewige Schöpfung, halte doch ein,Genug des Werdens, laß mich sein!

Halte an dich, zeugende Kraft,Urgedanke, der ewig schafft!Hemmet den Atem, stillet den Drang,Schweiget nur eine Sekunde lang!Schwellende Pulse, fesselt den Schlag;Ende, des Wollens ew'ger Tag!Daß in selig süßem VergessenIch mög alle Wonnen ermessen!

Wenn Aug' in Auge wonnig trinken,Seele ganz in Seele versinken;Wesen in Wesen sich wiederfindet,Und alles Hoffens Ende sich kündet,Die Lippe verstummt in staunendem Schweigen,Keinen Wunsch mehr will das Innre zeugen:Erkennt der Mensch des Ew'gen Spur,Und löst dein Rätsel, heil'ge Natur!

Be quiet!Roaring and rushing wheel of time,You are the measurer of Eternity;Shining spheres in the wide universe,You who surround the world globe,Eternal creation, halt!Enough development, let me be!

Cease, generative powers,The primal thoughts which you are ever creating!Slow your breathing, still your urgeSilently, only for a second long!Swelling pulses, fetter your beating,End, o eternal day of willing!That in blessed, sweet forgetfulness,I may measure all my bliss!

When one eye another drinks in bliss,And one soul into another sinks,One nature in another finds itself again,And when each hope's fulfillment is finished,When the lips are mute in astounded silence,And no wish more does the heart invent,Then man recognizes the sign of Eternity,And solves your riddle, holy Nature!

3. Im TreibhausHochgewölbte Blätterkronen,Baldachine von Smaragd,Kinder ihr aus fernen Zonen,Saget mir, warum ihr klagt?

Schweigend neiget ihr die Zweige,Malet Zeichen in die Luft,Und der Leiden stummer ZeugeSteiget aufwärts, süßer Duft.

Weit in sehnendem VerlangenBreitet ihr die Arme aus,Und umschlinget wahnbefangenÖder Leere nicht'gen Graus.

Wohl, ich weiß es, arme Pflanze;Ein Geschicke teilen wir,Ob umstrahlt von Licht und Glanze,Unsre Heimat ist nicht hier!

Und wie froh die Sonne scheidetVon des Tages leerem Schein,Hüllet der, der wahrhaft leidet,Sich in Schweigens Dunkel ein.

Stille wird's, ein säuselnd WebenFüllet bang den dunklen Raum:Schwere Tropfen seh ich schwebenAn der Blätter grünem Saum.

In the hothouseHigh-vaulted crowns of leaves,Canopies of emerald,You children of distant zones,Tell me, why do you lament?

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Silently you bend your branches,Draw signs in the air,And the mute witness to your anguish -A sweet fragrance - rises.

In desirous longing, wideYou open your arms,And embrace through insane predilectionThe desolate, empty, horrible void.

I know well, poor plants,A fate that we share,Though we bathe in light and radiance,Our homeland is not here!

And how gladly the sun departsFrom the empty gleam of the day,He veils himself, he who suffers truly,In the darkness of silence.

It becomes quiet, a whispered stirringFills uneasily the dark room:Heavy drops I see hoveringOn the green edge of the leaves.

4. SchmerzenSonne, weinest jeden AbendDir die schönen Augen rot,Wenn im Meeresspiegel badendDich erreicht der frühe Tod;

Doch erstehst in alter Pracht,Glorie der düstren Welt,Du am Morgen neu erwacht,Wie ein stolzer Siegesheld!

Ach, wie sollte ich da klagen,Wie, mein Herz, so schwer dich sehn,Muß die Sonne selbst verzagen,Muß die Sonne untergehn?

Und gebieret Tod nur Leben,Geben Schmerzen Wonne nur:O wie dank ich, daß gegebenSolche Schmerzen mir Natur!

AnguishSun, each evening you weepYour pretty eyes red,When, bathing in the mirror of the seaYou are seized by early death.

Yet you rise in all your splendor,Glory of the gloomy world,Newly awakening in the morningLike a proud, victorious hero!

Ah, why should I then lament,Why, my heart, are you so heavy,If the sun itself must despair,If the sun must set?

And if Death gives rise only to Life,And pain gives way only to bliss,O how thankful I am, thatNature gives me such anguish!

5. TräumeSag, welch wunderbare TräumeHalten meinen Sinn umfangen,Daß sie nicht wie leere SchäumSind in ödes Nichts vergangen?

Träume, die in jeder Stunde,Jedem Tage schöner blühn,Und mit ihrer HimmelskundeSelig durchs Gemüte ziehn!

Träume, die wie hehre StrahlenIn die Seele sich versenken,Dort ein ewig Bild zu malen:Allvergessen, Eingedenken!

Träume, wie wenn FrühlingssonneAus dem Schnee die Blüten küßt,Daß zu nie geahnter WonneSie der neue Tag begrüßt,

Daß sie wachsen, daß sie blühen,Träumed spenden ihren Duft,Sanft an deiner Brust verglühen,Und dann sinken in die Gruft.

DreamsTell me, what kind of wondrous dreamsare embracing my senses,that have not, like sea-foam,vanished into desolate Nothingness?

Dreams, that with each passing hour,each passing day, bloom fairer,and with their heavenly tidingsroam blissfully through my heart!

Dreams which, like holy rays of lightsink into the soul,there to paint an eternal image:forgiving all, thinking of only One.

Dreams which, when the Spring sunkisses the blossoms from the snow,so that into unsuspected blissthey greet the new day,



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so that they grow, so that they bloom,and dreaming, bestow their fragrance,these dreams gently glow and fade on your breast,and then sink into the grave.

Translation: Emily Ezust

GUSTAV MAHLER (1860-1911)Symphony No. 4 in G major

1. Bedächtig. Nicht eilen (Deliberately. Do not hurry)2. In gemächlicher Bewegung. Ohne hast (With easy

movement. Without haste)3. Ruhevoll (Calmly)4. Sehr behaglich (Very leisurely)

Mahler completed his Fourth Symphony in 1900, justthree years after his appointment as Director at theVienna Court Opera. The first four of Mahler's symphonieswere all closely linked with songs: the First with the Liedereines fahrenden gesellen (Songs of a Wayfarer), and theSecond, Third and Fourth with the anthology based onthe folk poems gathered under the collective title DesKnaben Wunderhorn (The Youth's Magic Horn). Thereforethese compositions were linked both psychologically andspiritually; and the song-finale of the Fourth Symphony,the Wunderhorn song Das Himmlische Leben (TheHeavenly Life), was originally conceived as the seventhand final movement of the huge Third Symphony. Eventhough Mahler rejected this initial plan, fragments of thesong were quoted in the Third's fifth movement: 'What theAngels tell me'.

It is the finale, the 'Child's view of Heaven', which must beregarded as the starting point for the Fourth Symphony,not only psychologically but also structurally, since itsmaterial pervades the remainder of the work. Mahlerintended a lightness of sound in keeping with the music’spastoral vision, which relates to the naivety of the poem ofthe finale. The 'Child's view of Heaven' was an importantimage to Mahler, since it reflected a new approach to theessential question, and because it was so close to hisown experience, as the second of fourteen children, ofwhom seven died in infancy or childhood.

The symphony opens with the jingling rhythm which isalso heard as the refrain of the finale. Austrian folkloreassociated the sound of sleigh-bells with a child's soulbeing transported to Heaven. This imagery rejectsdarkness, with cheerful and attractive tunes whichdevelop in the open-ended classical manner. The secondsubject does bring a mood of greater intensity andyearning, but this does not persist and it is neverdeveloped. So fluent is the rate of invention in thismovement the complexity of thought is conveyed with theutmost logic and clarity, the premonitions of the song-finale providing the subtle bond of unity for thesymphony's whole outlook.

The second movement, a scherzo taken at a joggingpace, was at one stage to be called 'Friend Hein (thefigure of Death in German folklore) strikes up'. It istherefore a typically dark Mahler scherzo, the symbol ofDeath represented through the prominent violin solo,which requires the leader of the orchestra to use anotherinstrument tuned up a tone so as to give the effect of arustic fiddle. The sinister atmosphere is emphasised bythe contrast of the second theme's blissful purity. The triois played twice, as in Beethoven's symphonies: it is a softand untroubled ländler, a traditional Austrian countrydance. The restatements are developed rather thanregular, and this too contributes to the music's spectralquality.

The slow movement opens in transfigured serenity.Mahler wrote that he was inspired by 'a vision of atombstone on which was carved an image of thedeparted, with folded arms, in eternal sleep'. This is anexample of double variation form, since there is a secondtheme which serves to deepen the mood, therebyachieving a wider range and bringing the expression ofanguish as the movement proceeds. The glorious coda -in E major, the key of the finale - suggests 'the opening ofthe Gates of Heaven'. The climax is heard in rich sonority,releasing the transfer to the song-finale.

The words of the poem are typical of the freshness andinnocence of Des Knaben Wunderhorn. The musicalstructure is based on the stanzas of the poem, withlinking episodes in which the sleigh-bell imagery isprominent. The singer is instructed to adopt an unaffectedchildlike expression and to avoid caricature, theimplication being that through innocence is achievedeternal peace. In the final stanza, the song returns to themood with which the slow movement had begun. Thusdoes Mahler reach his Heaven, the beauty of the musictranscending the simplicity of the poem.

Wir geniessen die himmlischen Freuden,d'rum tun wir das lrdische meiden. Kein weltlich' Getummelhört man nicht im Himmel! Lebt Alles in sanftester Ruh'! Wir führen em englisches Leben! Sind dennoch ganz lustig daneben! Wir führen em englisches Leben, wir tanzen und springen, wir hüpfen und singen! Sanct Peter im Himmel sieht zu!

We enjoy the heavenly pleasures, so we avoid all earthly things. No worldly clamouris heard in Heaven! All live in gentle peace! We lead an angelic life,

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yet we are quite merry withal! We lead an angelic life, we dance and leap, we skip and sing! Saint Peter in Heaven looks on!

Johannes das Lämmlein auslasset, der Metzger Herodes drauf passet! Wir führen em geduldig's, unschuldig's, geduldig's, em liebliches Lämmlein zu Tod! Sanct Lucas den Ochsen tat schlachten ohn' emig's Bedenken und Achten, der Wein kost kein' Heller im himmlischen Keller;die Englein, die backen das Brot.

John lets the little lamb loose, Herod the butcher lies in wait for it! We lead a meek, innocent, meek, sweet little lamb to its death! Saint Luke slaughters the ox without a thought or a care; the wine costs not a penny in the heavenly cellar, the angels bake the bread.

Gut' Kräuter von allerhand Arten, die wachsen im himmlischen Garten! Gut' Spargel, Fisolenund was wir nur wollen! Ganze Schüssein vol! sind uns bereit! Gut' Apfel, gut' Birn' und gut' Trauben! Die Gartner die Alles ertauben! Willst Rehbock, willst Hasen, auf offener Strassensie lauten herbei! Sollt em Fasttag etwa kommenalle Fische gleich mit Freuden angeschwommen! Dort läuft schon Sanct Petermit Netz und mit Köder zum himmlischen Weiher hinein. Sanct Martha die Köchin muss sein!

Fine herbs of many kinds grow in the heavenly garden! Fine asparagus, beans, and whatever we want!Whole platefuls are prepared for us! Fine apples, fine pears and fine grapes -the gardeners let us have them all! If you want venison or hare, down the open streetsthey come running! If there's a fast-day, all the fish come happily swimming up!

There Saint Peter comes running with his net and his bait along into the heavenly pond. Saint Martha must be the cook!

Kein Musik ist ja nicht auf Erden, die uns'rer verglichen kann werden. Elftausend Jungfrauen zu tanzen sich trauen! Sanct Ursula selbst dazu lacht! Kein Musik ist ja nicht auf Erden, die uns'rer verglichen kann werden. Cäcilia mit ihren Verwandten sind treffliche Hofmusikanten! Die englischen Stimmen ermuntern die Sinnen, dass Alles fur Freuden erwacht.

There is no music on earth that can be compared to ours. Eleven thousand virgins throw themselves into the dance! Saint Ursula herself laughs at the sight! There is no music on earth that can be compared to ours. Cecilia and her relations are splendid court musicians! The angelic voicescheer the senses, so all awakens to joy.

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Lunch with Debussy to celebratehis 150th AnniversaryLucy ParhamPetroc Trelawny

Lucy Parham, one of Britain’s finest pianists, together withPetroc Trelawny, the popular Radio 3 presenter, in aninformative talk about Debussy punctuated with excerptsfrom some of his best loved piano music.

Sponsored by The Vineyard at Stockcross

Lucy ParhamAcknowledged as one ofBritain's finest pianists,Lucy Parham first came topublic attention when shebecame the Piano Winnerof the 1984 BBC YoungMusician of the Year. Sincethen, she has playedthroughout the UK asconcerto soloist with mostof the major Britishorchestras and is afrequent recitalist at theWigmore Hall. She has

also toured the USA with the BBC Concert Orchestra ontheir 50th anniversary, Mexico and Turkey with RoyalPhilharmonic Orchestra and abroad with Russian StateSymphony, Sofia Philharmonic, Bergen Philharmonic,Polish National Radio SO and L'Orchestre National deLille.

Lucy Parham has made numerous recordings includingGershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue (RPO/EMI Gold), concertosby Ravel, Fauré and Franck (RPO records) and a soloSchumann CD (ASV). Her CD of Clara and RobertSchumann Concertos (BBC CO/Sanctuary) won the BBCMusic Magazine "Critics' Choice of the Year".

Her life-long passion for the music of Schumann inspiredthe original concept of the words and music evening,Beloved Clara. The CD of Beloved Clara (ASV) wasreleased to critical acclaim. Two further evenings, Liszt -An Odyssey of Love and Nocturne - The Romantic Life ofFrédéric Chopin also premiered in the London PianoforteSeries at the Wigmore Hall. These have toured the UKand abroad, also making their US debut in Los Angelesand were subsequently broadcast on NPR across theUSA. The CDs of Nocturne and Odyssey of Love will bereleased in 2012. Her most recent programme, Rêverie –the life and loves of Claude Debussy will also beperformed at the Wigmore Hall London Piano Series inDecember 2102 with Dominic West. Actors who appear inthese programmes include Dame Harriet Walter, Samuel

West, Martin Jarvis, Dominic West, Joanna David, EdwardFox, Henry Goodman, Timothy West, Juliet Stevenson,Alex Jennings, Rosamund Pike and Charles Dance. In2006 she was the Director of the Schumann AnniversaryFestival at Cadogan Hall and in 2010 she was the Directorof Schumann 200 Festival at King’s Place.

Lucy Parham is a frequent guest presenter andcontributor for BBC Radio 3 and 4 including CD Review,Proms Plus, The Saturday Feature, The Essay, Building aLibrary and Composer of the Week. She was on the juryfor the Final of BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2008and 2010 and in 2006 and 2009 she commentated for theLeeds International Piano Competition on BBC TV.

Petroc TrelawnyPetroc regularly presentsthe classical magazineprogramme Music Matters,Radio 3's evening topicaldrive-time show In Tuneand concerts in Radio 3Live in Concert. PetrocTrelawny joined Radio 3 in1998 and has been co-hostof In Tune, the station'sdrive-time arts magazine,since 2002. Raised andeducated in Cornwall, hestarted his career at BBC

Radio Devon, as a reporter and presenter, at the age ofnineteen hosting the station's major news programming,and soon after becoming one of the nation's youngestnewsreaders, presenting bulletins for BBC Plymouth'sSpotlight.

Having read the news for British Forces Radio during thefirst Gulf War, he then joined the network as a presenter inHong Kong, spending a year broadcasting to the militaryin what was then still a British colony. After a board-member of Classic FM heard him at work in Hong Kong,Petroc was invited to return to London to join the nascentcommercial network, where he presented the afternoonshow from the station's first day on-air. In 1994 he wasinvited to join London News Radio, and hosted a dailythree hour news talk magazine, where guests includedcabinet ministers and senior businessmen alongsideDame Edna and Gore Vidal.

In 1997, he co-presented (with R5 Live’s VictoriaDerbyshire) the BBC GMR Breakfast Show in Manchester,covering the city's recovery from the IRA Bombing, and itsplanning for the Commonwealth Games. While inManchester he started anchoring live broadcasts ofconcerts for Radio 3, joining the station full time thefollowing year, and returning to London. As well aspresenting Breakfast, and subsequently In Tune, Petroc

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has introduced hundreds of broadcasts of chamber musicand symphony concerts for Radio 3, many from the BBCProms, as well as Cardiff Singer of the World, and LeedsInternational Piano Competition. Petroc has interviewedmany of the world's leading conductors, composers,performers and singers. On Television Petroc has beenseen extensively on BBC2 and BBC Four.

As a writer Petroc has regularly contributed to TheSpectator, The Irish Times, The Catholic Herald and BBCMusic Magazine. Petroc is chairman of the LennoxBerkeley Society, a charitable trust whose aim is topromote performance of the English composer’s music.

Programme NotesClaude Debussy and the piano

When one thinks of Debussy’s piano works, the piecesthat often spring to mind are the ever-popular andmelodic gems such as Girl with the Flaxen Hair,Arabesques, Rêverie, Clair de Lune and the Golliwog’sCakewalk. But there is much more to Claude Debussythan a charming miniaturist. His contribution to the pianorepertoire and its development is immense and,consequently, Debussy’s significance as a turn of the 20thcentury composer is hard to overestimate. The two booksof Prèludes, Etudes and Images, Estampes and L’islejoyeuse all changed the harmonic structure andinstrumental tone colour into a new idiom, creatingcolours, subtleties and complexities in composition neverseen before. The use of the whole-tone scale, a newharmonic palette and judicious use of the pedal are justsome of the aspects that make him unique.

Born the eldest of five children into a humble family justoutside Paris in 1862, Claude-Achille Debussy overlookedhis prodigious pianistic talents in favour of becoming acomposer. In 1885, whilst still a student at the ParisConservatoire, he won the coveted Prix de Rome,enabling him to spend two years studying at the VillaMedici in Rome where he mixed with artists, architects,musicians and sculptors. But, feeling both artisticallystifled and lonely, he was miserable for most of his timethere and longed to return to Paris. This was the city thatwas to remain his home for the rest of his life and theplace that was so central to his existence as a composer.He and his close friends Chausson and Dukas were at theheart of the Parisian musical scene.

Notoriously complex in his personality, his relationshipswere complicated and numerous. He had several affairsand two marriages - the second of which was to EmmaBardac, with whom he temporarily eloped to Jersey toescape the scandal he caused. His first wife, Lily Texier,was so distraught by this that she tried to commit suicideby shooting herself with a revolver in the Place de laConcorde. Although she survived, the incident caused

Debussy further humiliation and embarrassment, fromwhich he never fully recovered.

Debussy himself was wary of other people’s judgement ofhimself and his life. He wrote, “Another man’s soul is athick forest in which one must walk with circumspection”.Ironically, it was the very recognition he had so hungeredafter as a young man that became the source of hisdepression as he grew older. The only person whobrought him true and deep happiness was his daughter,Claude Emma (or “Chouchou” as he affectionately calledher). He spent endless hours with her in his belovedgarden in the Bois de Boulonge with their dog, Xantho.He wrote Children’s Corner for her and as toy Golliwogswere then all the rage, her favourite piece wasunsurprisingly, the Golliwog’s Cakewalk. Also central tohis compositions was his love of the art of the Far East.Japanese lacquers and the Javanese Gamelin music hefirst heard when he was a young man were to influencemany of his compositions. His study was crammed withobjects d’art, paintings and books (including severalEnglish novels) all of which had their own specific effecton many of his works.

The First World War had a profound effect on him and hewas frustrated that his lengthy illness prevented him fromany involvement. As he lay in bed listening to the nightlyair-raids, he wryly noted “French art need to take revengeas seriously as the French army does”. Debussy diedfrom rectal cancer in 1918 and with further tragedy, hisbeloved Chouchou died from diptheria only months laterat the age of fourteen.

Debussy’s legacy is immense. Today’s talk concentrateson his piano works but it is his whole output, (includingmasterpieces such as the Violin and Cello Sonatas, theQuartet, numerous songs, L’après midi d’un faune,Pelléas et Mélisande and La Mer) which set the course forthe century which followed him. Discarding outworn rules,he forged a new and liberated future for classical music.

Notes: Lucy Parham 2012

Sponsored by The Vineyard at Stockcross

www.lucyparham.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Lucy Parham and Petroc Trelawny Festival Talk 2

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Escher String QuartetAdam Barnett-Hart violinWu Jie violinPierre Lapointe violaDane Johansen cello

Mendelssohn Quartet in F minor No 6 Op 80Brett Dean Eclipse

Interval

Elgar Quartet in E minor Op 83

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Escher String Quartet

The Escher String Quartet has received acclaim for itsindividual sound, inspired artistic decisions and uniquecohesiveness. Championed by members of the EmersonString Quartet, the group are proud to have beenappointed BBC New Generation Artists from 2010-2012.Having completed a three-year residency as artists of TheChamber Music Society of Lincoln Center’s CMS Twoprogramme, the ensemble has already performed atprestigious venues and festivals around the worldincluding Alice Tully Hall, the 92nd Street Y andSymphony Space in New York, Kennedy Center, theLouvre, Ravinia and Caramoor Festivals, Music@Menlo,West Cork Chamber Music Festival, the City of LondonFestival and a tour of China including Beijing, Shanghaiand Hangzhou.

Within months of its inception in 2005, the Escher StringQuartet was invited by both Pinchas Zukerman and ItzhakPerlman to be the quartet-in-residence at each artist'ssummer festival: The Young Artists Programme atCanada’s National Arts Centre and The Perlman ChamberMusic Program on Shelter Island, NY. The Eschers havecollaborated with artists such as Andrés Diaz, LawrenceDutton, Kurt Elling, Leon Fleisher, Anja Lechner, VadimGluzman, Angela Yoffe, Gary Hoffman, JosephKalichstein, Kurt Muroki, Joseph Silverstein, pop folksinger-songwriter Luke Temple, Khatia Buniatishvili andPinchas Zukerman. The quartet has served as the ErnstStiefel String Quartet-in-Residence in Caramoor – where

they performed their first commissioned work by PierreJalbert. In 2012 they will perform the debut of RyanWigglesworth’s Piano Quintet with Francesco Piemontesicommissioned as part of their BBC New GenerationArtists Scheme.

The 2011-2012 season begins with a performance ofVivian Fung’s Pizzicato for String Quartet, Mendelssohnand Bottesini at the opening night of The Chamber MusicSociety of the Lincoln Center; the first of multipleperformances at the Lincoln Center this season. They willcontinue their successful collaboration with guitaristJason Vieaux as well as being in residency at theChamber Music Society of St. Cloud where celebratedmezzo-soprano Sasha Cooke joins them for Barber’sDover Beach. In the UK, the Quartet will continue makingstudio recordings with the BBC as well as having theirdebut concert at Wigmore Hall. The quartet continues totour festivals in Europe and further afield, making boththeir Turkish and Australian debuts. Teaching and master-classes continue as the quartet start a new collaborationwith the Royal Academy of Music leading one of theinstitution’s chamber music days.

The Escher String Quartet takes its name from the Dutchgraphic artist M.C. Escher, inspired by Escher’s method ofinterplay between individual components workingtogether to form a whole.

Programme NotesFELIX MENDELSSOHN (1809-1847)String Quartet No. 6 Op. 80 in F minor

Allegro vivace assaiAllegro assaiAdagioFinale: Allegro molto

Mendelssohn completed his last string quartet inSeptember of 1847, four months after the sudden deathof his sister, Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel. Her unexpecteddeath, due to a cerebral haemorrhage while she wasrehearsing for one of the family’s famous SundayMusicals, left Mendelssohn so distraught that uponreceiving the sad news, he collapsed with a rupturedblood vessel in his head. After missing her funeral,Mendelssohn moved to Interlaken in Switzerland with hiswife Cecile for the summer, but the change of location didnot help his situation. Mendelssohn was emotionallydrained and even described his altered state to hisyounger sister Rebecca in the following terms: "I forcemyself to be industrious in the hope that later on I mayfeel like working and enjoying it". Since the only thingcalming him at this stage of his life was excessive walksin the country side, his wife Cecile got scared many timesby his long absences. These facts probably explain whyMendelssohn's last major composition is undoubtedly themost romantic piece he ever wrote.

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Throughout the years, Mendelssohn's classicaltendencies somewhat prevented him from expressinguncontrolled painful emotions in his music, but the Fminor quartet completely filled that breach and all its fourmovements express torrents of agitated states of despairand lamentation. Extreme anger is highly depicted in thefirst movement marked Allegro vivace assai. Next, thenormally anticipated light and aerial "MendelssohnianScherzo" is here absent and replaced by a disturbeddance in three paired with a dark trio where the lowerstrings are in the foreground. The Adagio starts with acharacteristic downward gesture in the first violin line butthe rest of the movement gradually moves away from thatdesperate cry and even reaches A-flat Major in its end.Alas, the Finale slowly abandons that calmer feeling andreturns to the initial mood of agitated despair by whichthe quartet ultimately concludes itself.

BRETT DEAN (1961 - )Eclipse

Eclipse was premiered in Cologne by the Auryn Quartet inDecember of 2003. Even though the title Eclipse was notintended by composer Brett Dean to describe anastronomical event, its one uninterrupted movementcomprising three clearly defined sections almost rendersthe three necessary phases of such an occurrence byimplicitly suggesting a state before the event, the eventitself, and another one following the event. However, whattruly inspired Brett Dean to write this piece can rather befound in the political and social consequences of theTampa crisis. In August of 2001, the Norwegian seacaptain in command of the vessel named Tampa savedthe lives of hundreds of refugees by rescuing them fromtheir troubled boat in the waters between Indonesia andAustralia. Following that heroic event, the Australianfederal government shocked the world and especiallyNorway by refusing to give ground to those on board andeven defied the United Nations by failing to meetobligations to distressed mariners under internationalregulations. The ensuing political discussion is preciselywhat prompted Brett Dean to write in the composer'snotes prior to his music for the quartet that "the veryhumanity and the enormity of the refugee's own personalstruggles and fates was entirely eclipsed by the powergames of a bigger political agenda", thus explaining thetitle Eclipse for the work.

The first section, Slow and spacious, starts very softly andwitnesses the cello leading the quartet towards a gradualascension of sounds and activity. Unstable arpeggiatedpizzicato gestures and mysterious fast notes renderedvery quietly among the quartet are both contributing toend this first section in a downward manner. The secondsection, Unlikely Flight, features the viola at the veryoutset and constantly changes meters and accents inthunderous frenetic ways. Brett Dean explains that "thetitle refers to a quote from Tom Keneally's Tyrant's Novel in

which he describes with harrowing clarity the dangerouscircumstances and desperate state of mind confrontingsomeone fleeing a country such as Iraq". The thirdsection, Epilogue, features much of the previously statedmaterials and concludes its course in a fashion mirroringthe very beginning of the piece.

EDWARD ELGAR (1857-1934)String Quartet Op. 83 in E minor

Allegro moderatoPiacevole (poco andante)Allegro molto

Edward Elgar wrote his first and only satisfactory stringquartet in 1918 after a few unsuccessful attempts in thegenre. Prior to the quartet Op. 83, Elgar had written anearlier one bearing the opus number 8, but soon after itscompletion, the composer destroyed the manuscript. InFebruary 1900, the cellist of the first Brodsky Quartet, CarlFuchs, asked Elgar to write a piece for his quartet afterattending a concert in Manchester featuring the orchestralpiece Variations on an Original Theme (Enigma) Op. 36written previously in 1899. Seventeen years went by.

During war-time London, Elgar became ill and depressed,which prompted his wife to find a cottage near Fittleworthin Sussex for them to move to. Elgar benefited from thenew surroundings and started to write the first theme ofthe String Quartet Op. 83 in a nursing home whilerecovering from having had his tonsils removed. Aroundthat time, he also wrote the Violin Sonata in E minor andthe Piano Quintet in A minor. Unfortunately, when thequartet was finished, the Brodsky Quartet was no longerin its prime and the premiere necessitated to be playedby other musicians. The first public performance of thequartet took place on May 21st 1919 at the Wigmore Hallin London alongside the premiere of the Piano Quintet inA minor. The first movement is punctuated by unexpectedrhythmical figures and sounds unusual for Elgar while theother two are more predictable and sound rather typicalof his manner. Elgar’s wife was particularly fond of thesecond movement’s simplicity and qualified it by usingthe terms "captured sunshine". In 1920, the C Majorsecond movement was consequently played at herfuneral. The second movement is also where Elgarapparently claimed he had accomplished a novelty neverbeen done before, though its pleasant tone does notdirectly suggest modernistic tendencies. Asked by theMalvern Troyt Griffith what he meant, Elgar replied:"Nothing you would understand, merely an arrangement ofnotes".

© Pierre Lapointe 2012

Sponsored by The Ridgeway Sponsors

www.escherquartet.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk


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Greenham Common Trust is very pleased to lend its support for Newbury Spring Festival(NSF), one of the most exciting events in the arts calendar.

The Trust is committed to making the arts more accessible to the wider community and NSFis a brilliant opportunity for local people to see world class performances.

Thanks to the commitment of a dedicated and hardworking NSF team and the generosity oflocal supporters, the community can experience the highest quality arts events at this year’sFestival.

The Trust has pledged nearly £43,000 to support this year’s programme including:

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra with conductor Owain Arwel Hughes and soloistFreddie Kempf – St Nicolas Church Newbury. Saturday May 12, 7.30pm

Morriston Orpheus Choir – Corn Exchange, Newbury. Sunday May 13, 3pm

Ballet Central – Corn Exchange, Newbury. Tuesday May 15, 7.30pm

Family concert with Newbury Symphony Orchestra – Corn Exchange, Newbury.Sunday May 20, 3pm

The Sheepdrove Piano Competition (Trust donated the 2nd prize of £1,000) –Sheepdrove Eco Conference Centre, Lambourn. Sunday May 20, 3pm

The Trust is once again supporting a free ticket scheme for young people to be inspired bydiverse festival concerts covering a wide variety of genres. This will also include a YoungFestival Critic Award.

The Trust is one of the principal funders of the Festival’s education and community programmewhich offers free workshops and children’s concerts benefitting some 1,500 local children.

The Festival fits very much into the Trust’s dedicated programme of support for the arts whichalso includes:

A heavily subsidised Opera for All event Instrument loan scheme Funding West Berkshire’s Young Musician of the Year competition Underwriting venue hire costs Professional master classes for local schools Funding for music scores Dance, drama and music workshops

It is the fourth year that the Trust has worked in partnership with professional touring operacompany Opera Brava, who will be putting on a magnificent performance of The Barber ofSeville on Saturday June 30th at Newbury Racecourse – tickets availablefrom the Corn Exchange, Newbury. The company is also working withWinchcombe School to stage a junior operatic production of C S Lewis’classic fairytale The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe at NewburyRacecourse on Friday, June 29th.

The Trust has also launched an online grant application system calledwww.findmeagrant.org where applicants can attract donations, matchedfunding, Gift Aid and grants all with no administration fee.

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Corn Exchange Newbury Tuesday 15 May 7.30pm

Ballet CentralSara Matthews director, Central School of BalletWilliam Glassman artistic director, Ballet CentralPhilip Feeney musical director, Ballet Central

Returning by popular demand to the Festival for the fourthconsecutive year Ballet Central’s 2012 tour features newworks from Mikaela Polley (Rambert Dance Company),Sharon Watson (Phoenix Dance Theatre) and SaraMatthews, as well as revivals by Matthew Hart, the lateDavid Fielding, and Ballet Central’s founder, the lateChristopher Gable. This exciting programme of ballet,contemporary, jazz and narrative dance features liveaccompaniment by Musical Director Philip Feeney.


Sara Matthews Sara has worked with Central for 12 years and ispassionately committed to the artistic development andeducation of future generations of dancers throughproviding an inspiring environment that offers standardsof excellence in teaching and student welfare. Beforejoining Central, Sara was a dancer with Rambert DanceCompany for eleven years. During this time sheperformed in all of the Company's most famous repertoireworking with, among others, Sir Frederick Ashton,Richard Alston, Christopher Bruce, Merce Cunningham,Siobhan Davies, Jiri Kylian and Ashley Page, as well asperforming in works by Anthony Tudor and Glen Tetley.

Sara's guest teaching credits include English NationalBallet, Rambert Dance Company, The Royal OperaHouse, Richard Alston Dance Company, the CubanNational Ballet School and The Rambert School of Balletand Contemporary Dance. Sara's choreographic creditsinclude Rambert Dance Company, English National Balletand Ballet Central.

William GlassmanWilliam was chosen by George Balanchine to receive oneof the first Ford Foundation Scholarships in 1960 to studyat The School of American Ballet. After graduating hedanced in the Broadway musical Tovarich, starring VivienLeigh, before joining American Ballet Theatre. As a soloistand guest artist he created roles in ballets by JeromeRobbins and Agnes DeMille, and also performed leadingroles in ballets by Ashton, Lander, Loring and MacMillan.

He was invited in 1979 to become the Graduate BoysTeacher at The Royal Ballet School. He was appointedExecutive Director of the London Children's Ballet in 1999and subsequently joined Elmhurst School for Dance asSenior Male Teacher/Head of Boys. In March of 2004 hejoined The Rock School of the Pennsylvania Ballet (US)as Principal Teacher and Assistant Director and wasappointed Artistic Director of Ballet Central in September2005.

Philip Feeney Philip studied composition with Robin Holloway and HughWood at Cambridge, then with Franco Donatoni in Romewhere he worked with Teatro-Danza Contemporonea diRoma. His work has been performed throughout Italy andBritain and he has worked with Ballet Central since itbegan, composing music for more than twenty of thecompany's ballets.

His scores for Northern Ballet Theatre include the jazzballet Jazz Concerto, the hugely successful Cinderella andDracula (available on the Naxos label) and TheHunchback of Notre Dame (available on the Black Boxlabel) currently performed by Boston Ballet. Philip's workalso includes collaboration with Didy Veldman for herpiece Greymatter for Rambert Dance Company and forNBT's new production of A Streetcar named Desire.

Ballet Central

Ballet Central has been Central School of Ballet’s touringcompany for twenty seven years. The tour is a regularfixture on the UK’s touring calendar and the performancesare much anticipated throughout the UK.

The company is comprised of the School’s final yearstudents as part of their BA (Hons) Degree course.Central School of Ballet is the only classical vocationalschool to offer an Honours Degree and pre-professionaltouring experience on such a scale. It has been aspringboard for hundreds of dancers into the danceprofession.

Each year Ballet Central works with a mixture of highlyacclaimed and emerging choreographers on newlycommissioned works and much-loved revivals. RecentBallet Central choreographers include: Richard Alston,David Bintley, Christopher Bruce, Jonzi D, Matthew Hart,Christopher Hampson, Christopher Marney, David Nixon,Michael Pink and Mikaela Polley.


www.centralschoolofballet.co.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

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Young Artists Lunchtime Recital 2Emilia Martensson singerSam Lasserson bassJon Scott drumsBarry Green piano

Emilia Martensson has successfully forged a distinctiveand unique niche for her vocal talents on the London jazzscene. Combining the influence of folk songs from herhome land with some of the greatest jazz songs of thelast century, Emilia has lent her critically acclaimed soundand lyric writing skills to a wide variety of collaborativeprojects, most notably to the 2011 MOBO Award WinningKairos 4tet. She has performed at some of London’s mostprestigious music venues, most recently with stormingsuccess at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club, and has alsoperformed live sets for the world renowned pianist JulianJoseph’s BBC Radio 3 show and another for GillesPeterson on Radio 1.


Emilia MartenssonUnlike most of today’s singer songwriters, EmiliaMårtensson's teenage years were not spent exploring thecatalogues of Dylan, Waits, Young and Drake, rather, herevenings were spent listening to Ella Fitzgerald, BillieHoliday and Anita O’Day in the depths of SouthernSweden's countryside where she lived. While hergirlfriends listened to popular styles of the day, she and a

group of local boys were playing music in her parentsrestaurant which Emilia would later turn into one of theregion’s most successful jazz clubs hosting some of thecountry's most acclaimed jazz acts.

Fast forward 10 years and Emilia Mårtensson is a Londonbased singer of considerable repute. Her criticallyacclaimed contributions (both as vocalist and lyricist) tojazz’s newest stars, Kairos 4tet no doubt helped thembring home a 2011 MOBO Award, while her distinctivevoice led the Observer to claim her 'The New Face ofBritish Jazz 2012'.

Sam LassersonSam began playing the double bass aged 16, takingclassical lessons and teaching himself jazz. Afterbecoming section principal of two youth orchestras, hewent to Trinity College of Music in 2001, where he studiedboth classical and jazz double bass with Corin Long andSteve Watts respectively. Whilst at college he began toperform professionally, with such diverse engagements astouring a double bass concerto to Spain and performingin Moscow with Bryan Ferry. He also began to performwith respected musicians on the British jazz scene, andsince graduating last year he has been appearingregularly in jazz venues in and around London. He hasperformed with Martin Speake, Bobby Wellins, AnitaWardell, Trudy Kerr, Malcolm Earle-Smith and GiladAtzmon among others. Sam is currently performingregularly with Martin Speake, the Jake Goss Quartet,Hannes Riepler, Richard Turner, and he is involved in atrio project with Mike Chillingworth and Josh Morrison.

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Emilia Martensson Quartet

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Jon ScottOriginally from Manchester, Jon has been based inLondon since late 2005. Since then he has developed areputation as a creative and flexible player on the UK jazzscene, while building up his international connections,playing extensively throughout Europe. As AdamWaldmann of Kairos 4tet says, “he’s got a great sense ofdynamic contour and narrative, and always knows wherea tune is heading.”

Jon has performed with artists including Will Vinson,Byron Wallen, Alec Dankworth, Martin Speake, Nikki Iles,Yuri Goloubev, Mike Walker. As well as being a majorforce in the Kairos 4tet engine room, he holds the drumchair in a large number of original groups, includingCandid Records artist Mishka Adams’ band, sax veteranPete Hurt’s quartet, the Hannes Riepler Quartet, CarlosLopez-Real’s Mandorla and Anglo-German collaborationParagon.

Barry GreenLike Emilia, Barry is a young player relatively new on thescene. Once described as one of the UK’s best keptsecrets – his CV as accompanist is a Who’s Who list ofthe upper echelons of UK jazz – his 2011 debut, TheMusic of Chance, put paid to that notion earning him araft of media plaudits. “A cerebral swinger with a liking forunexpected harmonic turns” said The Independent, whilethe Guardian cited him as “one of the best mainstream-to-bop musicians on the UK scene”. Green is a sparklingplayer, versatile with oodles of imagination. So, as a loverof melody, yet occasionally edgy there is no surprise thatthe rapport between him and Emilia Martensson wasinstant, both sharing a deep love of the ‘art of the song’.


www.emiliam.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Emilia Martensson Quartet

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It's simple. Come to a Festivalevent and write a review of yourexperience. Submit a written piecefor the press or web, do apresentation, a radio interview, ablog, a Facebook comment oreven a Tweet! The best, most wellwritten, and interesting reviews willbe eligible for a cash prize andfeatured in the media & online.

Fancyyourself as a music critic ?

Sign up to Young Festival Criticsfor free tickets toevents and a chanceto win £100.

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Made possible by Greenham Common Trust

Zeffirelli’s OtelloPlacido Domingo OtelloKatia Ricciarelli DesdemonaJustino Diaz IagoPetra Malakova EmiliaLorin Maazel conductorOrchestra of La Scala,Milan

In the first evening of film celebrating legends of bothopera and ballet the Festival presents Franco Zeffirelli’sacclaimed film Otello, starring Placido Domingo, whichpremiered in 1986.

Ross Alley, lecturer on opera and ballet at the RoyalOpera House, will introduce and talk about the film beforethe screening.

Sponsored by an anonymous donor

Placido DomingoPlacido Domingo is a world-renowned, multifaceted artist.Recognized as one of the finest and most influentialsinging actors in the history of opera, he is also aconductor and a major force as an opera administrator inhis role as general director of two companies: LA Operaand Washington National Opera.

As a singer, his repertoire encompasses 134 roles, anumber unmatched by any other tenor in history, withmore than 3500 career performances. He has made morethan 100 recordings of complete operas, compilations ofarias and duets, His work in the recording studio hasearned him 12 Grammy Awards, three of which are LatinGrammys, and he has made more than 50 music videos.In addition to three feature opera films - Carmen, LaTraviata and Otello - he voiced the role of Monte inDisney’s Beverly Hills Chihuahua, played himself on TheSimpsons, and his telecast of Tosca from the authenticsettings in Rome was seen by more than one billionpeople in 117 different countries. His appearances aroundthe world with his colleagues José Carreras and LucianoPavarotti in the now legendary The Three Tenors concertsare one of the great musical success stories of the 1990s.

During the 2011/12 season, Placido will conduct Roméoet Juliette and sing the title role in Simon Boccanegra withLA Opera, and conduct Tosca at the Washington NationalOpera. Upcoming performances also include Neptune inThe Enchanted Island at the Metropolitan Opera, wherehe will also conduct Madama Butterfly.

Franco ZeffirelliFranco Zeffirelli (born 1923) is an Italian director andproducer of films and television. He is also a director anddesigner of operas and a former senator (1994–2001) forthe Italian center-right Forza Italia party.

Zeffirelli is principally known for his 1968 version ofRomeo and Juliet, for which he was nominated for anAcademy Award, although his 1967 version of The Tamingof the Shrew (with Elizabeth Taylor and Richard Burton)remains the most popular production of that play. His filmOtello was a BAFTA winner in the foreign language filmcategory. He was the first Italian national to receive anhonorary knighthood from the British government whenhe was created a Knight Commander of the Order of theBritish Empire.

Ross AlleyRoss Alley is a native of New Zealand, he worked as apianist and music teacher at the National School of Balletand the Australian Ballet Company and School beforemoving to England. In London he was employed by theRoyal Ballet School as a pianist, with responsibilities as amusic tutor to develop the teachers’ training course andcreate the pianists training programme for aspiring balletaccompanists. He is closely associated with the CecchettiSociety, researching, editing and arranging music for thesyllabi. Ross Alley lectures on classical music at the RoyalOpera House, organized by the Royal Opera HouseEducation Department with the University of London andFriends of Covent Garden.

OtelloLegendary Italian director Franco Zeffirelli and renownedtenor Placido Domingo unite their mighty talents for thislavish production of composer Guiseppe Verdi's classicopera based on Shakespeare's timeless, tragicmasterpiece Othello.

Victorious general Otello returns in triumph to his adoptedcity of Venice after vanquishing its foes at sea. But noteveryone is poised to give him a hero's welcome. Even ashis beautiful wife Desdemona lavishes him with affection,Iago, a disgruntled ensign, plots his downfall. And whenIago uses Otello's own jealous nature against him, hedrives a wedge between husband and wife ... withdevastating consequences!


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Long Gallery Englefield House Theale Wednesday 16 May 7.30pm

Kinsky Trio PragueSlávka Pchoová pianoLucie Sedláková Hlová violinMartin Sedlák cello

Haydn Trio in G major GypsyDebussy Trio in G major

Interval

Dvorak Trio in E minor Op 90 Dumky

Sponsored by Sir Mark and Lady Waller

In the presence of the Newbury Spring Festival’sPatron HRH The Duke of Kent KG

Kinsky Trio PragueFounded in 1998, the Kinsky Trio Prague is one of theoutstanding Czech chamber ensembles. Since 2004 theTrio has had the honour of bearing the name ‘Kinsky’ bykind permission of the aristocratic Czech family fromKostelec nad Orlici. The Trio studied at the Academy ofMusic in Prague under Vaclav Berna!ek, cellist of theKocian Quartet, and has taken part in several masterclasses including with the Guarneri Trio and the FlorestanTrio, and regularly consults with the famous Czech pianistIvan Moravec and with Pavel Hla, first violinist of thePra"ak Quartet. The Kinsky’s international career hastaken them all over Europe (Austria, Germany, Spain,Belgium, England, France), the U.S., Canada, Mexico andalso the Seychelles.

They regularly record for Czech Radio, and their concertshave also been broadcast in Mexico and the U.S. From2007 to 2009 the Kinsky Trio Prague organized its ownseries of chamber concerts at the Stone Bell House, anhistoric inn on the Old Town Square in their home city ofPrague.

Since 2009 the Kinsky Trio Prague have recorded CDs forthe French label Praga Digitals (distributed by HarmoniaMundi). Their recording of complete piano trios byBohuslav Martin has been warmly recommended byinternational music critics (Diapason, Gramophone,Classica, Harmonie, etc.). Their other CDs includecompositions by Czech composers Foerster, Novak,Janaek and Fibich, and less known Russian trios byBorodin, Rimsky Korsakov and Arensky.

Programme NotesJOSEPH HAYDN (1732-1809)Piano Trio in G major, Hob.XV/25

1. Andante 2. Poco adagio 3. Rondo all'Ongarese: Presto

Haydn composed piano trios at every stage of hiscreative life, beginning during his years with Count Morzinin the 1750s, when both the piano and the composerwere in their first stages of development. The present Trioin G major, known as the Gypsy Trio on account of itsHungarian-style finale, dates from 1795. This was the yearof his second visit to London, when he also composedhis final symphonies.

The first movement is based upon a song-like theme,which is presented in two distinct and carefully balancedhalves. The theme is developed in a sequence of fourrichly imaginative variations. In the central Poco adagiomovement the lyrical line of the violin creates a specialfocus. However, it is the finale that accounts for the factthat this is the most popular of all Haydn's trios. It hasgained the name Gypsy Rondo because of its rondo finalein the Hungarian style. At once subtle and direct, thisrepresents an ideal fusion of folk music and art music.


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CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918)Piano Trio in G major

1. Andantino con moto allegro – Allegro appassionato – Tempo primo

2. Scherzo. Intermezzo: Moderato con allegro3. Andante espressivo4. Finale: Appassionato

Nadejda von Meck, the famous patroness of Tchaikovsky,was a wealthy widow who travelled throughout Europe,and when she approached the Paris Conservatoire askingif they could recommend a student who could join herresident piano trio, Debussy’s name was put forward.Thus it was that he accompanied her and her children ontheir travels, joining them at Interlaken in July 1880. Theytravelled via Paris, Nice, Genoa and Naples to Florence,where they arrived on 19th September. From there Mmevon Meck sent Tchaikovsky a Danse bohémienne by theyoung composer, which the Russian master found ‘a nicepiece, but too short, with themes that never getanywhere’.

The resident trio was expected to perform on a dailybasis, and it was in this context that Debussy composedhis Piano Trio in G major. While the music does not revealthe individuality and personality of the mature artist, it iscertainly an accomplished piece of work, developing itsmusical ideas while giving each player the opportunity tomake a special contribution. It is salon music in the bestsense of the word, at once sophisticated and refined.

The second movement, for example, is notable for itsrhythmic clarity, and the influence of the ballet music ofLéo Delibes looms large (Tchaikovsky, incidentally,thought Delibes the greatest living composer, thoughDebussy would not have known this.) However, it was theclassical masters – Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert –whose works formed the staple repertoire of Mme vonMeck’s private piano trio, and the nature of this beautifullywritten composition by the young Debussy is a reflectionof this.

ANTONÍN DVORÁK (1841-1904)Piano Trio in E minor, Opus 9Dumky

1. Lento maestoso – Allegro vivace2. Poco adagio – Vivace non troppo3. Andante4. Andante moderato – Allegretto scherzando5. Allegro6. Lento maestoso

Dvorák composed his fourth Piano Trio towards the endof 1890. By this time he was a celebrated artist at theheight of his powers, who in his major instrumental worksoften preferred to combine the music of the Czech

national style and the Viennese classical inheritance. Infact these were the twin influences which in equalmeasure had always been the crucial features of hisartistic development.

Dvorák was always willing to incorporate idiomatic danceelements into concert and chamber music; and so it wasthat he chose to adopt the dumka here. This generallyslow dance had Ukranian origins, and Dvorák used itfrequently, for example in his Slavonic Dances. Its natureis reflected in the fact that the word ‘dumka’ is adiminutive of ‘duma’, meaning a meditation.

The Dumky Trio is a particularly interesting blend ofmelancholy expressiveness and joyful release. This effectis created in some measure by the music’s unusualstructure, containing six contrasted movements. It istherefore to the credit of Dvorák’s technique andexperience that he achieves such a strong sense of unityacross the whole sequence. The moods tend to alternatein order to make their impression, always using the dancecharacteristic with the utmost imagination.

Dvorák himself chose this piece to feature at the centre ofthe chamber music concerts over which he presidedduring 1891. This was immediately before he left hishomeland in order to take up the position of Director ofthe New England Conservatory in the United States.

Sponsored by Sir Mark and Lady Waller

This evening’s concert forms part of a Royal Gala event toraise funds for the Newbury Spring Festival and theCharlie Waller Memorial Trust.

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Long Gallery Englefield House Theale Thursday 17 May 3.00pm

The First Elizabeth

The story of Englefield House - visited by Elizabeth I,prised from the grasp of an old Catholic family andgranted to the Protestant descendant of a man executedas one of Anne Boleyn's lovers - is the history ofElizabethan England in a nutshell. David Starkey, authorof the international best-seller Elizabeth: Apprenticeship,sets the reign in the context of Elizabeth's own tumultuouslife and complex personality.

Sponsored by Mr and Mrs Robin Aird

David StarkeyDr David Starkey is widelyregarded as one of theworld's most eminenthistorians. He is the UK'sleading constitutional andmonarchy expert and acolourful media personality.He has written diarycolumns for The SundayTimes and The Spectatorand appears frequently ontelevision and radio, ofteninvited onto suchprogrammes as BBC's

Question Time and Newsnight. In October 2006 he startedhosting the second series of The Last Word now knownas Starkey's Last Word.

He is perhaps best known for his Channel 4 televisiondocumentary series which include Henry VIII of England,Elizabeth I of England and The Six Wives of Henry VIII. In2004 he began a new Channel 4 multi-year seriesMonarchy, which chronicles the history of English Kingsand Queens from the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms onward.

In addition to his media profile, Dr Starkey is a respectedacademic who lectured in international history at theLondon School of Economics from 1972 until 1998. He iscurrently an Honorary Fellow at Fitzwilliam College,Cambridge.

Dr Starkey has written several books, including Rivals inPower, The Reign of Henry VIII; Elizabeth: Apprenticeship,The Six Wives of Henry VIII, The Monarchy of EnglandVolume 1: The Beginnings and the most recent Monarchy:From the Middle Ages to Modernity.

Dr Starkey was appointed a CBE in the Queen's birthdayhonours list of 2007 for services to history.

Sponsored by Mr and Mrs Robin Aird


David Starkey Festival Talk 3

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Tibetan Monks from Tashi Lhunpo MonasteryPhep Su WelcomeKhandro Thensuk Long Life PrayerKhabdro Semkye Generating CompassionSha-Ma Deer and Buffalo DanceChoed CuttingDur Dak Lords of the CemeteryKunrik All Knowing

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Bakshi Lords of DeathKangso ThanksgivingTrueso Purification Taksel The Art of DebateSha Nak Black Hat DanceShijoe Prayers of Dedication

Tashi Lhunpo MonasteryTashi Lhunpo Monastery is the seat of the lineage of thePanchen Lamas - second only in importance as spiritualleaders of Tibet to the Dalai Lama. The monastery wasfounded by the First Dalai Lama in 1447 in Shigatse,Tibet's second largest city. It is one of the four great

monasteries of the Gelugpa (or Yellow Hat) tradition, andis renowned for its scholarship in Mahayana BuddhistPhilosophy and the Tantric tradition of Tibetan Buddhism.

By the time of the Fourth Panchen Lama, LobsangChoekyi Gyaltsen, there were more than 3,000 monks inthe Monastery. By 1959, their numbers had grown to5,000, with another 2,000 monks affiliated to themonastery outside Tibet.

The Chinese occupation of Tibet in 1959 and the CulturalRevolution from 1966-80 wreaked destruction on the greatmonastic institutions, including Tashi Lhunpo, which lostmany of the precious scriptures, statues and images. Ofthe 5,000 monks in the monastery, only 250 were able tofollow the Dalai Lama into exile.

In 1972, under the patronage of the present (Fourteenth)Dalai Lama, Tashi Lhunpo Monastery was re-establishedin the Southern Indian state of Karnataka. Occupying acentral position in the Tibetan settlement of Bylakuppe,the Monastery is now home to 250 monks, and has onceagain regained its reputation as an important centre forlearning and the preservation of their unique culture andtraditions.

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Corn Exchange Newbury Thursday 17 May 7.30pm

The Power of Compassion

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The Tenth Panchen Rinpoche was born in 1938 in EasternTibet. He was recognised by the Dalai Lama in 1952,when he joined Tashi Lhunpo Monastery in Shigatse. Hisoutspoken comments about the Communist Chinesepolicies in Tibet led to his imprisonment for nearly 10years during the Cultural Revolution. On his release, hewas able to begin the restoration of the Monastery, but in1989 he died suddenly, bringing to an end the life of oneof the most misunderstood lamas in Tibet's culture - andone of the most courageous critics of Mao's regime.

According to the Tibetan tradition of reincarnation, thesearch began for the Eleventh Panchen Rinpoche. InJanuary 1995, all the signs confirmed that the truereincarnation had been born, and was living in Tibet. InApril 1995, the Dalai Lama confirmed the news officially -but on 17th May the six-year-old child, Gedun ChoekyiNyima, and his family disappeared from their home,apparently being held in police custody. In his place, theChinese authorities selected their own Panchen Lama, bydrawing lots from a golden urn, and he was enthroned inDecember 1995. The whereabouts of Gedun ChoekyiNyima are still unknown.

The Tibetan Monastic dance tradition - known as ‘Cham’ -originated with the earliest Buddhist practice, and thegreat Masters passed their vision of deities in movementto their students through the great Buddhist lineages. TheGreat Fifth Dalai Lama codified many of the dances in his'Cham Yig' (Sacred Dance Text), and so ensured theirsurvival - each according to the traditions of the individualmonasteries - handed down by the Dance Masters to theirstudents. Tashi Lhunpo's Cham is unique in its detailedmovements and costumes. The traditional chants heardtonight are shortened versions of the prayers used in theMonastery from day to day.

Tashi Lhunpo Monastery UK Trust was founded inSeptember 2003. His Holiness the Dalai Lama kindlyagreed to become Patron of the Trust, which has fiveTrustees.

The Trust aims to develop awareness and facilitate accessto the unique culture of Tibet, especially of Tashi LhunpoMonastery, by organising artistic tours, educationalworkshops and cultural exchanges. The Trust works toimprove the living conditions of the monks inside theMonastery both by assisting with construction andtechnical projects as well as to help by improving theeducational and health facilities. There are alsoassociated projects within linked monasteries andnunneries in Ladakh.

Recent fund-raising projects undertaken within theMonastery include the provision of irrigation equipment,enabling the best use to be made of farmlandsurrounding the monastery campus, and the secondstage of the school building project, where over 140students now study. In Ladakh, the Trust has funded thebuilding of a school in a remote nunnery in Zangskar, andhas sent an English teacher to work in Thiksey MonasterySchool near Leh.

The current major project is the construction of a newMain Prayer Hall (Dukhang), to accommodate thegrowing number of monks. The Trust also runs asponsorship programme and is appealing forcontributions towards the Food Fund.

The Trust organises biennial cultural tours of the MaskedDances and Sacred Chant of the Monastery to the UKand Europe, during which they carry out workshops inschools and for mixed ages in order to inform audiencesabout Tibetan monastic culture and undertake sandmandala exhibitions. As part of the Newbury SpringFestival’s Education and Community programme themonks will give a performance this afternoon in the CornExchange to some 500 local children.

www.tashi-lhunpo.org.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

The Power of Compassion

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WOODWINDINSTRUMENTREPAIRER

Flutes, Clarinetsand Saxophonesservicing/repairs

Efficient, Reliable and Cost Effective!

Contact: Jane Pickering on Newbury (01635) 35881 or email: [email protected]

A Member of N.A.M.I.R.

Mahan EsfahaniJacquet de la Guerre Pièces en ré-mineur (1687)J S Bach From the Well-Tempered Clavier,

Book I Partita V in G, BWV 829

Interval

Buxtehude Toccata in G minor, BuxWV 163Rameau Suite en la-mineur, from the Pièces

de Clavecin

Supported by the Miss W E Lawrence 1973 CharitableSettlement

Mahan EsfahaniPraised by The Times as ‘exceptionally gifted’ and byEarly Music Today for his ‘sensitivity and vibrance,’ theIranian born Mahan Esfahani (b. 1984) is quicklyestablishing himself as the leading concert harpsichordistof his generation. He was the first harpsichordist to benamed a BBC New Generation Artist and to be awarded afellowship prize by the Borletti-Buitoni Trust.

Recent highlights have included performances of Kalabis’Concerto for Harpsichord and Orchestra (1975) with theBBC Concert Orchestra, Martinu’s Concerto forHarpsichord and Orchestra (1935) with the BBCSymphony Orchestra under Jiri Belohlavek, andPoulenc’s Concert Champetre (1928) with the BBCNational Orchestra of Wales.

Last season, he also gave his solo debut at the WigmoreHall (broadcast on BBC Radio 3) and appeared at theCity of London and York Early Music Festivals. In addition,his recording of the Poulenc concert was selected as aCD of the month for the May 2010 issue of BBC MusicMagazine, and he has been featured as a “Hot Property”by Classic FM magazine.

Recent engagements include an appearance at theWigmore Hall with the countertenor James Bowman, anddirecting the Manchester Camerata, the Arion BaroqueOrchestra (Montreal), and The English Concert at the2011 Lufthansa Festival. Furthermore, he returned to theUnited States for solo recitals and made his concertodebut in the Far East with the Malaysian PhilharmonicOrchestra in March 2011.

As a soloist and guest director Esfahani has appearedwith The English Concert, the Manchester Camerata, andthe Seattle Baroque Orchestra; his series and festivalappearances include the BBC Proms, Tage Alter MusikRegensburg, the Goettingen Handel Festival, theSettimana Mozart of Milan, New York’s MetropolitanMuseum of Art and the San Francisco Early MusicSociety.

Esfahani studied as a President’s Scholar at StanfordUniversity where his principal mentor was themusicologist George Houle; he went on to pursue hisperformance studies under the supervision of theAustralian harpsichordist Peter Watchorn (Boston) and theItalian organist Lorenzo Ghielmi (Milan) before settling inthe United Kingdom as Artist-in-Residence at NewCollege, Oxford. In the autumn of 2010 he was furtherelected an honourary member of Keble College, Oxford.

Programme NotesELISABETH JACQUET DE LA GUERRE (1665-1729)Pièces en ré-mineur (1687)

Prélude - Allemande - 1e Courante - 2e Courante -Sarabande - Gigue - Canaris - Chaconne - Menuet

The Premier Livre (1687) of harpsichord pieces byElisabeth Jacquet de la Guerre followed on the footstepsof one of the greatest collections of harpsichord pieces ofthe period, the Pièces de Clavecin of Jacques Championde Chambonnières (1670), and came to the attention ofthe French public right before the equally importantcollection of the same name by Jean-Henry d'Anglebert(1689). Thus it stands with the two giants of Frenchharpsichord playing of the period, and it certainly doesnot suffer in any comparisons. The fact that an importantengraver in Paris would take the time and the financialrisk to undertake the publication of a work by a womansays a great deal about the position of women inseventeenth-century music. Jacquet de la Guerre, only 22at the time, was one of many in the period who made a

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mark as a serious, independent composer - Italy'sBarbara Strozzi and Francesca Caccini also come tomind. Favoured by Louis XIV from an early age, Jacquetde la Guerre first made her mark at the French Court asan improviser at the harpsichord and organ, and in 1694(just short of the age of thirty!) was the first woman toconduct - her own work, no less - at the Opéra in Paris.Indeed, perhaps the success of many a woman in musicat this time is a direct result of the nature of Courtpatronage which from time to time could bypass societal'norms.'

The opening prelude in particular exemplifies the sort ofambiguity that defines so much of the seventeenthcentury before the age of, shall we say, 'standardisation.'This 'unmeasured' prelude (called as such because of thenotation of its free sections in semibreves, thus leavingthe rhythmic execution to the taste of the performer) isessentially a French translation of an Italian toccata, inwhich the improvisatory style exploiting the ever-changingcolours of harmonic groups is combined with a brief fugalsection in a ternary dance rhythm. The typical dances of aBaroque suite - an Allemande, a couple of Courantes,Sarabandes, a capricious 'Cannaris' (called so because ofits origins in the Canary Islands), a solemn Chaconne -are transformed by Jacquet de la Guerre into miniaturedramas with the most subtle shadings. This music isindeed like a moving mirror, in which various colours areformed by the changing angle with respect to light.

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750)From the Well-Tempered Clavier, Book I (1722)

Praeludium & Fuga in A, BWV 864Praeludium & Fuga in B, BWV 866Praeludium & Fuga in H, BWV, 869

The title of the 'Well-Tempered Clavier' of JohannSebastian Bach has long been misunderstood. It doesnot indicate our modern, 'equal' temperament in which alltwelve semitones in the octave are spaced equally. Whilecertainly theorists of the period had been discussingequal temperament, at least on a hypothetical level, it isclear that the composers of the Baroque (and, indeed,later on until the twentieth century!) were absolutely notinterested in abandoning the variation between differentkey colours. Thus, in contrast to equal temperament, 'well'temperament purposefully divides the semitones inunequal ways so as to cause keys to sound differentlyfrom one another. Throughout the first book (compiled in1722) of the Well-Tempered Clavier, Bach exploits thecharacters of different keys with preludes and fugues ofwidely varying styles. By presenting a prelude and fuguein each key (24 in total), Bach in fact celebrates the richdiversity of intervallic relationships amongst the variouskeys.

In a selection of three preludes and fugues, we see Bachstretching the capabilities of the harpsichord as he callsupon the instrument to imitate the singing style in three orfour independent parts. I would go so far as to say that intandem with the aim to exemplify the variety of keys, Bachalso uses the opportunity afforded by this work to showthe incredible variety of fugal subjects that can beconstructed. The subject of the A-Major fugue is a case inpoint. A subject that begins with a lone note followed byan uncomfortable silence before the conclusion of thetheme - who on Earth could have created this, and haveseen the idea through in perfect counterpoint, but Bach?And as if to test the effectiveness of well-temperament,the last fugue in b-minor is based on a chromatic subjectwhich actually manages to fit in all twelve notes of thescale, as if to say that a temperament that could fit in thesweet intervals of thirds and sixths could also handle themost thorny intervals as well. Especially when comparedto the second book of the Well-Tempered Clavier(compiled in 1744), the first book clearly shows Bachlooking backwards to the seventeenth century, not only inthe construction of his fugues but also in the forms usedto construct his preludes - thus, the prelude in B-flatmajor is essentially a toccata in the stylus phantasticus,whereas the prelude in b-minor is reminiscent of theopening movement of a trio sonata by Legrenzi orCorelli.

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACHPartita V in G, BWV 829 (1731)

Praeambulum - Allemande - Corrente - Sarabande - Tempodi Minuetta - Passepied - Gigue

In contrast to the composer's homage to the seventeenthcentury as exemplified in the first book of the Well-Tempered Clavier, Bach's later Six Partitas (BWV 825-830)show a man very much in tune with the artistic trends ofhis time. Running contrary to the usual view of J.S. Bachas a musical conservative, the music of the Partitascontains much in common with the relativelystraightforward, 'modern' musical language of Telemannand the Dresden court composer Johann Adolf Hasse.The almost relentless sound of close counterpoint isreplaced by a greater emphasis on the flutey upperregister of the keyboard; as a result, the music is muchmore vocal and natural in character compared to, say, theearlier English Suites (BWV 806-811), written about twodecades or so before the Partitas. It comes as nosurprise, then, that the Partitas were amongst the handfulof works that Bach decided to have published in hislifetime, and it seems that public consumption - as far asthe milieu of northern Germany was concerned - wasfairly enthusiastic. Here, as the title page of thepublication promised, 'connoisseurs' (Liebhabern) couldexpect a variety of dance movements including'Galanterien' (an obvious nod to modernity), the playingand listening to of which would provide 'spiritual

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refreshment' (Gemueths-Ergotzung). Of course, let usdiscard our nineteenth-century obsession linking artisticheaviness with depth of thought (and thus linkinglightness with superficiality!) - rather, none of this sense ofthe composer trying to please the public would haveanything to do with lessening the impact of Bach's uniquegenius.

The Fifth Partita in G (BWV 829) is, along with the third ina-minor (BWV 827), the most 'galant' of them all. From theimpetuous Praeambulum to the graceful Sarabande to aPassepied that is infectious in its mirth and call to dance,the Partita is all light and happiness. This is Bach at hismost fetching. But, after all, Bach is Bach, and in thegigue, we see that he is up to his old devilish tricks. Thisis no mere jig, but rather a fugue masquerading as adance. And as if a fugue in three voices on a ratherdifficult subject weren't hard enough on the hands andbrain alike, he opens the second half of the movementwith an answer to the original subject, this time in reverseform, and starting in the lowest voice. After developingthat for a while, he surreptitiously introduces the originaltheme once again in a panoply of ideas and sounds. Theman just cannot help himself!

DIETRICH BUXTEHUDE (c1637-1707)Toccata in G minor, BuxWV 163

Opening the second half is a Toccata in g-minor by thefamous organist of Lubeck, Dietrich Buxtehude. Thelistener will hopefully note that I have quite consciouslysought to separate his music in the programme from thatof Bach, so as to not present Buxtehude as a mere'predecessor' of the great Thuringian. Buxtehude, ofDanish origin, was the most prolific of the churchcomposers of latter seventeenth-century LutheranGermany. As a keyboardist in particular (though he alsoproduced a large number of cantatas and a wealth ofchamber works for strings), Buxtehude achieved asynthesis of the earthy and the cerebral that was not loston J.S. Bach or his equally imaginative sons. This isindeed the musical representative of the dialectic ofmysticism and rational thought that typifies pre-Enlightenment Germany.

His presence and influence as a master of keyboardtechnique were so widely admired that the young Bachabsented himself for four weeks from his position atMuehlhausen in 1705 and walked - yes, walked! - some260 miles to Lubeck to hear and to study with Buxtehude.Apparently, he also investigated the possibility ofsucceeding Buxtehude at his position at Lubeck'sMarienkirche, but was unable to accept the condition thatthe successor marry Buxtehude's daughter (a commonpractise of the period for many professions). Interestingly,Handel and Mattheson also made the same journey twoyears before, and both were put off by the conditions ofsuccession, so we may assume that Buxtehude la

fille was in possession of somewhat modest charms.Bach did, after all, sire 21 children, so he probably wasnot indifferent to more earthly pleasures.

Buxtehude's music is indeed Italianate in that it drawsinspiration from the fantastical toccatas and canzonas ofthe mighty Girolamo Frescobaldi (1583-1643), theorganist of St. Peter's whose achievements as a performerand composer virtually set the standard for keyboardistsfrom London to Vienna to Hamburg. The basic form of theBuxtehudian prelude or toccata is centred around thealternation of free, rhetorically-driven sections withcontrapuntal episodes focused on the manipulation ofone or more themes. This alternation may be likened to aback-and-forth between 'free' prosody and organised or'strict' poetry. The same sort of alternation, in essence, isobserved in the prelude of Jacquet de la Guerre which isheard earlier in the programme.

JEAN-PHILLIPPE RAMEAU (1683-1764)Suite en la-mineur, from the Pièces de Clavecin (1724)

Allemande - Courante - Sarabande - Les Trois Mains - LaFanfarinette - La Triomphante - Gavotte et Six Doubles

Following Buxtehude's massive Toccata, the celebrated'great' suite in a-minor of Jean-Phillippe Rameau brashlyenters our stage. This immense and overpowering suite isindeed the crowning achievement of the French clavecinschool. In contrast to the dark stained wood and carvedivory of Jacquet de la Guerre's musical language,Rameau's artistic voice is characterised by broadbrushstrokes in colours that are sometimes vivid andshocking, sometimes faded and distilling the shadows ofpast glories. The fantastic style of the French Baroquegives way to a refinement that typifies so much of theartistic thought of the reign of Louis XV. A grandAllemande, so sweeping and bursting at the seams withinvention that even its cadences introduce new thematicmaterial, opens the set, moving with a noble gait andmajesty that obviates the need for any prelude to the set.A capricious Courante follows, and then we come to theemotional centre of the suite, a Sarabande providing amajor-key counterpart to the grandeur of the openingAllemande. In this piece, Rameau has specified the speedand manner of rolling of each chord, providing afascinating peek at the performance practises of theperiod. The sarabande's origins as a quick, lasciviousdance are masked in the slow and graceful steps ofRameau's take on the form. The fascinating characterpiece 'Les Trois Mains' is a kind of French variant on theSpanish Fandango - here, Rameau evokes the sense ofthree hands at the keyboard, which means for thekeyboardist a great deal of crossing hands and jumpingabout. Following this there is 'La Fanfarinette' (a'fanfarinette' being a young ingenue - meant to be anevocation, perhaps, of Rameau's young bride), and thenits companion piece 'La Triomphante.' The celebrated

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gavotte and six 'doubles' or variations, a popular encorepiece throughout the modern age, closes the suite. Herethe ancient steps of the gavotte give way to a set ofvariations that are so simple in their structure andmannerisms and yet so truly touching in their sincerity.The work moves with an urgency that sweeps everythingaway in its path, concluding with a fiendishcountermelody to the left hand which underlines achorale-like statement of the original theme.

It is only natural that after Rameau, French harpsichordmusic essentially enters a period of the worst kind ofdecadence. As with the legacy of any great man, hissuccessors - perhaps Jacques Duphly (1715-89) the bestamongst them - imitated his mannerisms with varyinglevels of success, but none had the range of intellect andunderstanding for sonic colours that set the great manapart from his contemporaries. As with J.S. Bach, whenRameau says something, he has the last word.

© Mahan Esfahani 2012

Supported by the Miss W E Lawrence 1973 CharitableSettlement

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John Lewis is proud to continue its 33-year partnership with the Newbury Spring Festival by supporting a range ofconcerts featuring the brightest musical stars.We wish the Festival every success.

Young Artists Lunchtime Recital 3Charlotte Scott violinMichael Trainor violinDavid Wigram violaJessie Ann Richardson cello

Haydn Quartet Op 76 No 3 EmperorSmetana Quartet No 1 From my life


Piatti String Quartet

Winners of the St. Martins in the Fields Chamber MusicCompetition and the Martin Musical/PhilharmoniaScholarship Fund 2010 the Piatti Quartet are fastemerging as one of the UK’s leading young stringquartets. Previous recipients of the Tunnell Trust Awardand selected as Park Lane Group Young Artists in2009/2010, more recent news includes a second year asLeverhulme Chamber Music Fellows at the RoyalAcademy of Music and winning the St Peter’s EatonSquare Prize 2011 and being the only British stringquartet to have been selected as one of the twelve toparticipate in the prestigious Wigmore Hall InternationalString Quartet Competition 2012.

Since 2009 they have performed at the Purcell Room,Southbank, and live on BBC Radio 3 numerous times.Over the last year, they have enjoyed several very excitingcollaboration projects with Austrian pianist GottliebWallisch and clarinetists Emma Johnson and SarahWilliamson as well as a successful second year of theirvery own ‘Piatti Chamber Music Festival at Kingsland’.

The Piatti Quartet had their Wigmore Hall debut inFebruary 2011 and are looking forward to returning therein April 2012. Also returning to the Conway Hall,2011/2012 will see the quartet extensively touring theBritish music scene as part of both the prestigiousCountess of Munster and the Making Music recitalschemes and taking part in both the Melbourne andGeneva International String Quartet Competitions.

The Quartet has gained much musical inspiration frommany great quartet musicians and particular influencesinclude members of the Amadeus Quartet, Alban BergQuartet, Artis Quartet, Alisdair Tait and Jon Thorne. In2009 they received the MBF Ensemble Award to attendthe International SommerakademiePrague/Vienna/Budapest where they performedthroughout Austria. 2011/12 will see the Quartet return toMadrid, studying on a full Scholarship with Gunter Pichlerof the Alban Berg Quartet at the International Institute ofChamber Music of Madrid and study with JohannesMeissl of the Artis Quartet Vienna, with the support of theHattori Foundation. The Piatti Quartet is extremely gratefulfor the generosity and support of Ian Ellis, the NicolasBoas Charitable Trust, the Musicians Benevolent Fund,the Hattori Foundation, the Concordia Foundation and thePark Lane Group.

Programme NotesFRANZ JOSEPH HAYDN (1732–1809)Quartet No. 62 in C Major, Opus 76 No. 3 Emperor

AllegroPoco adagio cantabileMinuetto. AllegroFinale. Presto

Joseph Haydn's string quartets, Op. 76, composed in1796 and 1797, were written by Joseph Haydn anddedicated to Hungarian Count Joseph Erdödy. The sixquartets are the last complete set that Haydn composed.At the time of the commission, Haydn was employed atthe court of Prince Nicolaus Esterházy II; around thesame time he composed his annual mass for PrincessMaria Hermenegild Esterházy and the oratorio TheCreation.

Although the quartets were completed by 1797, shown byaccounts of visitors hearing them performed in early1797, because of an exclusivity agreement with CountErdödy, they were not published until 1799.Correspondence between Haydn and his publishersreveal that there was confusion regarding the release ofhis quartets; the composer promised the Londonpublishing house of Messrs. Longman Clementi & Co.first publishing rights, but a lack of communication withthe firm led Haydn to worry that a Vienna publicationmight accidentally release the complete set of quartetsfirst, causing him to lose money from London. Indeed,they were published almost simultaneously by Clementi inLondon and Artaria in Vienna in 1799.

These quartets are among Haydn's most ambitiouschamber works, deviating more than previous quartetsfrom the expected sonata form, and emphasizingthematic continuity, seamlessly and continually passingmotives from one instrument to another.

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The Quartet No. 62 in C major, also known as Op. 76, no.3, boasts the nickname Emperor because, in the secondmovement, Haydn quotes the melody from Gott erhalteFranz den Kaiser ("God Save Emperor Francis"), ananthem he wrote for Emperor Francis II. This samemelody is known to modern listeners for its later use inthe German national anthem, Deutschlandlied.

BEDRICH SMETANA (1824-1884)Quartet No. 1 in E minor From my life(composed 1876)

Allegro vivo appassionato Allegro moderato à la polka Largo sostenuto Vivace

Written in 1876, this autobiographical work is a musicaldepiction of Smetana’s life. By this time in his life,Smetana had been totally deaf for over a year and couldwork for no more than an hour at a time due to a loudhigh-pitched sound in his ears. The piece opens with

what Smetana described as the “call of fate” and thelistener is immediately thrust into foreshadowed tragedywith this dramatic opening viola solo. This is thenfollowed by Smetana’s portrayal of his youthfully romanticattitudes toward life, music, and love. The secondmovement is a depiction of his happiest memories withone particularly recognisable musical reference to hisyears spent in Prague composing dances for hisaristocratic friends. The slow movement is a tender tributeto his first wife, who died prematurely of tuberculosis in1859. The Finale begins by celebrating his musicalsuccesses and achievements as a Czech nationalcomposer, but the tragedy of his deafness becomesmanifest towards the end when a high-pitched E, playedby the first violin (symbolising the ringing in his ears),intrudes over an agitated accompaniment. The piecefinally comes to a resigned and forlorn end as all hopefades away with the death tolls of the concludingpizzicato chords.


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LighthouseTim Garland reedsGwilym Simcock pianoAsaf Sirkis drums and percussion

Grammy winner Tim Garland and Barclaycard Mercurynominated pianist Gwilym Simcock are two of the mostoutstanding composers of our time in both jazz andclassical genres and are regarded as among the verybest in the world on their respective instruments. WithAsaf Sirkis playing a custom built percussion set of framedrums, bass Udu, Hang drum and more, Lighthouseexude a very special energy and excitement inperformance.

Tim GarlandTim Garland, born in 1966, is a British jazz saxophonist,composer and band-leader. He is also known for hisinnovative bass clarinet playing and for his prolific outputas composer, blurring the boundaries between modernjazz and classical concert music.

As a performer, he has worked widely both in Britain andelsewhere in the world, with particular highlights being acontinuing collaboration with Chick Corea and his fouryear association with Bill Bruford. As composer, he hasfulfilled commissions from the LSO, the Northern Sinfonia,BBC Concert Orchestra and Westminster Abbey Choir, aswell as countless small and large jazz-based ensembles.As a band-leader, he first achieved wide recognition withthe jazz/folk crossover group Lammas (which includedDon Paterson and Christine Tobin), going on to further

success with a number of groups under his own name,the Dean Street Underground Orchestra,Storms/Nocturnes, Acoustic Triangle and his awardwinning Lighthouse Project.

In 2009 he won a Grammy for his part in creating TheNew Crystal Silence which celebrated Chick Corea andGary Burton's famous partnership. He orchestrated five ofChick's famous pieces for the Sydney SymphonyOrchestra. He was voted "Musician of the Year" by the2006 All Party Parliamentary Jazz Appreciation Group.Garland has also contributed to various pieces for AudioNetwork PLC and is involved in writing music for film andtelevision.

Gwilym SimcockGwilym Simcock was born in Wales in 1981 and is one ofthe most gifted pianists and imaginative composers onthe British scene. Gwilym’s influences include jazzlegends Keith Jarrett, Chick Corea and John Taylor andclassical composers Maurice Ravel, Igor Stravinsky andMark-Anthony Turnage. Although principally a jazz artist,Gwilym is breaking new ground between genres andoften uses classical reference points in his composedwork.

Aside from his renowned solo piano work, Gwilym hasworked extensively throughout Europe with the cream ofBritish and international jazz artists including DaveHolland, Kenny Wheeler, Lee Konitz, Bill Bruford'sEarthworks, Bob Mintzer, Bobby McFerrin, Steve Swallowand Adam Nussbaum. His own groups as leader range

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from trio to big band. His debut album Perceptionfeaturing his sextet with Stan Sulzmann (saxophones),John Parricelli (guitar), Phil Donkin (bass), Martin France(drums) and Ben Bryant (percussion) was nominated forBest Album in the BBC Jazz Awards 2008 and has beencritically acclaimed at home and abroad. His 2009 releaseBlues Vignette featured both solo piano and work with hisnew trio with Yuri Goloubev (bass) and James Maddren(drums). The album has been universally praised as"sublime", "flawless", "impressive" "a marker that fewothers are likely to equal". His most recent solo albumGood Days at Schloss Elmau on the prestigious ACT labelwas nominated for the Barclaycard Mercury Prize 2011and has been lauded as "dazzlingly fresh", "world class","stupendous", "phenomenal", "a cause for hugecelebration". His new collaborative band The ImpossibleGentlemen with Mike Walker (guitar), Steve Swallow(bass) and Adam Nussbaum (drums) whose album wasreleased in June 2011 has been described as "nothingshort of sensational" .

Winner of the Perrier Award, BBC Jazz Awards 2005Gwilym was the first BBC Radio 3 New Generation jazzArtist. He was voted "Jazz Musician of the Year" at the2007 Parliamentary Jazz Awards (and nominated again in2010), and nominated for the 2008 BBC Jazz Awards asBest Instrumentalist. His impressive formal educationincludes Trinity College of Music (London), Chetham’sSchool of Music (Manchester) where he studied classicalpiano, French horn and composition and the RoyalAcademy of Music (London) where he graduated from thejazz course with first class honours and the coveted'Principal's Prize' for outstanding achievement. He teachesat the Royal Academy of Music where he was recentlygiven the honour of Associate.

Asaf SirkisAsaf Sirkis was born in 1969 in Petah-Tikva, Israel, butlater moved to the town of Rehovot, where he spent histeens and early twenties. This was an influential move forAsaf, as it was here amongst the diverse culturalinfluences he found in Rehovot that Asaf began to showan interest in music and rhythm. Asaf left Israel andeventually settled in London in April 1999. He soonbecome part of the UK Jazz and world music scene, andstarted working with Adel Salameh, a Palestinian audplayer/composer with whom he recorded the albumNuzha which featured Asaf’s Middle Eastern frame drumplaying. In 2000 Asaf met Gilad Atzmon, which was thestart of a major creative collaboration. With Atzmon theyformed The Orient House Ensemble, and this band wenton to record 7 albums with Exile winning the ‘Best CD ofthe Year’ category at the BBC Jazz Award 2003 andnominated for the ‘Best Band’ category in 2004.

In 2006 Asaf started a unique collaboration with highlyacclaimed saxophonist/composer Tim Garland and hasenjoyed making four albums with him so far; If The SeaReplied (The Lighthouse Trio), Due North (NorthernUnderground Orchestra), The Mystery (featuring ChickCorea and the Northern Sinfonia Orchestra), and Libra(Lighthouse project). While developing his owncompositions, Asaf formed the Asaf Sirkis Trio in 2007which features Greek guitarist Tassos Spiliotopoulos andIsraeli bassist Yaron Stavi.

Asaf is currently touring extensively with his Trio and withhis Inner Noise band, and is gaining in reputation as acomposer and band leader. He also works with the LarryCoryell’s Power Trio (featuring Larry Coryell on guitar andJeff Berlin on bass), Nicolas Meier Group, a group thatcombines Jazz with Middle Eastern music, and with JohnLaw’s Art Of Sound trio as well as working with otherartists such as: Chick Corea, Jeff Berlin, JohnAbercrombie, Bob Sheppard, Mark Egan, Dave Liebman,David Binney, Gary Husband, John Taylor, NormaWinstone, Kenny Wheeler, Gwilym Simcock, AndySheppard, Lenny Stern, Paul Bollenback (NY), JulianSiegel, Dan Stern, Peter King, Stan Sulzmann, BarbarosErkose (Turkey), Ari Brown (Chicago), Bela Szakcsi-Lokatos (Hungary),Glauco Venier (Italy), Yuri Goloubev(Russia), Klaus Gesing (Austria), Eyal Maoz (NY), CarlosBarretto (Portugal), Simon Fisher Turner, Phil Robson,Martin Speake, Mark Latimer, Reem Kelani, ChristineTobin, Tom Arthurs, John Etheridge and more.

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Milo! KaradagliSor Grand SoloBach Prelude and Fugue BWV 997Villa Lobos Prelude no 1

Etude no 11Valsa ChoroEtude no 12

Interval

Albeniz Asturias Granada Sevilla

Domeniconi Koyunbaba

Sponsored by Ms Anne Wolff and Mr Pieter Knook andthe Wash Common ConsortiumAdditional financial support from Greenham CommonTrust's Find Me a Grant Scheme

Milo! KaradagliBorn in Montenegro in 1983 and a multiple prize-winner,including two Gramophone awards in 2011 for ‘YoungArtist of the Year’ and the ‘Specialist Classical ChartAward’, Milo! Karadagli has established himself as oneof today’s most gifted young guitar virtuosos. In July 2010he signed an exclusive recording contract with DeutscheGrammophon, and his first recording was released inspring 2011.

Growing up during the time of the Balkan civil war, Milo!began playing the guitar at the age of 8 and very quicklywon national recognition for his performances. At 16 hewas awarded a scholarship to study at the RoyalAcademy of Music where, after graduating with First ClassHonours, he went on to complete a Master’s degree inPerformance and was subsequently made a MeakerJunior Fellow – the first guitarist to be given this accoladeat the Royal Academy.

Milo!’s engagements have included solo recital debuts atthe Wigmore Hall in London and the Lucerne Festival,

and concerto debuts with the London PhilharmonicOrchestra and English Chamber Orchestra. Otherappearances have included the Cheltenham andSpitalfields Festivals, the Menuhin Festival in Gstaad, andthe 2010 iTunes Festival in London – the first time thefestival had staged a classical event. Upcomingengagements include recitals at Wigmore Hall, BrightonFestival, and BOCA Festival of the Arts.

Milo! has been the recipient of many prizes, including theJulian Bream Prize, the Prince’s Prize, the Ivor MariantsGuitar Award, and the Silver Medal of the WorshipfulCompany of Musicians. He has taken part in severalyoung artists’ programmes including at the Wigmore Hall,and at the Southbank Centre’s Purcell Room as part ofthe Park Lane Group’s New Year Series. Throughout hisstudies, Milo! was generously supported by the JohnHosier Music Trust, Musicians Benevolent Fund and theHattori Foundation. In turn he himself now works tosupport young talent as Patron of the charity Awards forYoung Musicians. Milo! uses D'Addario J 46 strings and a2007 guitar by Greg Smallman, kindly lent to him by Pauland Jenny Gillham.

Programme NotesFERNANDO SOR (1778-1839)Grand Solo

The composer and guitarist Fernando Sor enjoyed asuccessful international career. After leaving Spain in1813, he lived in Paris for two years before moving on toLondon. He returned to Paris after 1826, having travelledto perform at the Russian court in 1823. He was acelebrated instrumentalist, and for this reason hecomposed around sixty solo works for the guitar, andpublished an influential treatise on performancetechnique. His other compositions include songs,chamber music, ballet music and an opera.

Sor extended the possibilities of the guitar's repertoire,and his complex yet clear textures are both remarkable inthemselves and extremely influential on the music of hissuccessors. He composed the Grand Solo in 1810 butrevised it some ten years later. There is a slowintroduction in siciliano rhythm with an insistent pulse inthe bass. The main material is lively, however, moving at arapid pace and including a stormy development section.

JOHANN SEBASTIAN BACH (1685-1750)Prelude and Fugue in C minor, BWV 997

Bach composed his C minor Lute Partita, from which thisPrelude and Fugue derive, in around 1737. The intimatestyle of this music links it stylistically with companionpieces for the harpsichord, though the music wasconceived directly for the lute, and in particular theDresden lute virtuosos Silvius Leopold Weiß and JohannKropffganss.

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HEITOR VILLA-LOBOS (1887-1959)Prelude No. 1Etude No. 11Valsa ChoroEtude No. 12

In his compositions Villa-Lobos related both to thetraditions of Brazilian music and the great Europeaninheritance. The Prelude No. 1 bears the subtitle LyricMelody, and is a homage to the sertanejo, the mostpopular musical style of Brazil. The first performance ofthe Preludes was given by Abel Carlevaro, in Montevideo,Uruguay, in 1943. Written in Paris in 1929, the twelveEtudes were dedicated to Andres Segovia, and explorethe range of the instrument’s possibilities for a talentedperformer. No. 11, Lent - Più mosso - Animé, has a slowintroduction which releases a lively continuation, whereasNo. 12, Animé - Più Mosso - Un peu plus animé, is moreinsistently lively and makes a true finale. The word Choroderives from the Portuguese chorar (to weep) andbecame associated with a spontaneous popular musicthat appeared in Rio de Janeiro in the later 19th century,performed by chorões, serenading ensembles that alwaysincluded guitars. In 1912 Villa-Lobos composed his SuitePopolar Brasilienne, which featured the Valsa Choro.

ISAAC ALBENIZ (1860-1909)Asturias (Leyenda) Granada (Serenata) from Suite española (1887)arr. Michael Lewin

Asturias is perhaps the quintessential “Spanish guitar”piece. A favourite of Andrés Segovia, and virtually everyguitarist who followed him, the piece has become sowidely identified with the guitar that those who do notknow otherwise would probably be astonished todiscover that the work was originally written for the piano.Isaac Albéniz composed Asturias in the 1890s. The piecewas published in 1912 by the German editor Hofmeisteras an addition to a three-movement work entitled SuiteEspañola, (which had been published in Barcelona sometwenty years previously). Somewhat ironically, the piecedoes not seem particularly influenced by the folk music ofthe Asturias region of northern Spain, taking its inspirationinstead from the flamenco traditions of Andalucia.

Granada is the first movement of the Suite Española andis based on the pensive, yearning folk songs of southernSpain.

“Hearing Segovia playing Asturias, when I was a boy, onone of my father’s LPs, is a reason why I became soenamoured with the classical guitar. I adore playing thispiece because it is a rollercoaster of emotion. Andwhenever I play Granada, right from the first phrase I feelthe butterflies in my stomach. It reminds me of the heatand salt of the Mediterranean“. Milo! Karadagli

Sevilla (Sevillanas) from Suite española

During the nineteenth century, Spanish dances such asthe Bolero and Fandango had become sensations acrossEurope. Yet it was only later that Spanish composerssuch as Albéniz began truly to exploit the musicaltradition of Spanish dance. In this movement of his SuiteEspañola, Albéniz uses elements of the flamenco dancenative to Seville: called the Sevillanas. The dance isalways in triple time, often with the weight on the first andthird beats of the bar, as can be clearly heard in theopening and closing sections. The harmony shiftsbetween the major and minor, lending the music acaptivatingly mysterious air.

“Sevilla is so incredibly exciting that it always makes mewant to dance.” Milo! Karadagli

CARLO DOMENICONI (1947 -)Koyunbaba Suite, Op. 19 (1985)

Carlo Domeniconi is an Italian guitarist and composerknown as a concert artist in both the classical and jazzidioms. Born in Cesena, Italy, Domeniconi left for WestBerlin in 1966, where he studied composition at TheBerlin University of Arts. He then worked for 20 years as aprofessor there. Later, Domeniconi visited Turkey andbecame enamoured with its people and culture. Hestarted the department for guitar studies at theconservatory in Istanbul and developed a compositionalstyle that reflected the regional folk influence.

Domeniconi is most well-known for his 1985 pieceKoyunbaba. The name literally translates as “sheep-father” or “shepherd”, but it is also a name of the smallbay in south-west Turkey. The source of inspiration for thismagical work is the Mediterranean sea overlooked fromthe cliffs above the bay of Koyunbaba. By using unusualtechniques Domeniconi managed vividly to paint thescenery of this enchanting landscape. He requests thatthe guitar be tuned in C-sharp minor, totally at variancewith the instrument’s standard tuning, and the resultingsound is rich and exotic. Based on fantasy and variation,the music gradually builds through the work’s fourcontinuous sections, using the special tuning to hypnoticeffect in creating intensity and excitement.

“I heard it for the first time when I had just arrived inLondon. With its Turkish folksong theme, and magicalsound-world, it brought back all those memories andplaces I had left behind. Whenever I play it, it is alwaysdifferent, like the sea itself, sometimes calm, sometimes astorm...” Milo! Karadagli

Sponsored by Ms Anne Wolff and Mr Pieter Knook andthe Wash Common ConsortiumAdditional financial support from Greenham CommonTrust's Find Me a Grant Scheme

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Mikhail Kazakevich pianoDebussy Images (book II)

Préludes Book 1VoilesMinstrelsLes Collines d’Anacapri

Arabesque No 1L’isle joyeuse

Ravel SonatineRoussel Sonatine


Mikhail KazakevichBorn in Gorky (Russia),Mikhail Kazakevich madehis western debut at theInternational SchubertCompetition in Dortmund,Germany, in 1991. As aresult of his success there,he was engaged to playwith the DortmundPhilharmonic Orchestraand also gave numeroussolo recitals in Germany

and France, where he was awarded a Special Prize ofSACEM (France) for the performance of 20th-centurymusic. In 1992, he came to London, where he made hisdebut at the Wigmore Hall. Soon afterwards, Kazakevichwas signed exclusively by the BMG/Conifer recordinglabel, for which he has made numerous recordings.

He has played solo and with orchestras at prestigiousvenues and festivals in Austria, Germany, France, Russia,Switzerland, Denmark, South Korea and the Middle East.In the United Kingdom, he has given numerous recitals atLondon’s Wigmore Hall, St John’s Smith Square, theSouth Bank Centre, and has made many live broadcastsfor BBC Radio 3. He regularly performs at the BrightonFestival and the Newbury Spring Festival. Other projectsinclude a performance and recording of Bach’s 48Preludes and Fugues (Well Tempered Klavier) at StGeorge’s, Bristol. He has played with the EuropeanChamber Orchestra and made his return concert tours toDenmark and Russia, where he performed Mozartconcertos No 20 and No 25 with the PhilharmonicOrchestras.

Mikhail Kazakevich is a regular jury member at theSheepdrove Piano Competition, the final of which takesplace on Sunday 20 May (see page 71)

Programme NotesCLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918)Images, Series 2

1 .Cloches à travers les feuilles2. Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fût3. Poissons d'or

Composed around 1906, Debussy’s second set of Imagescomprises three pieces of imaginative yet contrastingcharacter. Cloches à travers les feuilles (Bells through theleaves) evokes the sound of bells while reflecting also theinfluence of the exotic gamelan percussion orchestras ofBali.

Et la lune descend sur le temple qui fut (The descent ofthe moon upon the temple which used to be) wassuggested by its dedicatee, Louis Laloy. The musiccreates an impression of oriental stillness and the utmostserenity, and again the influence of the gamelan can bediscerned.

Poissons d'or was inspired by an engraving featuring apair of goldfish. Debussy brings them to life by using thewhole range of the keyboard with extraordinaryimagination, including a notable and sonorous climax.

Préludes, Book 1

VoilesMinstrelsLes collines d'Anacapri

The first of Debussy’s two sets of Préludes wascomposed in 1910. These evocative compositions varyconsiderably in size and character, and it is not alwayspossible to link them with clear visual images. In factDebussy hinted as much when he stated that the titlesshould really be placed at the end, rather than at thebeginning, of each piece.

Voiles is famous for its use of the whole-tone scale. Theword 'voiles' can mean 'sails or, alternatively, 'veils'. Eitherinterpretation will fit.

Minstrels: Inspired by a visit to the music-hall, this Préludecombines sentimentality with high spirits.

Les collines d'Anacapri fuses a tarantella rhythm withelements of Neapolitan folksong, since Anacapri is asmall town in the Bay of Naples. The sound of bells isimportant too.

Arabesque No. 1

Debussy wrote his two Arabesques around 1890. No. 1has an appealing warmth of expression that derivesparticularly from its opening arpeggio. This is one of the

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first of his compositions to show the full originality of hisgenius, and therefore is a milestone in the impressionistmovement, despite its relative simplicity.

In the middle of the recapitulation of the A section, themusic moves to a higher register and descends, followedby a large pentatonic scale ascending and descending,becoming a V7 chord (B7), and resolving back to E major,before the descending right hand E major pentatonicprogression is played an octave up. Both hands rise upthe keyboard with a progressions of 4ths and closes withgentle E major chords.

L’isle joyeuse

Debussy composed nothing finer than L'isle joyeuse,which he composed in the summer of 1904. The imageryis associated with another journey: that depicted inWatteau's painting L'embarquement pour Cythère. Fromthis source the music derives its atmosphere ofMediterranean warmth and gaiety. Beginning with avirtuoso cadenza with cascading runs, the music moveson to a dance-like phase. This in turn gives way to thebrilliant rhythms of Debussy's toccata style and recalls thedelicacy of his water pieces, before a magnificent, heroicmelody forms the structural and expressive climax. Thishas real power, and confirms that this is in many respectshis most ambitious piano composition. At any rate, it iscertainly one that contains all those elements thatcombine to make Debussy the master he is.

MAURICE RAVEL (1875-1937)Sonatine

1. Modéré2. Mouvement de menuet3. Animé

Ravel was obsessively fond of the forms and stylisticfeatures of 18th century music, and the Sonatine is one ofseveral compositions in which he used earlier music asthe basis for his own creations. The melodic outlines havemuch in common with two contemporary pieces, alsocomposed in 1905: the Introduction and Allegro and theString Quartet.

A particular strength of the Sonatine is the music's closelycohesive structure. This derives in large measure fromthematic relationships which are shared between all threemovements, but which are developed with the utmostsubtlety.

The first movement is an economical sonata form, theinitial falling fourth serving as the motto for not only themovement but the whole composition. The central minuetis perfectly judged; moreover it is typical of Ravel's idealof formal perfection that the music is not a moment toolong. The finale is perhaps the most romantic of the three

movements. There is a more extended development,whose most subtle feature is the second theme, which isa rhythmic transformation of the idea with which thewhole work began.

ALBERT ROUSSEL (1866-1937)Sonatine

1. Modéré2. Très lent

Roussel is one of the most important composers of hisgeneration, and a hugely significant figure in Frenchmusic. Although he is widely known for only a smallnumber of pieces, it is clear on close acquaintance withany of these (such as the magnificent ballet score,Bacchus et Ariane) that he is an artist of the first rank.

Composed in 1912, the Sonatine has two movements andoccupies a duration of ten minutes. As such this isRoussel’s only extended composition for solo piano, witha typically clear sense of form which relates to theconcise scale of the work. The themes have a classicalslant and there is little distortion of their outlines indevelopment. Thus the first movement begins at amoderate tempo but moves ahead purposefully to includeaspects of scherzo which are always light and delicate.The second movement begins at a slow pulse with agracefully swaying rhythm, and at one point anaccelerando even suggests the possibility of thescherzo’s return, However, this comes to nothing andinstead the music moves ahead to a purposefulconclusion.


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Milo! KaradagliGuitar MasterclassThe Festival is delighted to welcome Milo! Karadaglic tothe Corn Exchange, following his Festival recital at St George’s Church last night, to give a Masterclass withguitarists from Berkshire Maestros. This is an exceptionalopportunity for these young musicians to participate withMilo!, the young prize-winning master of the guitar.

Supported by The Headley Trust

Milo! KaradagliIf you were asked to name classical music’s mostlegendary guitar players, you’d probably come up withAndres Segovia, Julian Bream and John Williams. Milo!Karadaglic, who is already being hailed by fans and criticsfor his brilliant technique and transcendent musicality,may well be on his way to joining them. With his firstrecording for Deutsche Grammophon, he aims to startbringing a new sense of excitement, and new waves oflisteners, to the classical guitar.

When he was 8 Milos passed the audition to go to musicschool and even though he liked the piano he chose theguitar as it was the most practical choice. “I liked thepiano very much but my parents said it was tooexpensiveto have one. Then I liked the violin too, but theysaid ‘oh, that would be really painful for us!’” Milo!’splaying developed at a stunning speed. He had neverbeen afraid to perform in public, and as his skillsimproved he was quick to display them in front ofaudiences. He had begun making appearances in majorconcert halls by the time he was 14.

Determined to get himself to London and the RoyalAcademy of Music, Milo! applied himself single-mindedlyto improving his technique and building up his repertoire,winning every available competition in Yugoslavia andtaking additional lessons in Belgrade. He had gone as faras he could go in his homeland of Montenegro. “Idecided I would send my material to London. I chose fiveof my best pieces and recorded a tape of them, and sentit to the Royal Academy. After two months I hadn’t heardanything. My mother said ‘you’re only 16, you can try againnext year’, but I refused to accept it.” He was acceptedand, just turned 17, Milos found himself starting a new lifein a strange city being taught by Professor Michael Lewin.Despite his undoubted gifts, Milo! quickly discovered thathe didn’t know everything about the classical guitar afterall. His teachers in Montenegro hadn’t been true guitarspecialists, and various imperfections had crept into histechnique. “Michael Lewin gave me a little study byFernando Sor, and the Sor studies were pieces I haddigested in my first year of guitar playing. Then we had thelesson, and I realised that actually I could not doeverything that he asked me to. I had to start again andlisten and work. Often Michael had to slowly adjust myhand positions, while still preserving the spirit of themusic. For the next four years at the Academy I workedand practised – so many levels, so many differentconcerts, deadlines and preparations. It was very intenseand I didn’t do anything apart from practising andsleeping.”

Eventually, Milo! graduated with First Class honours inJune 2004. Then he continued his studies with a two-yearMaster’s degree in Performance, in which he achieved aDistinction. Following that, he became the first guitaristever to be made a Meaker Junior Fellow of the RAM,which gave him a further two years’ breathing space tostudy and perform.

Emerging into the world of professional musicianship, henotched up prestigious appearances at the LucerneFestival, the Wigmore Hall and the Purcell Room. He hadalso brought his prize-winning ways to London, collectingthe Ivor Mairants Award in 2002 and the Julian BreamPrize (awarded by Bream himself) in 2005. He was alsothe first guitarist to win the Prince of Wales’ Prince’s Prize.Most recently he won two Gramophone awards in 2011for ‘Young Artist of the Year’ and the ‘Specialist ClassicalChart Award’.

Berkshire MaestrosBerkshire Maestros is a charitable trust providing musiceducation opportunities to children and young people inBerkshire. Regarded as one of the finest youth musicorganisations in the country, thousands of children havemusic lessons with Maestros every week. The emphasisin the sessions is on learning through fun and theteaching staff are amongst the best in the country.

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Berkshire Maestros run hundreds of bands, choirs andorchestras to allow children to build on their lessonexperience. These take place at music centres based inBracknell, Newbury, Reading and Windsor. Maestros alsoprovides a world class awards scheme to gifted andtalented young musicians.

Berkshire Maestros is constantly developing andimplementing new projects with schools, communitygroups and other arts organisations. In addition, theywork closely with national conservatoires and universitydepartments. With the support of five of the BerkshireUnitary Authorities, Maestros offer reduced rates forbeginners, a special £20 introductory offer on the firstterm in beginner ensembles and 25% off membership ofevery band, choir or orchestra for all students havinglessons with Maestros so that every child can discoverthe wonderful world of music.

Supported by The Headley Trust

Kuljit Bhamra presents Bollywood to BhangraKuljit BhamraSangeetaShahid KhanRaj SutharBollywood Dreams Dancers

Two legendary names from the British Asian music scene,Kuljit Bhamra and Sangeeta, come together in a newtheatre show created especially for the Newbury SpringFestival.

Kuljit BhamraOne of the most inspiringmusicians in the BritishAsian music scene, Kuljithas composed andproduced over 2000 songsand is responsible for therise to fame of numerousBhangra and Bollywoodstars.

He has worked, bothindependently andcollaboratively, on filmscores for over ten years,

including the soundtrack for the award winning Bhaji onthe Beach, A Winter of Love, Bend it Like Beckham andappearances on The Guru, The Four Feathers and morerecently Alexander, Brick Lane and Charlie & TheChocolate Factory.

Kuljit also worked on Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musicalBombay Dreams as on-stage percussionist, and thenwent on to write the Indian music for the West Endmusical The Far Pavilions. Other theatre productionsinclude Deranged Marriage, Lion of Punjab, Hansel &Gretel, The Snow Queen, The Ramayana, Laila Majnunand King Cotton.

He was the last Artistic Director of The Society For ThePromotion of New Music before its merger and renamingto Sound & Music - the first British Asian to hold this postin its 60 year history. Kuljit spearheaded innovativeprojects such as Bhangra Latina and a new tabla notationsystem which allows students to learn the tabla withouthaving to follow the traditional Indian Guru teachingsystem. His cutting-edge work earned him the prestigiousaward of MBE in the Queen's birthday honours list 2009.The citation reads ‘For Services To Bhangra & BritishAsian Music’ and is the first time that these genres havebeen acknowledged in this way.

His brainchild The Southall Story is a research andarchiving project celebrating the contribution of the under

acknowledged community in Southall to arts, music,poetry and literature. The Southall Story exhibition waslaunched at the Royal Festival Hall in April 2010 and willbe toured internationally.

Kuljit has won many awards and has over 15 years’experience performing and presenting concerts toaudiences in the UK, Europe, USA, Canada and aroundthe world.

Sangeeta Sangeeta is the mostpopular and successfulfemale singer in the BritishAsian music scene, with avast repertoire of songswith a Bhangra/Bollywoodfeel.

Sangeeta was only 12when she won the BBCRadio Leicestercompetition, the awardbeing judged and handedout by none other than

Lata Mangeshkar. The following year she also won anaward at the National Indian Song Contest inBirmingham. Her hit album Flower In The Wind broke allsales records in the UK, reaching the number oneposition in both the Bhangra Charts and Hindi Chartssimultaneously. Sangeeta’s awards have included AsianPop Award 1991 - Best Newcomer; UK Asian Pop Award1992 - Best Female Singer; Music Industry AccoladeBhangra Award 1993 - Most Recognised Female Vocalist;Asian Music Poll Award 1994 - Best Female Singer andUK Asian Pop & Dance Award 1995 - Best Female Singer& Favourite Female Artist Industry Choice & People’sChoice. In a male-dominated Asian music industry,Sangeeta has opened the door for all other female artists.

Shahid KhanBritish Asian singer ShahidKhan released his debutalbum Heartfelt in 2011.The first track to bereleased from the album,‘Oh Kuri’, is a BhangraLatina inspired track, co-produced by the acclaimedsalsa producer Alex Wilsonand has proven a big hitwith Salsa clubbers andBhangra loverseverywhere. The albumalso features a great

Bollywood remix of the legendary song ‘Ain’t NoSunshine’ by Bill Withers. It was influential, award-winning

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British Asian musician, composer and producer KuljitBhamra who first spotted Southall based Shahid in a localAsian Starsearch Talent Competition over eight years ago.Kuljit who has worked with ‘My Hips Don’t Lie’ Columbiansinger Shakira and popular British girl band Sugarbabes,recognised Shahid’s talent from an early age and hassince gone on to mentor Shahid and produce his debutalbum Heartfelt. Kuljit says: “Shahid Khan is one of theUK’s hottest new talents and is most importantly offeringsomething different and undeniably unique to listeners.He represents a new breed of a young classic singervoice whose sound is closest to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khanand Adnan Sani. It is great that we have a new BritishAsian sound to develop that appeals to first and secondgeneration Asian communities as well as mainstreamaudiences.”

Raj SutherRaj is one of the few (if not only) western trained pianoaccordion players from the British Asian community. As achild he appeared on ITV's Opportunity Knocks and hasaccompanied many well-known singers and bands fromboth the UK and Indian sub-continent over the past 40years.

Playing a wide variety of styles ranging from Folk,Classical and Avant Garde, Raj went on to represent theUK in two consecutive world championships. He is nowmuch sought after as an excellent band member.

Bollywood Dreams DancersThe Bollywood Dreams Dancers were formed followingthe closure of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s hit musicalBombay Dreams, which stormed London’s West End fortwo years from 2002 to 2004, when the show transferredto Broadway. The mostly British (or Anglo-British)performers who remained in the UK formed the group inorder to continue to offer Bollywood type dancespectacles to audiences, old and new.


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English Chamber Orchestra withNewbury Spring Festival ChorusDavid Parry conductorApril Fredrick sopranoMarcus Farnsworth baritone

Vaughan Williams Te Deum in GElgar Enigma Variations

Interval

Vaughan Williams Dona Nobis PacemOld Hundredth

Parry Jerusalem

Sponsored by the Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust,Woolton Construction and the Kilfinan Trust

This concert is dedicated to the memory of CharlesBrown, loyal sponsor and friend of the Festival

David Parry David Parry isacknowledged as aninspirational champion ofoperatic, concert andsymphonic repertoireacross a vast range. He isknown both for the re-appraisal of importantlesser-known compositionsand for a consistently freshapproach to establishedrepertoire. Recentengagements include

Lucia di Lammermoor for Opera Murcia, Il turco in Italiafor Garsington Opera, Il barbiere di Siviglia for StaatsoperStuttgart, concert appearances with the PhilharmoniaOrchestra featuring Sir John Tomlinson and CarmenGiannattasio, and a new production of Petrushka forGeneva Opera.

Significant credits include the world premiere of JonathanDove’s The Adventures of Pinocchio (in separateproductions for Opera North and Staatstheater Stuttgart),Der Fliegender Holländer (for Portland Opera), MadamaButterfly (in Anthony Minghella’s production for ENOwhich earned him an Olivier Award), Cosí fan tutte and thepremiere of Dove’s Flight (both for Glyndebourne FestivalOpera) and Maria Stuarda (for Stockholm Royal Opera).

David Parry made his operatic debut with La cenerentolafor English Music Theatre and subsequently joined theconducting staff first at Dortmund then at Opera North. Hewas Music Director of Opera 80, and founding MusicDirector of Almeida Opera, with whom he gave the worldpremieres of works by Nigel Osborne, Kevin Volans,Elena Firsova, and Param Vir. Other significant world

premieres have included Stephen Oliver's Mario and theMagician at the Batignano Festival, and Jonathan Dove’sTobias and the Angel in 2006 and his oratorio There was aChild at the Norfolk and Norwich Festival in 2009.

In the UK he has conducted frequently at both ENO andOpera North in repertoire ranging through Mozart,Rossini, Verdi and Britten, and at Garsington Opera wherehe is particularly noted for his Rossini. Much in demandfrom ensembles both in the UK and further afield, David isregularly at the helm of orchestras including the LondonPhilharmonic, Philharmonia, Royal Philharmonic, City ofBirmingham, Hallé, Academy of St Martin in the Fieldsand English Chamber Orchestra. He has an extensivediscography for Chandos and Opera Rara. His recentrecording of Rossini Ermione won a Gramophone Awardfor best opera 2011.

April FredrickApril Fredrick began hermusical training as aviolinist, going on to earn aBachelor of Music in VocalPerformance atNorthwestern College inMinnesota, where shestudied voice withCatherine McCord-Larsen.Her interest in literature ledher to pursue a secondarystudy in English, and thislove of language

permeates her performances. She went on to completeboth an MMus in Vocal Studies and a PhD in PerformancePractice at the Royal Academy of Music, where shestudied with Jane Highfield and Dominic Wheeler. Duringher time at the Academy, she sang regularly with the RAMLyric Song Salon, was a RAM representative for the firstEuropaisches Liedforum in Berlin, and sang withconductor Laurence Cummings and the RAM HistoricalPerformance department, also appearing as part of the2008 Young Songmakers Almanac.

April has performed widely as a soloist in recital andoratorio venues in the UK, including St. John’s SmithSquare, Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Holywell MusicRoom. She was a semi-finalist in the 2009 KathleenFerrier Awards and the 2009 Wigmore Hall InternationalSong Competition, and with duo partner Amy de Sybel,she was named Young Outstanding Musician of the Yearat the 2010 Brighton Festival. April, accompanied by Amyde Sybel, participated in the Young Artists LunchtimeRecital series in the 2011 Newbury Spring Festival.Recent performances have included Mahler’s Symphony4, Villa Lobos’ Bachianas Brasilieras no. 5 as part of theCBSO’s Centre Stage series, and her first commercialrecording on the Somm label singing Barber’s Knoxville:

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Summer of 1915 and Copland’s Eight Songs of EmilyDickinson with the Orchestra of the Swan. Future projectsinclude a recording of John Ireland songs on the Sommlabel with pianist Mark Bebbington and Les Nuits d’Étéwith the Cheltenham Symphony.

Marcus FarnsworthMarcus Farnsworth wasawarded first prize in the2009 Wigmore HallInternational SongCompetition, and the SongPrize at the 2011 KathleenFerrier Competition. Hecompleted his studies atthe Royal Academy ofMusic in July 2011, whereroles included GuglielmoCosì fan tutte; SidAlbert Herring; Oreste in

Cavalli Giasone and Meredith in Peter Maxwell DaviesKommilitonen!

Opera plans include Eddy in Mark-Anthony TurnageGreek for Music Theatre Wales; Novice’s Friend in a newproduction of Britten Billy Budd for English NationalOpera; the title role in Britten Owen Wingrave as part ofthe International Chamber Music Festival in Nuremberg,and, in concert, Kilian Der Freischütz with the LondonSymphony Orchestra and Sir Colin Davis; Aeneas inPurcell Dido and Aeneas for the Early Opera Companyand Christian Curnyn at the Wigmore Hall, and arecording of Mozart Apollo and Hyacinth with the ClassicalOpera Company.

Future recitals include Schubert Die Schöne Müllerin forthe Oxford Lieder Festival; a Schubertiade with The PrinceConsort in Perth and Britten Tit for Tat with MalcolmMartineau and Canticles with Julius Drake and MarkPadmore, both as part of Wigmore Hall Britten Festival in2012. Other recent highlights have included a recital withJames Baillieu at Wigmore Hall and further recitals withSimon Lepper, Iain Burnside, Julius Drake and GrahamJohnson.

On the concert platform plans include Nielsen SymphonyNo 3 with the LSO and Sir Colin Davis; St Matthew Passion(arias) in Lausanne with the Gabrieli Consort and PaulMcCreesh and Peter Maxwell Davies Eight Songs for aMad King with the Wermlands Opera Orchestra, Karlstad,Sweden. Marcus will sing with the BBC SymphonyOrchestra in the 2012/13 and 2013/14 seasons.

Marcus was a chorister at Southwell Minster and went onto study at Chetham’s School of Music before going on toread music at the University of Manchester, graduatingwith a first class honours degree.

English Chamber OrchestraThe English Chamber Orchestra is the most recordedchamber orchestra in the world, its discographycontaining 857 recordings of over 1,500 works by morethan 400 composers. The ECO has also performed inmore countries than any other orchestra, and played withmany of the world’s greatest musicians. The Americanradio network CPRN has selected ECO as one of theworld’s greatest ‘living’ orchestras. The illustrious historyof the orchestra features many major musical figures.Benjamin Britten was the orchestra’s first Patron and asignificant musical influence. The ECO’s long relationshipwith Daniel Barenboim led to an acclaimed completecycle of Mozart piano concertos as live performances andrecordings, followed later by two further recordings of thecomplete cycle, with Murray Perahia and Mitsuko Uchida.Paul Watkins has been the ECO’s Music Director andPrincipal Conductor since 2009, and Sir Colin Davis wasappointed Conductor Emeritus in 2010.

The ECO is resident orchestra for Grange Park Opera’ssummer season. Other regular activities include theECO’s London concert series and an annual music cruisewhere it is joined by a host of international guest artists.The Orchestra made a very successful debut in Moscow(with Stephanie Gonley as director and Sergej Krylov assoloist), as well as enjoying tours to Istanbul and Spain.Future plans include tours with Ann-Sophie Mutter andYuri Bashmet, Lisa Batiashvili and Daniel Muller-Schott,and a major celebration of the music of Benjamin Brittenin 2013 (his centenary year).

The ECO has been chosen to record many successfulfilm soundtracks (including several scores by John Barryand Dario Marianelli’s prizewinning soundtracks for Prideand Prejudice and Atonement) and has taken part in avariety of film and television projects.

Newbury Spring Festival ChorusThe Festival Chorus is an auditioned choir, first formed in1999 by the Spring Festival and Lady Knill as part of theFestival’s expanding community programme. In that timethe Chorus has worked with such illustrious artists as thePhilharmonia Orchestra, the City of London Sinfonia,John Lubbock, Alexander Lazarev and Jane Glover, andsoloists such as Susan Bullock, Mark Padmore, StephenRoberts and Elizabeth Watts. In 2003 the Chorus wasprivileged to be invited to perform the world première ofGeoffrey Burgon’s Alleluia Psallat which wascommissioned for the 25th anniversary and writtenespecially for the Festival chorus, and performed in thepresence of Her Majesty the Queen. The Festival chorusattracts singers from all walks of life with a shared love ofmusic. Under the expert direction of Janet Lincé thechorus develops a strong bond and enjoys being part ofand funded by the Spring Festival.

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Programme NotesRALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS (1872-1958)Te Deum in G

Although Vaughan Williams was born the son of aclergyman, at Down Ampney near Cirencester, his attitudeto religion was always equivocal: he claimed he driftedtowards ‘a cheerful agnosticism’. Despite this, hecomposed some of the 20th century’s finest music onreligious themes. The Te Deum in G major dates from1928 and was commissioned to be performed on theoccasion of the enthronement of Cosmo Lang asArchbishop of Canterbury on 4th December that year. Themusic begins confidently with a unison declamation,before engaging in an antiphonal dialogue with an angelicchorus. In the closing stages the initial material returns,now transformed towards prayer.

We praise thee, O God: we acknowledge thee to be theLord. All the earth doth worship thee: the Fathereverlasting.To thee all Angels cry aloud: the heavens and all thepowers therein.To thee Cherubin and Seraphin: continually do cry, Holy,Holy, Holy: Lord God of Sabaoth;Heaven and earth are full of the Majesty: of thy glory. Theglorious company of the Apostles: praise thee.The goodly fellowship of the Prophets: praise thee. Thenoble army of Martyrs: praise thee.The holy Church throughout all the world: dothacknowledge thee; The Father: of an infinite Majesty;Thine honourable, true: and only Son; Also the HolyGhost: the Comforter.

Thou art the King of glory: O Christ. Thou art theeverlasting Son: of the Father.When thou tookest upon thee to deliver man: thou didstnot abhor the Virgin’s womb.When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death: thoudidst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers.Thou sittest at the right hand of God: in the glory of theFather.We believe that thou shalt come: to be our Judge.We therefore pray thee, help thy servants: whom thouhast redeemed with thy precious blood.Make them to be numbered with thy Saints: in gloryeverlasting.

O Lord, save thy people: and bless thine heritage. Governthem: and lift them up for ever.Day by day: we magnify thee; And we worship thy Name:ever world without end.Vouchsafe, O Lord: to keep us this day without sin. OLord, have mercy upon us: have mercy upon us.O Lord, let thy mercy lighten upon us: as our trust is inthee.O Lord, in thee have I trusted: let me never beconfounded.

SIR EDWARD ELGAR (1857-1934)Variations on an original theme, Opus 36Enigma

'I have sketched a set of Variations on an original theme’,Elgar wrote to his friend August Jaeger, 'The Variationshave amused me because I’ve labeled ‘em with thenames of my particular friends - you are Nimrod. That isto say, I’ve written each one to represent the mood of the‘party’ - I’ve liked to imagine the ‘party’ writing thevariation him or herself and have written what I think theywould have written - if they were asses enough tocompose.’ The first performance brought immediatesuccess and established Elgar as a major figure innational life.

Elgar stated that the enigma was twofold: the source ofthe theme itself, and ‘through and over the whole setanother and larger theme goes, but is not played’. Thefirst enigma seems easy to solve: the theme is thecomposer himself, its opening probably based upon therhythm of his own name. But the second enigma mustretain its mystery, though suggestions include Auld LandSyne and God Save the King. More important is themusic’s stature; for here Elgar fuses his success as acomposer of small-scale salon music with an imaginativeand skillful larger view.

Theme (Enigma), AndanteThe theme is heard immediately: there are two strains,major and minor.1. C.A.E., AndanteCaroline Alice Elgar: an appropriate choice, since it wasElgar’s wife who encouraged him in his task. Thereforethe theme grows in confidence and becomes more full-textured. 2. H.D.S-P., AllegroThis pokes fun at Hew Stewart-Powell, who playedchamber music with Elgar and practised his keyboardruns beforehand. Accordingly the music scampers along.3. R.B.T., AllegrettoR.B. Townshend was a keen amateur actor and thisvariation shows him portraying an old man. The themeseems short of breath and often becomes falsetto.4. W.M.B., Allegro di moltoThe bluff country gentleman William Meath Baker had aforceful personality, and this brings the first deployment ofthe full orchestra, replete with virtuoso bluster.5. R.P.A., ModeratoRichard Penrose Arnold, son of the poet Matthew. Hisserious disposition inspired a wonderful new string tuneabove a bass line consisting of the opening part of thetheme, while the woodwind reveal that he had wit too.6. Ysobel, AndantinoElgar described Isobel Fitton as ‘a charming and romanticwoman’. She played the viola, and that instrument istherefore rewarded with a solo.

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7. Troyte, PrestoThe Malvern architect Arthur Troyte Griffith was anamateur pianist, and the timpani depict what Elgar called‘his maladroit essays on the instrument’. The brass try tobring order out of chaos, but the timpani alwaysdominate.8. W.N., AllegrettoThis is a tranquil variation inspired by the eighteenthcentury house owned by Winifred Norbury. 9. Nimrod, AdagioThis great ‘slow movement’ is a tribute to the composer’sclose friend August Jaeger: ‘jaeger’ is the German for‘hunter’ and ‘Nimrod’ was ‘the mighty hunter’ Elgarvalued Jaeger’s musical opinions and wrote that ‘thevariation is the record of a long summer evening talk,when my friend discoursed eloquently on the slowmovements of Beethoven. The opening bars are made tosuggest the Pathétique Sonata. The ‘Nimrod’ theme isheard three times, the third in full orchestra, though at theend the tone quickly declines to pianissimo in order torelax the tension.10. Dorabella, Intermezzo: AllegrettoDora Penny’s nickname came from the character inMozart’s Cosí fan tutte. The music is inventive anddelicate.11. G.R.S., Allegro di moltoElgar recalled that George Robertson Sinclair, theHereford Cathedral organist, owned a bulldog namedDan who fell into the River Wye and ‘paddled upstream tofind a landing place, giving out a rejoicing bark onlanding. G.R.S. said I should set it to music. I did; here itis’. 12. B.G.N., AndanteBasil Nevinson was ‘an amateur cellist of distinction and aserious and devoted friend’. His variation therefore openswith a cello solo on an expressive theme, which is soonjoined by the richer strains of the full cello section.13. *** Romanza: ModeratoThis wonderfully atmospheric seascape has been linkedwith Lady Mary Lygon’s departure for Australia, thetimpani evoking the throb of the liner’s engines and theclarinet quoting from Mendelssohn’s Calm Sea andProsperous Voyage. But since Lady Mary was still inEngland at the time of composition, the inspiration mayhave been another emigré, Helen Weaver, to whom Elgarhad been engaged sixteen years previously.14. E.D.U., Allegro'Edu’ was his wife’s pet name for Elgar. This imposingfinale, complete with references to C.A.E. and Nimrod, ismore wide-ranging and symphonic than anything heardbefore. Elgar wrote: ‘At a time when friends weresomewhat discouraging, I was determined to show whatE.D.U. intended to do.’

RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMS (1872-1958)Dona Nobis Pacem:Cantata for soprano & baritone soloists, chorus &orchestra

1. Agnus Dei: Lento2. ‘Beat! Beat! Drums’: Allegro moderato3. Reconciliation: Andantino4. Dirge for Two Veterans: Moderato alla marcia5. ‘The Angel of Death has been abroad’: L’istesso

tempo6. ‘O man greatly beloved’

The distinctive verse of Walt Whitman, notable for itspowerful use of language and equally potent alliterativerhythms, proved to be an inspiration to Vaughan Williamsthroughout the composer’s life. He wrote his cantataDona Nobis Pacem in 1936, and in what proved to be ananticipation of Benjamin Britten’s War Requiem (1960), heopted to mix the potent poetry of war with texts from theLatin Mass, along with other extracts beyond.

The points of reference are at once bold and original:three contrasting poems by Whitman are framed bywords taken from the Latin Mass, the Old Testamentprophets, and the famous House of Commons speechthat John Bright made at the time of the Crimean War. Animportant musical influence for Vaughan Williams wasVerdi’s Requiem, a work he admired very much. For themusic of Verdi’s Kyrie movement is echoed at severalpoints in the opening section of Dona Nobis Pacem. Thelink can be made, for example, in the setting of the wordDona. Similar parallels can be found in the treatment of‘Beat! Beat! Drums!’, which Vaughan Williams employs asan equivalent to the convention of the Dies Irae. At thispoint he makes full and effective use both of the jaggedalliterative potential of the text, and of the powerfulpercussion battery among the large orchestra. Thus hecreates with the utmost immediacy the intense noise andpervasive disruption of warfare.

That Vaughan Williams should feel able to depict suchsonic intensity with conviction is no surprise. It isconceivable that the artillery barrages of the WesternFront returned to haunt him via the medium of Whitman’sbeating drums. The cantata also contains musiccomposed some twenty years earlier, in the form of theDirge for Two Veterans, but this proves to be lessstylistically problematic than it might have been. Perhapsin unconscious mourning for the friends, and the way oflife, that were lost in the trenches, in Reconciliation aswell as during the other 1930s portions of the work,Vaughan Williams returns to the style of his pre-warmusic. The particular point of reference is the LondonSymphony, a masterpiece that was first performed just afew months before hostilities began. Moreover, theimposing march of the Dirge is linked to Beat! Beat!Drums! by the appearance of similar rhythmic motifs.



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These central movements confirm that the work has thecharacteristics of a Requiem. However, Dona nobispacem is also concerned with the living and their futureaspirations. Thus John Bright’s memorable words, ‘TheAngel of Death has been abroad throughout the land; youmay almost hear the beating of his wings’, constitute anexplicit reference to the growing fears of the mid-1930s.At this stage it was still possible to express optimism,however; so with the aid of bells, glockenspiel and organ,Vaughan Williams sounds out a joyful Gloria in the closingbars. Yet even now there remains a certain supplication,since the soprano continues to sing ‘Dona nobis pacem’.The recognition that these prophetic visions had not yetcome to pass was shortly to be driven home with aferocity no-one could have anticipated. This is no periodpiece, however, and the prayer which concludes thisvisionary masterpiece retains its urgency to this day.

I.Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.(Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world, grantus peace.)

II. (Walt Whitman)Beat! beat! drums! – blow! bugles! blow!Through the windows – through the doors – burst like aruthless force,Into the solemn church, and scatter the congregation,Into the school where the scholar is studying;Leave not the bridegroom quiet – no happiness must hehave now with his bride,Nor the peaceful farmer any peace, ploughing his field, orgathering in his grain,So fierce you whirr and pound you drums – so shrill youbugles blow.

III. Reconciliation (Walt Whitman)Word over all, beautiful as the sky,Beautiful that war and all its deeds of carnage must intime be utterly lost,That the hands of the sisters Death and Night incessantly,softly,wash again and ever again this soiled world;For my enemy is dead, a man divine as myself is dead,I look where he lies white-faced and still in the coffin – Idraw near,Bend down and touch lightly with my lips the white face inthe coffin.

IV. Dirge for Two Veterans (Walt Whitman)The last sunbeamLightly falls from the finished Sabbath,On the pavement here, and there beyond it is lookingDown a new-made double grave.

Lo, the moon ascending,Up from the east the silvery round moon,

Beautiful over the house-tops, ghastly, phantom moon,Immense and silent moon.

I see a sad procession,And I hear the sound of coming full-keyed bugles,All the channels of the city streets they’re floodingAs with voices and with tears.

I hear the great drums pounding,And the small drums steady whirring,And every blow of the great convulsive drumsStrikes me through and through.

For the son is brought with the father,In the foremost ranks of the fierce assault they fell,Two veterans, son and father, dropped together, And the double grave awaits them.

Now nearer blow the bugles,And the drums strike more convulsive,And the daylight over the pavement quite has faded, And the strong dead-march enwraps me.

In the eastern sky up-buoying,The sorrowful vast phantom moves illumined,‘Tis some mother’s large transparent face, In heaven brighter growing.

O strong dead-march you please me!O moon immense with your silvery face you soothe me!O my soldiers twain! O my veterans passing to burial. What I have I also give you.

The moon gives you light,And the bugles and the drums give you music,And my heart, O my soldiers, my veterans, My heart gives you love.

V. (John Bright)The Angel of Death has been abroad throughout the land;you may almost hear the beating of his wings. There is noone as of old ... to sprinkle with blood the lintel and thetwo side-posts of our doors, that he may spare and passon.Dona nobis pacem.(Jeremiah 8:15-22)We looked for peace, but no good came; and for a timeof health, and behold trouble!The snorting of his horses was heard from Dan; the wholeland trembled at the sound of the neighing of his strongones; for they are come, and have devoured the land ...and those that dwell therein ...The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are notsaved ...Is there no balm in Gilead?; is there no physician there?Why then is not the health of the daughter of my peoplerecovered?

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VI. (Daniel 10:19)O man greatly beloved, fear not, peace be unto thee, bestrong, yea, be strong.(Haggai 2:9)The glory of this latter house shall be greater than of theformer ... and in this place will I give peace.(Adapted from Micah 4:3, Leviticus 26:6, Psalms 85:10and 118:19, Isaiah 43:9 and 56:18-22, Luke 2:14)Nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neithershall they learn war any more.And none shall make them afraid, neither shall the swordgo through their land.Mercy and truth are met together; righteousness andpeace have kissed each other.Truth shall spring out of the earth, and righteousness shalllook down from heaven.Open to me the gates of righteousness, I will go intothem.Let all the nations be gathered together, and let thepeople be assembled; and let them hear and say, it is thetruth.And it shall come, that I will gather all nations andtongues.And they shall come and see my glory. And I will set asign among them,and they shall declare my glory among the nations.For as the new heavens and the new earth, which I willmake, shall remain before me,so shall your seed and your name remain for ever.

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, goodwilltoward men.Dona nobis pacem.

RALPH VAUGHAN WILLIAMSFantasia on The Old HundredthFor fifty years Vaughan Williams was a leading figure inBritish musical life. This gave him the opportunity and theresponsibility to provide the music for many publicoccasions, including coronations, for example. Thus itwas that he composed this Fantasia on the OldHundredth Psalm Tune in 1953, for the Coronation ofElizabeth II at Westminster Abbey. Scored for thecombination of mixed chorus, organ, and orchestra, themusic reflects the composer’s social idealism through theinclusion of a section that invites the participation of thecongregation.

All people that on earth do dwell,Sing to the Lord with cheerful voice.Him serve with fear, His praise forth tell;Come ye before Him and rejoice.Praise God, from Whom all blessings flow;Praise Him, all creatures here below;Praise Him above, ye heavenly host;Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

CHARLES HUBERT PARRY (1848-1918)Jerusalem (orchestrated Sir Edward Elgar)

Like Land of Hope and Glory and Rule Britannia, Parry’ssetting of William Blake’s magnificent poem Jerusalemmight well be regarded as an alternative national anthem.Parry, born in Bournemouth, was a major figure in Britishmusical life, both through his lasting influence as aneducator and as a composer of great skill, whose worksare currently undergoing a revival. Jerusalem was firstperformed at a ‘Votes for Women’ concert in 1916; Elgarmade his orchestrated version six years later.

© Terry Barfoot

And did those feet in ancient timeWalk upon England’s mountains green:And was the holy Lamb of GodOn England’s pleasant pastures seen!And did the Countenance Divine,Shine forth upon our clouded hills?And was Jerusalem builded here,Among these dark Satanic Mills?

Bring me my Bow of burning gold;Bring me my Arrows of desire:Bring me my Spear: O clouds unfold!Bring me my Chariot of fire!I will not cease from Mental Fight,Nor shall my Sword sleep in my hand:Till we have built Jerusalem,In England’s green and pleasant Land

Beneath this poem Blake inscribed an excerpt from theBible: ‘Would to God that all the Lord’s people were Prophets’,Numbers XI.Ch 29.v

Sponsored by the Vaughan Williams Charitable Trust,Woolton Construction and the KilfinanTrust



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Newbury Symphony OrchestraJohn Traill conductorChris de Souza narrator

Jerome Moross The Big Country Strauss Radetsky March Bernard Hughes Not now Bernard Fucik The Entry Of The Gladiators Rimsky-Korsakov Dance Of The Tumblers from

The Snow Maiden SuiteBernard Hughes Isabel’s Noisy Tummy Sousa Liberty Bell March


John TraillJohn Traill has been hailed “one of the most promisingconductors of his generation”, and is known for his“strong interpretative instinct” (Guardian, 2008). He hasperformed internationally with orchestras in the UK,Bulgaria, Russia, the Ukraine, Brazil, the USA, and wonmajor prizes at the Leeds Conductors Competition (2005),and the Vakhtang Jordania International ConductingCompetition (2006).

John recently conducted the premiere of his work Oxoniafor massed choir, symphony orchestra and solo cello atthe Royal Albert Hall at the last night of the Music forYouth Schools Proms. As director of Ensemble ISIS, theOxford University Faculty of Music contemporary musicgroup, John has led residencies with Sir Peter MaxwellDavies, Sir Harrison Birtwistle, the London Sinfonietta,and many leading international composers. He is Directorof Music at St Anne’s College, Oxford and a lecturer at StCatherine’s College. and, at 26, became the youngestperson to have received a DPhil in composition at theUniversity of Oxford.

Chris de SouzaNarrator Chris de Souza was a graduate of BristolUniversity and Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He is afreelance theatre and opera director (including Sadlers

Wells/ENO), a music producer and presenter (Radio 3,BBC TV), composer and teacher. Chris is familiar to manyconcert audiences as a presenter as well as giving pre-concert talks at venues all over Britain.

Newbury Symphony OrchestraNewbury Symphony Orchestra is an ambitious,community orchestra with a long history of quality music-making in Newbury. It provides an opportunity for bothplayers and audience to experience live, large-scale,symphonic repertoire, making it both accessible andaffordable.

Programme NotesNot Now, Bernard and Isabel’s Noisy Tummy – storiesby legendary children’s author David McKee set tomusic by Bernard Hughes.

This pair of works for narrator and orchestra was firstperformed at Symphony Hall in Birmingham in December2011. Not Now, Bernard tells the story of a young boy whois ignored by his busy, busy parents, even after a dramaticencounter with a monster in the garden. In Isabel’s NoisyTummy, a girl’s grumbling stomach gets her into trouble atschool, but comes to the rescue on a visit to the zoo.

Bernard Hughes’ music has been performed at majorconcert venues in Britain and received a number ofbroadcasts on BBC Radio 3. Recent projects include TheDeath of Balder, a major choral work based on a Norskmyth, for the BBC Singers. Bernard Hughes has written achildren’s opera Chincha-Chancha Cooroo and achamber opera, Dumbfounded. Forthcomingcommissions include a new work for the Seattle ProMusic choir and a community choir work for the 2012Three Choirs Festival. Bernard appeared as a conductorin the recent Channel 4 series Howard Goodall’sTwentieth Century Greats and he writes regularly in thenew music periodical ‘Tempo’.

Other musical items include The Liberty Bell March by theAmerican composer Sousa which achieved fame in1960’s Great Britain when it was used to introduce thetelevision comedy show ‘Monty Python’s Flying Circus’.The circus theme continues with the inclusion of Rimsky-Korsakov’s Dance of the Tumblers from his opera ‘TheSnow Maiden’ The entry of the Gladiators by Fucik andStrauss’ Radetsky March also feature in this hour-longprogramme.


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Corn Exchange Newbury Sunday 20 May 3.00pm

Family Concert with Newbury Symphony Orchestra

www.newburysymphonyorchestra.wetpaint.com70

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Sheepdrove Eco Conference Centre Lambourn Sunday 20 May 3.00pm


The Sheepdrove Piano Competition Final

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The Sheepdrove Piano Competition

Presented by The Sheepdrove Trust

This important piano competition, under the patronage ofSir Roger Norrington and funded by the SheepdroveTrust, is open to candidates aged 28 and under from the8 major UK music colleges and attracts young pianists ofthe highest standard from around the world. Thecompetition final, which will have an emphasison Debussy in his 150th Anniversary year, takes place inthe tranquil setting of the Sheepdrove Eco ConferenceCentre where you will be invited to cast your vote for theAudience Prize.

JuryIain Burnside, international pianist and broadcaster andResearch Associate at the Guildhall School of Music

Mark Eynon, Director of Newbury Spring Festival

Gordon Fergus-Thompson, international pianist andProfessor at the Royal College of Music

Mikhail Kazakevich, distinguished Russian pianist andProfessor at Trinity College of Music

Barry Millington, Chief Music Critic, London EveningStandard

Lucy Parham, international pianist and judge of BBCYoung Musician of the Year

David Whelton, Managing Director, PhilharmoniaOrchestra

PrizesFour cash prizes will be decided by the jury and theaudience will vote for its favourite artist and award theAudience Prize.

1st Prize The Kindersley Prize of £2,000 plus aninvitation to play a recital the next day atthe Corn Exchange for a fee of £500provided by the Festival

2nd Prize £1,000 donated by Greenham Common Trust

3rd Prize £500 donated by the Friends of NSF4th Prize £250 donated by an anonymous donorAudience Prize £250 donated by an anonymous donor

Iain BurnsideIain Burnside enjoys aunique reputation aspianist and broadcaster,forged through hiscommitment to the songrepertoire and hiscollaborations with leadinginternational singers. Inrecent seasons such artistshave included RebeccaEvans, Ailish Tynan, Susan

Bickley and Ann Murray; John Mark Ainsley, AndrewKennedy, Mark Padmore, Roderick Williams, WilliamDazeley and Bryn Terfel.

His extensive recording portfolio reflects Iain's passion forBritish music: the complete songs of Gerald Finzi,together with Butterworth, Gurney, Ireland and VaughanWilliams on Naxos; Britten, Tippett, Herbert Hughes, FGScott and Judith Weir on Signum; Richard RodneyBennett on NMC; contemporary Scottish repertoire onDelphian. The NMC Songbook received a GramophoneAward. In 2012 Albion Records will issue a solo disc ofVaughan Williams and Gurney.

Iain’s broadcasting career covers both radio and TV andhas been honoured with a Sony Radio Award. Acclaimedas a programmer, Iain has devised innovative recitalscombining music and poetry, presented with hugesuccess in Brussels and Barcelona with actors SimonRussell Beale, Fiona Shaw and Harriet Walter. He isResearch Associate at the Guildhall School of Music andDrama. His first play, A Soldier and a Maker, will premiereat the Barbican Centre in April 2012.

Mark EynonMark Eynon graduatedfrom Cambridge Universityin 1978 with a degree inEnglish, and after workingas an assistant on variousopera productions, hisfestival career began in1983 when he was invitedto create the first HenleyFestival, which he ran fornine seasons. He became

director of Salisbury Festival in 1987, establishing a cycleof annual festivals based on the four elements, and in1992 he was appointed artistic associate of the EuropeanArts Festival, a national celebration to mark Britain’spresidency of the EEC. Mark became Director of NewburySpring Festival in 1999 and established the associatedSheepdrove Piano Competition in 2009.

Mark’s passion for opera has been realised through hislong-standing association with Covent Garden whichbegan in 1989 when he was appointed Assistant to theGeneral Director of the Royal Opera House. In 1993 hebecame director of the first BOC Covent Garden Festival,a new festival of opera and musical theatre, under thepatronage of Diana, Princess of Wales. As part of thefestival, he publically opened the Freemasons’ Hall for aperformance of The Magic Flute, which was attended byPrincess Diana and the equally legendary Birgit Nilsson.As a consultant he worked on two major opera galas atthe Royal Opera House: in 1991, the Mozart Bi-CentenaryGala, and in 2006, the Mozart 250th Anniversary Gala,both conducted by Sir John Eliot Gardiner. Since 2008 hehas been the British representative on the jury of theannual Medoc International Singing Competition ofBordeaux, a celebration of French Opera and Melodie.

As a freelance producer, Mark has produced many eventsincluding the revived Chelsea Arts Balls at the RoyalAlbert Hall, and Britain’s largest nativity play, theWintershall Nativity. As a response to his deep interest inthe spiritual and psychological effects of music, Markfounded a new festival, Healing Sounds, an internationalcelebration of the healing powers of music, which tookplace in Brighton from 1997–2002 and was part of thenational Millennium Festival.

Gordon Fergus-ThompsonFollowing a sensationaldebut at the Wigmore Hallin 1976 Gordon Fergus-Thompson firmlyestablished himself as amajor recitalist andconcerto player, appearingas soloist with thePhilharmonia, EnglishChamber Orchestra,Goteborg Symphony,

Residente Orchestra of the Hague, CBSO, Halle, RLPO,Bournemouth and all the BBC Symphony Orchestras,with such conductors as Evgenii Svetlanov, JacekKaspszyk, Sir Edward Downes, Helmut Muller-Bruhl,Mosche Atzmon, David Atherton and Sir Charles Groves.He has appeared in all the major halls in London andParis and has given over two hundred broadcast recitalson BBC Radio 3. Gordon Fergus-Thompson has touredextensively in the UK, France, Austria, Switzerland, Italy,Czech Republic, Australia and the Far East.

Gordon Fergus-Thompson has recorded the completeworks of Debussy and Ravel, the two Rachmaninoffsonatas and complete Etudes-Tableaux, the BalakirevSonata, Bach transcriptions and to date, three quarters ofthe complete works of Scriabin. He won the prestigiousMRA “Best Instrumental Recording of the Year” award in

successive years, in the first instance for his outstandingcomplete works of Debussy, and in the second, forVolume 1 of the complete works of Scriabin. GordonFergus-Thompson is a professor of Piano at the RoyalCollege of Music, London. He is much in demand as alecture recitalist and has given masterclasses throughoutthe UK, USA, Australia and the Far East.

Mikhail KazakevichBorn in Gorky (Russia),Mikhail Kazakevich studiedthere at the StateConservatoire, opened asa division of MoscowConservatoire, from 1980-86, with the well-knownpianist and teacher IsaakKatz, who was a pupil ofthe legendary professorAlexander Goldenweiser.

After graduating with highest honours, he taught as aProfessor at the conservatoire until 1992.

His burgeoning performing career led him to asensational western debut at the International SchubertCompetition in Dortmund, Germany, in 1991. As a resultof his success there, he was engaged to play with theDortmund Philharmonic Orchestra and also gavenumerous solo recitals in Germany and France. In 1992,he received a Special Award from the Schubert Society(Germany) and came to London, where he made hisdebut at the Wigmore Hall. Soon afterwards, Kazakevichwas signed exclusively by the BMG/Conifer recordinglabel, for which he has made numerous recordings.

Mikhail has combined his intensive concert activity withteaching. In the UK, he taught at the Welsh College ofMusic and Drama (Cardiff) from 1994-96. Currently, he isa Professor of Piano at the Trinity College of Music(London). He frequently gives Master Classes andadjudicates at the London Guildhall School of Music andDrama, the Royal Academy of Music, the Royal College ofMusic and the Atlantic College of Wales. His MasterClasses at St George’s Brandon Hill (Bristol) are anannual event.

Barry MillingtonBarry Millington is ChiefMusic Critic for the LondonEvening Standard andeditor of The WagnerJournal. He is the authorand editor or co-editor ofseven books on Wagner,including Wagner, TheWagner Compendium, TheRing of the Nibelung: A

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David WheltonDavid Whelton was born in1954 and trained as apianist and organist.Following an early careerin education, David joinedYorkshire Arts Associationand subsequently LeedsCity Council, prior tomoving to the Arts Councilof Great Britain. In 1988,David joined the

Philharmonia Orchestra as Managing Director.

During his tenure at the Philharmonia, the Orchestra hasestablished long term relationships with the world’sforemost conductors, including Riccardo Muti, LorinMaazel, Vladimir Ashkenazy, and Sir Charles Mackkeras.David was responsible for bringing Christoph vonDohnányi to the Orchestra as Principal Conductor in1996, and Esa-Pekka Salonen as his successor in 2008.

David initiated and developed an extensive UK touringprogramme, at the heart of which are orchestralresidencies in Bedford, Leicester, Canterbury, and theThree Choirs Festival. During this time, the Philharmoniapioneered the concept of multidisciplinary festivals whichtravelled the world. Themes included ‘Clocks and Clouds:the music of Gyrogy Ligeti’ and Related Rocks, featuringthe music of Magnus Lindberg, both led by Esa-PekkaSalonen. Recent series include ‘The City of Dreams: themusic of Vienna, 1900 – 1935’ and ‘Infernal Dance: Insidethe world of Béla Bartók’, also conducted by Esa-PekkaSalonen. In parallel with this, David launched the award-winning Music of Today series, featuring the music of theyounger generations of composers. The Philharmoniamaintains an active touring programme and in the courseof this year will travel extensively in Europe, China, Korea,Japan, and North America.

David was a member of the jury of the 2001 BesançonConducting Competition, Chairman of the 2005 and 2009Leeds Conducting competitions, and is a trustee of IMSPrussia Cove,

Presented by the Sheepdrove Trust

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Companion and Selected Letters of Richard Wagner, andalso contributed the articles on Wagner and his operas toThe New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians andThe New Grove Dictionary of Opera. He was the founderand artistic director of the Hampstead & Highgate Festival(1999–2003), has acted as dramaturgical adviser onLohengrin at the Bayreuth Festival and the Ring in Tokyoand recently co-founded the ensemble Counterpoise.

Lucy ParhamAcknowledged as one ofBritain's finest pianists,Lucy Parham first came topublic attention when shebecame the Piano Winnerof the 1984 BBC YoungMusician of the Year. Sincethen, she has playedthroughout the UK asconcerto soloist with mostof the major British

orchestras and is a frequent recitalist at the Wigmore Hall.She has also toured the USA with the BBC ConcertOrchestra on their 50th anniversary, Mexico and Turkeywith Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and abroad withRussian State Symphony, Sofia Philharmonic, BergenPhilharmonic, Polish National Radio SO and L'OrchestreNational de Lille.

Her life-long passion for the music of Schumann inspiredthe original concept of the words and music evening,Beloved Clara. The CD of Beloved Clara (ASV) wasreleased to critical acclaim. Two further evenings, Liszt -An Odyssey of Love and Nocturne - The Romantic Life ofFrédéric Chopin also premiered in the London PianoforteSeries at the Wigmore Hall. These have toured the UKand abroad, also making their US debut in Los Angelesand were subsequently broadcast on NPR across theUSA. In 2006 she was the Director of the SchumannAnniversary Festival at Cadogan Hall and in 2010 she wasthe Director of Schumann 200 Festival at King’s Place.

Lucy Parham is a frequent guest presenter andcontributor for BBC Radio 3 and 4 including CD Review,Proms Plus, The Saturday Feature, The Essay, Building aLibrary and Composer of the Week. She was on the juryfor the Final of BBC Young Musician of the Year in 2008and 2010, and in 2006 and 2009 she was thecommentator for the Leeds International PianoCompetition on BBC TV.


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St Martin’s Church East Woodhay Sunday 20 May 7.30pm

Joyful Company of SingersGarlands for the Two ElizabethsPeter Broadbent conductor

Anon (1559) Allegra, Anglia!Thomas Morley (1558-1603) Hard by a Crystal

FountainArnold Bax (1883-1953) What is it like to be young

and fair? (Clifford Bax)John Bennet (c.1575-after 1614) Weep, O mine eyesJohn Bennet All creatures now are

merry mindedMichael Tippet (1905-1998) Dance, clarion air

(Christopher Fry)Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625) Dainty fine birdThomas Morley April is in my Mistress’

faceHerbert Howells (1892-1983) Inheritance

(Walter de la Mare)Michael East (c. 1580 – 1648) Hence, stars, too dim of

lightAlan Rawsthorne (1905-1971) Canzonet (Louis

MacNeice)John Wilbye (1574-1638) The Lady OrianaEdmund Rubbra (1901-1986) Salutation (Christopher

Hassall)Interval

Ralph Vaughan Williams Silence & Music (1872-1958) (Ursula Wood) Thomas Weelkes (c.1575-1623) As Vesta was from Latmos

Hill descendingArthur Bliss (1891-1975) Aubade for Coronation

Morning (Henry Reed)John Farmer (c.1565-c.1605) Fair nymphs, I heard one

tellingLennox Berkeley (1903-1989) Spring at this hour

(Paul Dehn)Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656) The Fauns and Satyrs

trippingJohn Ireland (1879-1962) The Hills (James Kirkup)Thomas Morley Leave, alas this

tormentingGerald Finzi (1901-1956) White-Flowering Days

(Edmund Blunden)

Sponsored by Mr and Mrs Patrick Hungerford and Mr and Mrs Toby WardAdditional support from Hampshire County Council

Peter Broadbent and the Joyful Company of Singers

One of Europe’s most prominent chamber choirs, theJCS is renowned for its virtuosity and intensity of spirit, aswell as for an astoundingly wide repertoire, ranging fromthe 16th Century to the present day. An important elementof the choir’s raison d’être is its commitment tocontemporary and new music, including a high proportionof first performances, and supported by several highly-successful Educational Projects. Many composers havewritten music for JCS, including David Bedford, MichaelBerkeley, Judith Bingham, Jonathan Harvey, AlunHoddinott, Roxanna Panufnik, Kaija Saariaho andMalcolm Williamson.

Formed in 1988, by conductor Peter Broadbent, the choirfirst came to prominence when it won the Sainsbury’sChoir of the Year competition in 1990. Since then it hasmaintained its profile in the music world, winning animpressive list of national and international competitionsleading to many invitations. JCS regularly appears at allthe UK’s major music festivals, including Bath, Aldeburgh,Cheltenham, City of London, Presteigne, Spitalfields,Three Choirs, Huddersfield Contemporary Music and theBBC Proms. Equally prominent in Europe, JCS hasperformed at festivals in France, Germany, Denmark,Hungary, Italy, Poland and Russia, broadcasting in manycountries as well as on BBC and Classic FM. The choirand Peter Broadbent were honoured to receive the‘Guidoneum Award’ from the Fondazione Guido d’Arezzoin recognition of its achievements and promotion ofchoral music. In the USA, JCS has given concerts atStanford University, in Los Angeles and San Diego, andappeared at the National Convention of the AmericanChoral Directors’ Association, in Texas.

Performances with orchestras include many with the Cityof London Sinfonia with the late Richard Hickox, CBE,and with Mark Elder, Nicholas Kraemer and StuartBedford, the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (Sir AndrewDavies), the Southern Sinfonia, the Britten Sinfonia (AlecRoth), the BBC Concert Orchestra, the BBC NationalOrchestra of Wales, the Northern Sinfonia and theOrchestra of the Age of Enlightenment (Sir RogerNorrington). Soloists have included Dame Felicity Lott,

www.jcos.co.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

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Carolyn Sampson, Patricia Rozario, Sarah Fox, MarkPadmore, James Gilchrist, Roderick Williams andStephen Varcoe as well as instrumentalists PhilippaDavies, Paul Watkins, Madeleine Mitchell and RobertCohen.

To date, the JCS has a discography of some 22recordings. On the ASV label are discs of music byJonathan Harvey, Francis Poulenc and Samuel Barber,and for EMI Classics, Garland for Linda. Other releasesinclude A Plum Pudding with Dame Felicity Lott andGabriel Woolf (White Line), Angels Sing! - choral music byRoxanna Panufnik (Warner Classics), Malcolm Williamson,(Naxos), and by Cecilia McDowall (Dutton Epoch) and ofChristmas music by Roderick Elms with the RPO (Naxos).

Programme NotesIt seems suitable to celebrate the Diamond Jubilee of theaccession of our present Queen to combine music writtenfor her, with music dedicated to her illustrious namesake.The anonymous round which opens the programme wascomposed for the coronation in January 1559, but therest of the music comes from later in her reign. TheElizabethan period was particularly noted for the rise ofthe English Madrigal School, which was largely inspiredby the publication in 1588 of Musica Transalpina, acollection of Italian madrigals mostly by Marenzio andFerrabosco, many of which were subsequently translatedand adapted by English composers. In The Triumphs ofOriana Thomas Morley Gentlemen of the Chapel Royaland outstanding madrigalist, sought to flatter Elizabeth I,who had previously granted him a monopoly to printmusic, by collecting together 25 madrigals written bysome of the master musicians of the age in praise of theVirgin Queen. In doing so, Morley was inspired by IlTrionfo di Dori (1598), a collection of 29 madrigals bydifferent composers written in honour of LeonardoSanudo's Venetian bride. Each madrigal in that collectionends in "Viva la bella Dori”; each in Morley's, publishedthree years later, ends "Long live fair Oriana!" Morley’sHard by a crystal fountain is a skilful reworking of one ofthe Trionfo madrigals by Croce, and Weelke’s As Vestawas is probably the most frequently quoted example ofword-painting in the madrigal. The madrigals in theprogramme which are not from the collection are includedfor their beauty and their contrast – Bennet’s Weep, Omine eyes deservedly as well-known as the lively Allcreatures now.

A Garland for the Queen was commissioned by the ArtsCouncil of Great Britain in imitation of the Triumphs andfirst performed on the eve of the coronation in the newRoyal Festival Hall, with the Golden Age Singers and theCambridge University Madrigal Society conducted byBoris Ord. The ten songs for mixed voices look both backto a pre-war golden age of British Song, and forward to ahoped-for post-war golden age of prosperity and artistic

growth under a young new Queen. It is an intriguingthought that we will probably never know whethercomposers like, Arnold, Britten, Armstrong Gibbs,Gardner, Maconchy, Musgrave or Walton (to mention onlya few) were omitted from the invitation or turned down theopportunity. However the distinguished composersincluded were free to choose their own poets to providethe texts, some of which have no direct connection withthe young Queen. The musical settings inevitablyincorporate a range of styles – some quite large-scale inapproach as in Bliss’ Aubade, whose text and texturalcontrasts are appropriately celebratory, others much moreintimate in scale, as in Bax’s setting of his brother’spoem. This diversity of tone may to some extent accountfor the relative neglect of the Garland as a whole,although several of the pieces have successfully enteredthe chamber choir repertoire. All are well worth a place,and to hear them in conjunction with the music of anearlier age reminds one of the marvellous heritage ofchoral writing this country enjoys.

Peter Broadbent © 2012

Sponsored by Mr and Mrs Patrick Hungerford and Mr and Mrs Toby WardAdditional support from Hampshire County Council

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Joyful Company of Singers

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Young Artists Lunchtime Recital 4


The Festival is delighted to welcome the winner of thefourth Sheepdrove Piano Competition to the CornExchange to give a recital as part of the Festival’s wellestablished Young Artists Lunchtime Series.

The competition, which is open to students from all themajor UK conservatoires, was founded in 2009 by theSheepdrove Trust, under the patronage of Sir RogerNorrington. The winning pianist will perform a variedprogramme including works by Debussy whose 150thanniversary we are celebrating this year.

Today’s recital is an opportunity to hear more of thewinning pianist following the competition final held atSheepdrove Eco Conference Centre on Sunday 20 May(see page 71).



The Sheepdrove Piano Competition Winner

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11th Newbury Christmas Cancer ConcertCarols sung byPro Musica

Seasonal Readingspresented by Distinguished People

7pm Saturday 1st December 2012St Nicolas Church Newbury

in support of Macmillan Cancer SupportRegd. Charity No. 261017

and The Newbury & District Cancer Care TrustRegd. Charity No. 291795

Tickets available in October. Information 01635 32167

The Queen & The Coronation

In celebration of the Diamond Jubilee, Hugo Vickers, oneof Britain’s most distinguished royal historians, will speakabout The Queen and the Coronation, celebrating the lifeand reign of a much-loved monarch and looking back tothe great ceremony of 2 June 1953 which affirmed herrole as Sovereign.

Hugo Vickers has been observing the Queen sincechildhood and has written several important royalbiographies. His talk promises to be illuminating and willbe lavishly illustrated not only with images of the Queenbut also of the Coronation in all its glory.

The talk takes place at Combe Manor, the home of LadyMary Russell who was a Maid-of-Honour and Train Bearerat the Coronation carrying Her Majesty’s train of purplevelvet. Lady Mary’s robes will be on display during thetalk.

By kind permission of Lady Mary and Mr David Russell

Hugo VickersHugo Vickers is a writerand broadcaster, who haswritten biographies of manytwentieth century figures,including the QueenMother, the Baron de Rede,Gladys, Duchess ofMarlborough, Cecil Beaton,Vivien Leigh, a study ofGreta Garbo, and Alice,Princess Andrew ofGreece. The biography of

Princess Andrew of Greece was authorised by the Duke ofEdinburgh, and for this book he interviewed manymembers of the Royal Family. His book, The Private Worldof The Duke and Duchess of Windsor was illustrated withpictures from their own collection. The Kiss - The Story ofan Obsession won the 1996 Stern Silver Pen Award forNon-Fiction. Elizabeth, The Queen Mother, was the firstmajor biography since her death, and was published inOctober 2005. His most recent book is Behind ClosedDoors, The Tragic, Untold Story of the Duchess of Windsor.

Hugo Vickers is a frequent broadcaster, and is much indemand for royal occasions. He was an ITN studio guestfor the Royal Wedding of 1981, and for the funeral ofDiana, Princess of Wales in 1997.

He commentated with John Suchet at ITN for the weddingof Prince Edward (1999), for the Queen Mother’s 100thBirthday (2000) and for the Queen Mother’s funeral(2002). He appears regularly on CNN’s Larry King Live,and has also appeared on Fox TV, NSNBC, a greatnumber of programmes in Canada, Australia, and NewZealand. He was a guest of Jane Pauley (talking aboutthe Royal Wedding) on the Today show in New York inJuly 1981.

Hugo Vickers was appointed Chairman of the JubileeWalkway Trust in October 2002. The Trust was founded in1977 as a permanent memorial to The Queen’s SilverJubilee and lately restored and updated for the GoldenJubilee. As such he welcomed The Queen and The Dukeof Edinburgh to the Mall on the 50th anniversary of theCoronation in 2003, when Her Majesty unveiled the Mallpanoramic panel: and again welcomed The Queen andThe Duke of Edinburgh when they jointly unveiled theDiamond Wedding panoramic panel in Parliament Squareon 19 November 2007.

Hugo Vickers is married and lives in London and in amoated manor house in Hampshire (seen in ShekharKapur’s 2002 film, The Four Feathers), with his wife, whois a photographer, and his three children.

By kind permission of Lady Mary and Mr David Russell

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Combe Manor Hungerford Monday 21 May 3.00pm

Hugo Vickers Festival Talk 4

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Admission: One ShillingPatricia Routledge and Piers LaneDevised by Nigel HessChristopher Luscombe directorPhilip Gault company managerGussie Welch stage manager

Patricia Routledge and pianist Piers Lane tell the inspiringstory of Dame Myra Hess and the National GalleryConcerts.

Schubert German Dances D783No 1 in A majorNo 2 in D majorNo 3 in Bb major

Brahms Intermezzo in C major Op 119 No 3Schumann Eusebius from CarnavalChopin Nocturne in Db major Op 27 No 2Bach Prelude in Bb minor from Well-Tempered

Clavier Book 1Beethoven Allegro Molto from Sonata in Ab major

Op 110Schubert Bb minor variation from Impromptu in

Bb major D935 No 3Brahms Waltz in Ab major Op 39 No 15Scarlatti Sonata in G major L 387Bach/Hess Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring - Chorale from

Cantata No 147

Sponsored by the Friends of Newbury Spring Festival

Patricia Routledge and Piers Lane

One of the most abiding memories of Patricia Routledge’swartime schooldays is that of attending a series ofSaturday afternoon piano recitals at the LiverpoolPhilharmonic Hall. Among the distinguished visitingartists, the performances of Myra Hess – away briefly fromLondon and her National Gallery commitment – are, shesays, etched in her mind. It was therefore with very littledifficulty that she agreed to tell the story, together withPiers Lane, of Myra Hess’s artistic achievement andgenerosity, and her inspired contribution to the war effort.

Known to millions throughout the world as theindomitable Hyacinth in Keeping Up Appearances and asthe elderly sleuth in Hetty Wainthropp Investigates, Patriciais one of Britain’s most distinguished actresses, regardedfor her work in theatre, film, television and radio. She isclosely associated with the work of Alan Bennett whowrote the three monologues A Woman Of No Importance(Broadcasting Press Guild Award 1982), A Lady of Letters(BAFTA Nomination 1988) and Mrs Fozzard Finds HerFeet (1998) especially for her.

The recipient of the 1967 Tony Award for her Broadwayperformance in Darling of the Day; the 1989 LaurenceOlivier Award for her performance in Leonard Bernstein’sCandide; Top TV Comedy Actress and Personality of theYear Awards (1991 and 1993); she was further honouredin 1996 in the BBC 60th Anniversary Awards. In 1993Patricia was awarded the OBE for services to thePerforming Arts and created a CBE in 2004 for services toDrama.

Piers Lane feels close to Dame Myra Hess. He studiedwith Yonty Solomon, one of Hess’s few students, and hehas directed the Myra Hess Day at the National Gallerycommemorating the wartime concert series, since itsinception in 2006. Patricia Routledge was in the audienceon that first occasion and a friend commented on hersimilarity to the great pianist. That sparked the thought inPiers’ mind of Patricia portraying Dame Myra in someway. Nigel Hess’s Admission: One Shilling is the result,commissioned by the National Gallery in 2009.

Piers Lane has performed in over forty countries. Recenthighlights have included a sold-out performance with theLPO at the Royal Festival Hall and concerto performancesat Lincoln Center in New York, recitals at the WigmoreHall, and many overseas concerts. Last year heperformed the monumental Piano Concerto by Busoni atCarnegie Hall. Piers is Artistic Director of the AustralianFestival of Chamber Music and has written and presentedover 100 programmes for BBC Radio 3. Five times soloistat the Proms, Piers Lane’s concerto repertoire exceedseighty works.

Nigel HessNigel Hess works extensively as a composer andconductor in television, theatre and film. He hascomposed numerous scores for both American andBritish television productions including A Woman ofSubstance, Vanity Fair, Campion, Maigret, Dangerfield,Just William, Wycliffe, Ballykissangel and New Tricks. Hehas received the Ivor Novello award twice for Best TVTheme (Hetty Wainthropp Investigates and Testament).Nigel was awarded the New York Drama Desk Award for‘Outstanding Music in a Play’ for Much Ado About Nothingand Cyrano de Bergerac on Broadway.

www.pierslane.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Admission: One Shilling

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Christopher LuscombeChristopher Luscombe’s directing credits include TheShakespeare Revue (Vaudeville), Star Quality (Apollo),Home and Beauty (Lyric), Fascinating Aida: One LastFlutter (Comedy – Olivier Award nomination for BestEntertainment), A Midsummer Night’s Dream (Regent’sPark), Enjoy (Gielgud), Alphabetical Order (Hampstead),When We Are Married (Garrick – Oliver Award nominationfor Best Revival), Little Shop of Horrors and The HistoryBoys (West Yorkshire Playhouse).

Programme NotesDame Myra Hess (1890-1965) was a British pianist. Shewas born in London as Julia Myra Hess, but was best-known by her middle name. At the age of five she beganto study the piano and two years later entered theGuildhall School of Music, where she graduated aswinner of the Gold Medal. She studied at the RoyalAcademy of Music under Tobias Matthay. Her debut camein 1907 when she played Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No4 with Sir Thomas Beecham conducting. She went on totour throughout Britain, the Netherlands and France, and,after her American debut (New York 1922) she became afavourite in the United States.

She garnered greater fame during World War II when, withall concert halls closed, she organised a series oflunchtime concerts at the National Gallery, playing in manyherself. For this contribution to maintaining the morale ofLondoners she was created a Dame Commander of theBritish Empire in 1941, having previously been created a

CBE in 1936. She makes a brief appearance performing atone of her lunchtime concerts in the classic 1942 wartimedocumentary Listen to Britain.

Dame Myra was renowned for her interpretations of theworks of Mozart, Beethoven and Schumann, but had awide repertoire ranging from Domenico Scarlatti tocontemporary works. Her ‘signature’ piece, and the onewhich became most associated with her, was her ownarrangement of Bach’s Chorale prelude Jesu, Joy ofMan’s Desiring.

Admission: One Shilling was first performed by PatriciaRoutledge and Piers Lane in 2009 as part of the annualDame Myra Hess Day at London’s National Gallery, andtells the extraordinary and inspiring story of the famouslunchtime concerts which took place at the Gallerythroughout the Second World War. Myra never wrote herautobiography, and her letters and other articles areparticularly sparse during those war years, all her timebeing taken up playing, practising, and organising theconcerts. The script for this performance has, therefore,been compiled from Myra’s press and radio interviewsduring that time, as well as a few BBC broadcasts whereshe said a few words before playing. Redoubtable,courageous, inspiring, and always with a twinkle in theeye – this is the Myra I would be very proud to call mygreat-aunt!

Nigel Hess

Sponsored by the Friends of Newbury Spring Festival

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Admission: One Shilling

www.pierslane.com80

Join the Friends ofnewburyspringfestivalfrom only £25As a Friend, you benefit from:• minimum of 2 weeks priority booking• Subscription to 'Festival Focus' the Friends in-house magazine• Invitations to Friends events• Newsletters and a membership card

Become a Friend today and support the Newbury Spring Festival

Telephone Jane Pickering (Festival Secretary) on 01635 528766

for more details or log on atwww.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

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The Chapel Sydmonton Court Ecchinswell Tuesday 22 May 3.00pm

Julia McKenzie with Edward SeckersonMy Life in Musical Theatre

Sponsored by Mr Pierre LagrangeAdditional support from Hampshire County CouncilBy kind permission of Lord and Lady Lloyd Webber

Julia McKenzieJulia McKenzie is known asone of Britain's leadinginterpreters of the work ofStephen Sondheim. Herfirst association was in1972 when she joined theproduction of Company atHer Majesty's Theatre. Thenext step broughtinternational recognition inSide by Side by Sondheimand Julia was one of theoriginal creative team

starring in both London and New York. Her thirdSondheim was Follies at the Shaftesbury Theatre playingSally, and followed by The Witch in Into the Woods at thePhoenix Theatre. But undoubtedly her most memorablehas been as Mrs Lovett in the highly acclaimedproduction of Sweeney Todd at the Royal NationalTheatre. Directed by Declan Donnellan, Julia won anOlivier Award for Best Actress in a Musical for this role.

This was the second time she won this award - the firstwas also with the National Theatre as Miss Adelaide inRichard Eyre's revival of Frank Loesser's Guys and Dolls -adding the Variety Club Award and the Society of WestEnd Theatres (SWET) too for her performance.

The other dramatist who has featured in her career is AlanAyckbourn. Julia appeared in earlier plays such as TheNorman Conquests and Ten Times Table and mostrecently in Communicating Doors but his mostdemanding role for her was as Susan in Woman in Mind.For this she won the London Evening Standard Awardand the London Critics Circle Award.

In 2011 Julia played Mrs Crisparkle in The Mystery ofEdwin Drood, directed by Diamuid Lawrence. In 2008,Julia took on the mantle of the iconic role of Miss Marplewhich she has been shooting for the last two years. Thisfollows a much loved appearance in two series of TheCranford Chronicles alongside Dame Judi Dench for theBBC.

Recent features include Marjorie in Notes on a Scandal,directed by Richard Eyre, Lottie Crump in Bright YoungThings directed by Stephen Fry and The Foolish Things inwhich she plays Mrs Abermathy alongside Anjelica

Huston. Recent theatre credits include Gertie in AngusJackson's production of Fuddy Meers at the Arts theatrefor Sam Mendes' company Scamp Productions and ThePhiladelphia Story at the Old Vic co-starring with KevinSpacey.

In the Autumn of 1999, Julia directed at the NationalTheatre. The musical Honk! The Ugly Duckling by GeorgeStiles and Anthony Drewe had first appeared at theStephen Joseph Theatre in Scarborough in 1997 alsounder her direction but now it came to London into therepertoire of the National. The production won the OlivierAward for the best new musical in 2000 and Julia hasgone on to direct further productions - one in Americaand a national tour in the UK.

Julia has worked with the BBC concert orchestra both asa performer and director on musicals staged at the RoyalFestival Hall in London. Firstly, co-narrating Bernstein's Onthe Town, followed by directing the concert version ofPeter Pan, and as both director and narrator in Loesser'sGuys and Dolls and Berlin's Call Me Madam.

Edward SeckersonWriter and broadcasterEdward Seckerson is ChiefClassical Music Critic ofThe Independentnewspaper and a foundermember of The ArtsDesk.Com. He wrote andpresented the long-runningBBC Radio 3 show Stageand Screen where heinterviewed many of thebiggest names in thebusiness – among them

Julie Andrews, Angela Lansbury, Liza Minnelli, StephenSondheim, and Andrew Lloyd Webber. During hisjournalistic career he has written for most major musicpublications and is still on the review panel ofGramophone magazine. He has published two books: abiography of Gustav Mahler and Conversations with theAmerican conductor/composer Michael Tilson Thomas;and for TV has been a commentator at the Cardiff Singerof the Year Competition on several occasions. In 2007 hepresented BBC Radio 4’s musical quiz programmeCounterpoint. Edward is proud to have conducted one ofthe last major interviews with Leonard Bernstein and hisaudio podcast “Sondheim – In Good Company” proved asignificant contribution to Sondheim’s 80th birthday year.

Sponsored by Mr Pierre LagrangeAdditional support from Hampshire County CouncilBy kind permission of Lord and Lady Lloyd Webber

www.edwardseckerson.biz www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Julia McKenzie with Edward Seckerson Festival Talk 5

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Galliard EnsembleKathryn Thomas fluteKatherine Spencer clarinetHelen Simons bassoonOwen Dennis oboeRichard Bayliss horn

Mozart Overture to Magic FluteQuintet in C minor

Bozza Scherzo Op 48

Interval

Barber Summer MusicGrainger Walking TuneArnold Three ShantiesPatterson Westerly Winds

Sponsored by Doves Farm Foods and the Hungerford ConsortiumAdditional financial support from Greenham CommonTrust's Find Me a Grant Scheme

Galliard EnsembleAs former BBC New Generation Artists, the GalliardEnsemble has become one of Britain's leading chambergroups, with repertoire running from Mozart and

Beethoven to Berio and Schoenberg. Soon to celebratetheir 20th anniversary, they play regularly in many ofBritain's prestigious venues such as the Wigmore Hall,South Bank Centre and Bridgewater Hall, at festivalsthroughout Europe, with appearances at the BBC Proms,also at the Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival andthe Bath, Brighton and Harrogate festivals, the MAFRAFestival for the British Council and the Castello Brancoand Porto Festivals in Portugal. They regularly give masterclasses and lectures to the top British music academies.

The Galliard Ensemble has a lively, entertaining anddistinctive performance style that has thrilled audiences inBritain and abroad. The ensemble’s CDs have beenselected by the Sunday Times, BBC Music Magazine,Gramophone, and BBC Radio 3 in their critics’ choices ofoutstanding releases.

Committed to bringing music to a wider audience, theGalliard Ensemble has undertaken educational concertswith Live Music Now! and has enjoyed performing inmany schools, family concerts, workshops anddemonstrations. With a strong interest in contemporarycomposition, in addition to working with Paul Patterson,Gyorgy Ligeti and Richard Rodney Bennett, the GalliardEnsemble has worked with Sir Harrison Birtwistle on hisquintet Five Distances for their performance at the BBCProms.

Programme NotesWOLFGANG AMADEUS MOZART (1756-1791)Overture: The Magic Flute, K620Arranged by Joachim Linckelmann

Die Zauberflöte (The Magic Flute) was first performed atEmanuel Schikaneder’s suburban Freihaus theatre on30th September 1791. It contains the widest range ofmusical styles that Mozart ever put into a single opera,and he employed a large orchestra, including trombones,to add solemnity in connection with the solemn quasi-Masonic rites of Sarastro and his priests. As committedfreemasons, Mozart and his librettist Schikaneder filledthe opera with masonic symbols: one such is therecurring stress on the number three. The charactersinclude three boys and three ladies, the serpent is cut intothree pieces, there are three doors on which the aspiringPrince Tamino must knock. The Overture, moreover,begins with three loud chords, representing, perhaps, thethree knocks by which new members are admitted to theMasonic initiation ceremony. Thereafter music developswith close attention to fugal textures, preparing the wayfor that earnestness which is an important aspect of theopera to follow.

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St Lawrence’s Church Hungerford Tuesday 22 May 7.30pm

Galliard Ensemble

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Serenade in C minor, K388/K406Arranged by Mordechai Rechtman

1. Allegro 2. Andante 3. Menuetto in canone 4. Allegro

One of the attractions of living and working in Vienna wasthe number of excellent musicians with whom Mozart wasin regular contact. This was particularly true of windplayers, which is surely why the operas and concertworks contain so many fine solo opportunities. Althoughthe exact provenance of the C minor Serenade is notknown, it seems most likely to have been composedduring the winter of 1782-3. Originally written for windoctet, Mozart rescored it for string quintet. The presentarrangement is for wind quintet.

The most distinctive feature of the work is that it is cast inthe minor mode. After a formal opening gesture, a fallingphrase is heard, which will pervade not only the firstmovement but the whole Serenade. The distinctivepersonalities of the instruments add an extra dimension tothe emotional ambiguity of the music, the abrupt changesof dynamic intensifying the rich melodic invention.

The Andante is altogether less dramatic, and certainlymore in keeping with the convention of a serenade as'outdoor entertainment music'. The Menuetto in canoneoffers another example of Mozart's ability to take anacademic exercise - in this case strict imitations aroundthe ensemble - to create music of supreme imaginativeand emotional value. The melody initiated by the oboes issoon taken over in imitation by the bassoons, while theconstruction is more intellectual still in the central triosection, which is a double mirror canon (the same notesin reverse).

The final movement is a theme followed by eight free-ranging variations. Mozart was a master of this type ofcomposition, for the effect is such that the whole is farmore than the sum of the parts. And the essentially tragictone of the whole composition is confirmed by the finalgesture, moving the music back into C major.

EUGÈNE BOZZA (1905-1991)Scherzo, Opus 48

Bozza is known chiefly for his chamber music, but he alsocomposed five symphonies, plus operas and balletscores. His larger works are rarely performed outside hisnative France. He had a successful career as anacademic, becoming Director of the École Nationale deMusique at Valenciennes, where he worked from 1951until his retirement in 1975.

Particularly noted for his wind writing, Bozza understoodthe capabilities of the various instruments, oftendemanding of his players a high level of technical skill,while maintaining an expressive melodic style. Thisattractive Scherzo for wind quintet has abundant Galliccharm.

SAMUEL BARBER (1910-1981)Summer Music for Wind Quintet, Opus 31

Samuel Barber's musical language reveals a strongaffinity with the European tradition. He composed in allthe important forms and genres, and several of hiscompositions have become firmly established in theinternational repertory. The best known of these isundoubtedly the eloquent Adagio for Strings, but in recentyears his beautifully lyrical Violin Concerto has foundacknowledgement as a major achievement. Itscombination of Barber's naturally romantic melodicinventiveness with a capacity for generating considerablebrilliance confirms the range of his style.

Chamber music played only a small part in Barber’screative priorities, though he did produce masterpiecesfor both string quartet and wind ensemble. The latter workis the single-movement Summer Music, his only excursioninto the realm of the wind quintet, which was composedin 1956. The opening section is particularly evocative;cast as a duo for high bassoon and muted horn, themusic is described in the score as ‘slow and indolent’.This summer mood sets the tone for the whole piece,particularly in the way that the individual personality ofeach instrument is brought out to maximum effect.

PERCY GRAINGER (1882-1961)Walking Tune

The Australian composer Percy Grainger came to Europeto study at the Frankfurt Conservatoire, where he madethe acquaintance of several English composers: NormanO'Neill, Cyril Scott, Roger Quilter and Henry BalfourGardiner. It was with their encouragement that he settledin England when he graduated, whereupon he plungedheadlong into the folk-song movement. And it is for hisfolk-song arrangements and related compositions thatGrainger's reputation most surely rests, though as amusician he had wide-ranging interests: both StephenFoster and Duke Ellington were firm favourites, forinstance.

Of Walking Tune Grainger wrote: ‘I composed this littletune as a whistling accompaniment to my tramping feet,while on a three-day walk in Western Argyllshire duringthe summer of 1900.’

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SIR MALCOLM ARNOLD (1921-2006)Three Shanties, Opus 4

1. Allegro con brio 2. Allegretto semplice 3. Vivace

Malcolm Arnold was a central figure in British musical lifefor more than fifty years. In 1940 he joined the LondonPhilharmonic Orchestra, returning to it five years later,after war service, to become principal trumpet. But soonhis priority changed to composition, following the awardof the Mendelssohn Scholarship and a year of study inItaly. His output was considerable, with highly successfulmusic for films, including Bridge over the River Kwai andThe Inn of the Sixth Happiness, while for the concert hallthere are nine symphonies and numerous shorter works,including nearly twenty concertos.

The Three Shanties were written in 1943 for the windquintet of the London Philharmonic Orchestra. The firstperformance that August was unusual, since it took placeduring the lunch break in an aircraft hangar at Filton, nearBristol. The music is high spirited, making virtuosodemands on the performers, and using a shanty as thebasis of each movement in turn: What shall we do withdrunken sailor?, Boney was a warrior and Johnny comedown to Hilo. These are far more than arrangements,however, since the original material is ingeniouslyrecomposed and given a new lease of life, which is atonce infectious and appealing.

© Terry Barfoot

PAUL PATTERSON (b. 1947)Westerly Winds

1. Scrumpy Giles (Somerset)2. Widecombe Jan (Devon)3. Lazy Lawrence (Dorset) - To the tune ‘Linden Lea’4. The Looe Bar Lady (Cornwall) - To the tune ‘Helston

Floral Dance’

Westerly Winds, a recasting by the composer for windquintet of the orchestral Four Rustic Sketches, is a suite ofshort fantasias based on West Country folktunes. Theopening Scrumpy Giles is based on the Somerset tuneFarmer Giles, leading off with a formal unison statementof the tune before setting off upon its even-temperedcourse. Before long, though, the tempo speeds up andthe tune finds itself been accorded a far less deferentialtreatment before a final upward flourish brings matters toa forceful end.

The Devon tune Widecombe Fair is the subject of thesecond movement, Widecombe Jan, and its unruffledmanner imparts the music the character of an Intermezzo.

The third movement, Lazy Lawrence, is the slowmovement proper, and it uses the Dorset folk tune Linden

Lea. The calm opening portion of the movement is offsetby a more agitated central section which briefly disturbsthe peaceful atmosphere. Eventually, Linden Lea restoreseverything to order with a grand, dignified statementbefore fading away to a quiet close.

The concluding movement, The Looe Bar Lady, turns itsgaze towards Cornwall, with the Heston Floral Dancetaking centre stage. Its dominance, however, is notuncontested, since another West Country tune, TheBritish Grenadiers, soon aided and abetted by FarmerGiles and Linden Lea, repeatedly barges in and threatensto hog the limelight. However, the Floral Dance succeedsin having the last say as the music makes a frantic dashfor the finishing line.

Westerly Winds was written for the Galliard Ensemble, andpremiered by them at the Purcell Room on 7th December1999.

© Paul Patterson

Sponsored by Doves Farm Foods and the HungerfordConsortiumAdditional financial support from Greenham CommonTrust's Find Me a Grant Scheme

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Corn Exchange Newbury Tuesday 22 May 7.30pm

Mugenkyo Taiko DrummersMugenkyo Taiko Drummers are the UK’s longestestablished taiko ensemble and Europe’s onlyprofessional touring company of this thrilling andenergetic performing art who live up to the meaning oftheir name “limitless reverberation”!

Sponsored by Strutt & Parker

Mugenkyo Taiko DrummersMugenkyo Taiko Drummers are the UK’s first and onlyprofessional touring taiko group, and Europe’s mostestablished performing company in this fast-expandingfield. Through performing over 100 concerts a year, thegroup have built a solid reputation for their hard-hitting andenergetic performances since their establishment in 1994.

Mugenkyo’s main work is touring a full-length concert attheatres and concert halls, including London QueenElizabeth Hall, Nottingham Royal Concert Hall,Cambridge Corn Exchange, Gateshead Sage, ReadingHexagon, Bristol Colston Hall, Edinburgh Usher Hall,amongst others. The group has appeared on numeroustelevision and radio programmes worldwide, including theBrit Awards, BBC Last Night of the Proms, the GenerationGame and has even featured in a Bollywood film.

Mugenkyo present taiko in a modern and theatrical style –with precise choreography, dramatic lighting, and a varietyof costumes ranging from the post-apocalyptic industrial

to gorgeous earthy silks. The concert is extremelymusically varied; powerful rhythms, huge taiko drums,delicate shinobue bamboo flute, expressive percussion,and dance. Through their years of rigorous touring,Mugenkyo have developed a style that is uniquely theirown. Retaining the traditional spirit of taiko, yet creating athoroughly contemporary sound, Mugenkyo are forging anew path with their innovative approach.

Mugenkyo push the boundaries of Taiko with their variousartistic collaborations. In 2004 Mugenkyo presented theshow “Rinnetensho” with Tokyo-based contemporarydance group “Company East” on the theme of re-incarnation, a multi-media presentation using taiko, danceand projected visuals. In 2005 Mugenkyo collaboratedwith bagpiper and Scottish Musician of the Year, StuartCassells, which was broadcast live worldwide on BBCLast Night of the Proms. More recently Mugenkyo havetoured with Hanayui from Sado Island, from the world-famous Kodo Drummers, appeared with electronic danceartist Kenji Williams at the Glastonbury Festival, touredwith Japanese bellydance artist Lale Sayoko and co-wroteand performed “Yatra” a collaboration of South Asian andScottish traditional music for the 2008 & 2009 MelaFestivals. In 2010 & 2011 the group collaborated on ajoint tour with saxophonist Tommy Smith and the ScottishNational Jazz Orchestra.

Mugenkyo perform in Japan regularly: on invitation by theJapanese government to open the 2005 EU-Japan Year ofExchange, their 10th Anniversary Concert in 2004, and forthe prince and princess at the British Embassy in Tokyo.To continue their ongoing training at the highest level, andfurther develop their strong foundations in technique,Mugenkyo return to Japan regularly, where founders ofthe group Neil Mackie and Miyuki Williams lived andtrained intensively in 1992 - 1994 with Master DrummerMasaaki Kurumaya Sensei.

In 2002 the group established the Mugen Taiko Dojo:Centre for Taiko Drumming in the UK - the first purpose-built taiko dojo in Britain, based in rural Central Scotland,and a dedicated training centre for players from all overthe UK. Under the umbrella of the Mugen Taiko Dojo,members of the group tour an award-winning educationalconcert at schools, undertake educational outreachprojects with local authorities all over the UK, and run in-depth courses for adults and weekend residentialworkshops at the dojo.

Sponsored by Strutt & Parker

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Young Artists Lunchtime Recital 5Oonagh LeeRoselyn MaynardGail MacLeodKathryn CorriganEmily Bloom

During its long and varied history as an instrument playedat Royal Courts as well as in popular domestic musicmaking, the recorder has been associated with thecharacteristics of all of the above. In this provocativeprogramme, “The Recorder: Europe’s Richman, Poorman,Beggarman or Thief?”, Consortium5 displays the wealth,colour and diversity of music that the recorder either'owns' or has claimed and appropriated for thisperformance on an impressive range of renaissance,baroque and modern instruments.

Clemens Thieme Sonata a 5 viole in D Minor Isaac Posch Paduana and GagliardaKim Ashton Dots (2010) Richard Lannoy Tangled Pipes (2010)Georg Philipp Telemann Concerto in G Major

(arr. Viola Concerto TW 59:G9) Francesco Guerrero Ave Virgo Sanctissima

En tanto que de Rosa y acucena

David Bedford Variations and Cadenzas (2008)

Augustine Bassano Galliard

Anthony Holborne Alman: The Honeysuckle Galliard

William Brade Coranta


Consortium5Consortium5 formed in 2005 when its founding memberswere students at the Royal Academy of Music. They havesince established themselves as one of the foremostrecorder consorts of their generation, and an ensemble ofunique appeal to a wide range of audiences. Founded outof a shared love of consort music and recorders,Consortium5 have performed in Europe and the UK atmajor festivals and concert series. In 2010 they recordedtheir debut album on the Nonclassical Label, votedamong the top ten best classical albums of the year byChicago Time Out. Working with composers has formed acentral part of Consortium5's activity over the past fouryears, and this album features works commissionedespecially for and by the group. A recent review from theinfluential blog Sequenza21 concludes that the album‘suggests a new frontier for chamber ensembles’.

Winners of numerous prizes and awards, Consortium5made their Purcell Room debut in 2009 as part of thePark Lane Group Young Artists Series. In 2007-2009 theywere Joan Greenfield Junior Fellows at Trinity College ofMusic and in 2006 they were awarded the Deutsche BankPyramid Award for performance, a prize that allowedthem to invest in a set of 10 matching consortinstruments. Equally committed to performance on theconcert platform and in the community, Consortium5spent several years resident on the Live Music Nowscheme, and have performed numerous concerts forLondon based music services, reaching over 7000children, many of whom had never attended aprofessional music concert before.

Since forming, Consortium5 have combined historicallyinformed and contemporary performance to great effect inboth concerts and educational work. Consortium5 enjoyworking closely with composers throughout thecomposition process and it has been their great delight todiscover the fascination these instruments hold forcomposers and the richness and variety with which theirlanguage speaks through the consort. Consortium5 areparticularly interested in the bridges that thesecompositions build; new consorts from the archaicconsort form, new works for ancient instruments, acontemporary dimension to the recorder thatconcentrates without compromise on both its simplicityand its myriad complexities.23

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Programme NotesCLEMENS THIEME (1631-1668)Sonata a 5 viole in D Minor

The German composer Clemens Thieme was born in theyear 1631 near Dresden. In 1642, after completing his firstmusical training in Dresden, Heinrich Schütz arranged forhim to be sent to Copenhagen as a choir boy. After hisreturn to Dresden he received training on severalinstruments, and later a position at the Dresden Cappella.Thanks to a recommendation by Heinrich Schütz he wasthen transferred to the court cappella in Zeitz, becomingfirst concertmaster and director of the cappella. He diedin 1668, at the age of 37.

Thieme's instrumental sonatas alternate between livelyhomophony and fugue-like episodes over a decidedbass. They are a succession of short movements thatvary thematically and in character, speed and meter.

ISAAC POSCH (?-1623)Paduana and Gagliarda

Isaac Posch was an Austrian composer of the earlybaroque, working in Carinthia from approximately 1614,where he was employed as an organist and organ builder.Posch is seen as an important composer in thedevelopment of the variation suite and dance music. HisMusicalische Tafelfreudt of 1621 features a selection ofunique works, including the lively five part Paduana andGagliarda that we are playing today.

KIM ASHTONDots (2010)

Composer - conductor - teacher - gardener - in Kim'smusic the sounds of nature meet Schoenberg, Bachmeets Jung, and zen calm meets spirited assertiveness.Dots is a fast-moving journey through different texturaland harmonic regions, invaded by an exotic songbird,and ending with dancing. (Or in the form of a haiku:‘Leaves rustle to start/ A low, exotic songbird/ Dancing tofinish’)

RICHARD LANNOYTangled Pipes (2010)

Though largely modelled on Bach's Fugue no.2 Book 1from the Well Tempered Clavier, ‘Tangled Pipes’ embracescontemporary extended instrumental techniques with amodern urban toughness reflecting dual interests as a'serious’ composer and DJ/turntablist whilst extending theBach model from 3 to 5 voices. Marked ‘Tough & Punchy’in the score, ‘Tangled Pipes' kicks-off in typical fuguetradition with a short, pithy opening ‘subject’ yetextending analogy to a bass line derived from adancefloor drum'n'bass remix, the overall result beingrhythmically, sonically and characteristically immersed ina similar vibe.

GEORG PHILIPP TELEMANN (1681-1767)Concerto in G Major (arr. Viola Concerto TW 59:G9)

Largo - Allegro - Andante - Presto

Telemann’s Concerto in G major, originally for viola, wascomposed sometime between 1716 and 1721 during aparticularly fruitful period in which Telemann beganpublishing collections of his own instrumental works. Theconcerto follows a common baroque structure alternatingslow and fast movements in which the first and thirdpresent the soloist in elegant and curvaceous phrasessupported by the ensemble through a simplehomophonic accompaniment and movements two andfour are based on a ritornello structure where the musicswiftly alternates between brief sections for the ensembleand the soloist. Telemann was highly regarded amongsthis contemporaries for both the quality of hiscompositions and his exceptional output. He was a closefriend of J.S. Bach and became Godfather and namesakeof Carl Philipp Emanuel.

FRANCESCO GUERRERO (1528-1599)Ave Virgo Sanctissima En tanto que de Rosa y acucena

Francesco Guerrero was a composer of the SpanishRenaissance. A native of Seville, his output notablyincludes sacred and secular works unlike the betterknown Victoria. He was able in several instrumentsincluding the harp, cornett and organ but alongsidecomposition it was as a singer that he most distinguishedhimself. The motet Ave Virgo Sanctissima is one of hismost popular pieces both then and now. Althoughstructurally a tightly bound canon this constraint does notprevent the music reflecting the deeply devotional text inhonour of the Virgin Mary. Rich chromatic lines weaveacross the ensemble describing Mary first as ‘the star ofthe ocean most clear’, then comparing her to a lily andfinally ending with her as the rose.

We remain with flowers for our second piece by Guerrerowhich is a madrigal setting text by the Spanish poetGarcilaso De La Vega. In this sonnet the authorcelebrates the beauty of youth through the vibrancy of therose and lily and golden seams of hair and yet he mournsthat this will inevitably fade and this is nature’s way.

DAVID BEDFORD (1937-2011)Variations and Cadenzas (2008) (on a theme fromSusato’s “Danserye”)

Bedford’s composition “Variations and Cadenzas” is atriumphant fusion of two musical styles that are ideallysuited to the recorder. Bedford used as his inspiration apiece by Susato that was written in the Renaissanceperiod: a time when the recorder was in its heyday andwhen it showed its strength through consort playing.Bedford took this strength in part-writing and brought

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Susato's piece right up to date, giving it a new lease oflife. Written in five equal parts this exciting work uses fivedifferent sizes of recorder with each player using severaldifferent sizes throughout the piece and four of the fiveplayers occasionally playing two recorderssimultaneously. Bedford has incorporated extendedtechniques that further explore the expressive potential ofthe recorder, such as flutter-tonguing and pitch bendingto great effect. This piece was commissioned for the ParkLane Group Young Artists Series 2009 and was written“as a response to hearing the extreme skill and virtuosityof the performers, so has some very challengingmoments.”

AUGUSTINE BASSANO (? - 1604)Galliard

ANTHONY HOLBORNE (1545 - 1602)Alman: The Honeysuckle Galliard

WILLIAM BRADE (1560 - 1630)Coranta

A brisk Galliard by Bassano opens this suite of dances.Composed using plenty of sparkly cross-rhythms,Bassano wrote this piece whilst he was a member of therecorder consort in the English court. Holborne's Almanand Galliard are full of innocent charm, with slow movinghomophonic parts and more cross-rhythms offeringplenty of variety. Rounding off this selection, we have aswift energetic Coranta by William Brade, who spentmuch of his life abroad working at courts in Denmark andNorthern Germany. All of these dances were composedfor “unbroken” consort and so would have beenperformed together with other dances on viols orrecorders.


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8 Nimrod, De Havilland Way, Range Road, Witney, Oxfordshire, OX29 0YGT: 01993 705838 E: [email protected] W: www.shackellpianos.co.uk

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Romeo and JulietRudolf NureyevMargot FonteynThe Royal Ballet, Covent Garden

In the second film celebrating legends of both opera andballet the Festival presents Romeo and Juliet, the 1966film of Kenneth MacMillan’s ballet to Prokofiev’spassionate score.

Ross Alley, lecturer on opera and ballet at the RoyalOpera House, will introduce and talk about the film beforethe screening.


Rudolf Nureyev (1938-93)No male dancer ever had more influence on the history,style and public perception of ballet than Rudolf Nureyev.He changed people’s expectations. Starting out frominauspicious beginnings in a remote town in the Urals, heended up changing the whole face of the art. Byindefatigably performing a uniquely wide repertoire nightafter night, year after year, all over the world he reached awider audience than any rival. The dramaticcircumstances of his arrival in the West, his so-called“leap to freedom” put him immediately on the front pagesof the world’s newspapers but it was his personality thatkept him there.

Margot Fonteyn (1919-91)Margot Fonteyn was born in Reigate, Surrey. In 1933, shejoined the Vic-Wells Ballet School, the predecessor oftoday's Royal Ballet School. She made quick progressand in 1939 had already danced Giselle, Odette-Odileand Aurora. She became the world's greatest ballerinaand could have retired as such when she was 40. But hermeeting with Rudolf Nureyev in 1962 gave the world themagic of their great partnership and her career continueduntil she was 58.

Kenneth MacMillan (1929-1992)Kenneth MacMillan was the leading ballet choreographerof his generation. Born of a poor Scottish family, he had aburning sense that ballet theatre should reflectcontemporary realities and the complicated truths ofpeople’s lives. He became director of The Royal Balletand created some of the outstanding dance works of thetwentieth century.

Ross AlleyRoss Alley is a native of New Zealand, he worked as apianist and music teacher at the National School of Balletand the Australian Ballet Company and School beforemoving to England. In London he was employed by theRoyal Ballet School as a pianist, with responsibilities as amusic tutor to develop the teachers’ training course andcreate the pianists training programme for aspiring balletaccompanists. He is closely associated with the CecchettiSociety, researching, editing and arranging music for thesyllabi. Ross Alley lectures on classical music at the RoyalOpera House, organized by the Royal Opera HouseEducation Department with the University of London andFriends of Covent Garden.

Romeo and JulietEven though the only version of Prokofiev’s Romeo andJuliet choreographed by Leonid Lavrovski was part of theKirov’s repertoire when Rudolf Nurevey danced there, hedid not get the chance to perform it.

It was only in 1965 that he danced the part in achoreography by MacMillan. In fact, the Britishchoreographer designed the ballet for his favouriteballerina, Lynn Seymour (Juliet) and for ChristopherGable (Romeo). But just a few days before the premiere,the management of the Royal Ballet imposed the mostfamous couple of the time! Margot Fonteyn and RudolfNureyev, whom everyone wanted to see dancing and whoguaranteed a ballet’s success.

The first performance of MacMillan’s Romeo and Juliet onFebruary 9th 1965 was applauded by the audience for 40minutes in spite of the fact the Nureyev was recoveringfrom an injury and danced with a bandaged leg. “Evenwith one leg, Mr Rudolf Nureyev dances better thanothers with two legs!” wrote the enthusiastic critic at TheTimes. MacMillan’s production was accepted as one ofthe repertoire’s great classics and the couple continuedto star both in London and in New York. The performancewas magnificently filmed by Paul Czinner in 1966.



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Brodsky Quartet40th Anniversary ConcertIan Belton violinDaniel Rowland violinPaul Cassidy violaJacqueline Thomas cello

Purcell Chaconne in G minorTanaka At the grave of BeethovenRespighi String Quartet Dorico

Interval

Schubert Quartettsätz D703Puccini CrisantemiDebussy Quartet

Sponsored by Fairhurst Estates

Brodsky QuartetThe Brodsky Quartet are at the forefront of theinternational chamber music scene. Their love andmastery of the traditional string quartet repertoire isevident from their highly acclaimed performances ofcomposers ranging from Haydn, Beethoven, Schubertand Tchaikovsky to Shostakovich, Bartok, Britten andRespighi, as well as from their extensive, award-winningdiscography.

At the same time, the Quartet are known for theirpioneering work with a diverse range of performingartists, including singers Elvis Costello, Sting, Anne Sofie

von Otter, Dawn Upshaw and Björk, instrumentalistsMichael Collins, Joan Lluna, Martin Roscoe, AlexanderBaillie, Tunde Jegede, Complicite Theatre Company andIcelandic poet Sjon, while their many collaborations withdistinguished composers, including John Tavener, WitoldLutoslawski, Peter Sculthorpe, Django Bates, SallyBeamish, Dave Brubeck and Peter Maxwell Davies, havegiven them an unrivalled opportunity to influence andinspire some of the newest work for string quartet. Theirpassion to embrace “all good music” has been the drivingforce behind their success and has kept their approachfresh and their enthusiasm high over the years.

They have a huge and diverse discography, havingworked with many major labels, finally forming their ownlabel, Brodsky Records, in 2005. Recent awards includethe Diapason D'Or for their recordings of string quartetsby Britten, Beethoven and Janacek, whilst for theiroutstanding contribution to innovation in programmingthe Brodsky Quartet has received a Royal PhilharmonicSociety Award. They have taught at many internationalchamber music courses and held residencies in severalmusic institutes. They currently hold the InternationalChair of Chamber Music at the Royal Scottish Academy ofMusic and Drama.

The quartet is named after the great Russian violinistAdolf Brodsky, dedicatee of Tchaikovsky's violin concertoand passionate chamber musician, who played animportant role in musical life in 1920’s Manchester and atthe Royal Northern College of Music where the quartetstudied.

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Programme NotesHENRY PURCELL (1659-1695)Chaconne in G minor

Although Purcell's reputation rests mainly on his vocalmusic, both sacred and secular, he did consistently writeinstrumental pieces of high quality. In most cases thesewere designed for inclusion in larger scale works, such asthe semi-operas, with significant vocal parts, but in othercompositions his own private satisfaction seems to havebeen of paramount concern.

The four-part Chaconne in G minor is among the fewinstrumental works by Purcell to have secured apermanent place in the orchestral or chamber musicrepertories. Its popularity owes much to the enthusiasm ofBenjamin Britten, who made his performing arrangementfor string quartet or string orchestra in 1965. Whatever itssource or realisation, the Chaconne is a glorious exampleof music whose slow pulse unfolds an expressive lineabove a recurring theme in the bass, of that naturalexpression of grave nobility which is unique to Purcell.

© Terry Barfoot

KAREN TANAKA (1961-)At the grave of Beethoven

Karen Tanaka is acclaimed as one of the leading livingcomposers from Japan. She has been invited as acomposer in residence at many important festivals, andher music has been widely performed throughout theworld.

‘At the grave of Beethoven was commissioned by theBrodsky Quartet, on the occasion of the bicentenaryanniversary of Beethoven's Opus 18. The title suggestsadmiration and a tribute towards Beethoven, and thiswork is based on Beethoven's string quartet Opus 18 No.3, perhaps the most gentle and lyrical in the set. I feel thepure spirit and ardent hope of young Beethoven in it.

The first movement of At the grave of Beethoven wasinspired by the first four bars of Opus 18 No. 3. Thesewere developed and interpreted in a contemporarymanner, reflecting the tension and anxiety of our lifetoday. The second movement is made by chains ofmodulations. When I was writing this movement in thespring of 1999, the news from Kosovo was reported onTV every day. I was shocked and horrified by this civil war,and it influenced my writing unconsciously. Along witheach modulation, I had images that lotus flowers growand bloom, in the hope of serenity and peace.’

© Karen Tanaka

OTTORINO RESPIGHI (1879-1936)Quartetto Dorico

After graduating from the academy in 1899, Respighigained the position of principal violist in the orchestra ofthe St Petersburg Opera Theatre. Rimsky-Korsakov

accepted him as a student, and he played at LesVendredis, the Friday evening chamber music gatheringshosted by the millionaire publisher, Belaiev. Respighi’sString Quartet in D major was composed a few yearslater, from the time when the composer was a member ofthe Mugellini Quartet in Bologna. All his chamber musiccompositions were all written between 1892 and 1910.Thereafter he concentrated on larger works; operas,ballets, symphonic poems, concertos. Only his finalquartet, the Dorico (1924), was written later.

The Quartetto Dorico was one of several compositions byRespighi to be inspired by Gergorian chant. It owes itsname, of course, to the Dorian mode, which is bestdefined as the church mode represented on the whitekeys of the piano by an ascending scale from D to D. Theprincipal theme is derived from this mode. Although castin a single unbroken movement, the work can easily beunderstood in terms of four sections corresponding to themovements of a classical quartet, with the scherzo placedsecond and the slow movement third.

The theme in the Dorian mode is the mainspring for theentire composition, and this was probably why thecomposer opted to have a single unified entity across asingle span of more than twenty minutes.

FRANZ SCHUBERT (1797-1828)String Quartet in C minor, D.703'Quartettsätz'

Schubert composed his String Quartet movement in Cminor, known to the world by its German title Quartettsätz,in 1820. It represents one of the clearest indications thatat this time he was entering a new phase of his creativelife. His musical style was becoming more powerful andexpressive, generating more emotional and lessclassically inclined compositions.

Whether this single movement was originally intended toform part of a conventional four-movement quartet is notknown, and the work therefore assumes a position as theequivalent in chamber music of the celebrated UnfinishedSymphony. What is beyond doubt, however, is itsextraordinary intensity of vision, the quality which hasmost surely maintained its position at the heart of therepertory.

The opening phase of the Quartettsätz is restless indeed,with overlapping entries serving to intensify the mood stillfurther. At the centre of the piece, however, lies anepisode which achieves a stillness which emotionally liesat the opposite remove. In the concluding section theintensity returns, with new treatments of the familiarmaterial, eventually resolving on to an emphatic finalchord.

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GIACOMO PUCCINI (1858-1924)Crisantemi

Puccini wrote his Crisantemi for string quartet in 1890, asan elegy for a friend: 'in memory of Amedeo of Savoy,Duke of Aosta.' The music has that same delicatesadness he often created in operatic scenes; in fact hewent on to use the material in the finale act of ManonLescaut. There is a mood of real pathos, and the sincerityand tenderness derive principally from the sophisticatedharmonic textures. Had Puccini chosen to become acomposer of instrumental music rather than operas, whatmight he have achieved?

The title Crisantemi holds a special significance, since inItaly chrysanthemums are traditionally associated withmourning.

CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918)String Quartet in G minor, Opus 10

1. Animé et très décidé 2. Assez vif et bien rythmé3. Andantino, doucement expressif 4. Très modéré

In some respects the String Quartet, which Debussycomposed in 1893, stands out among his compositions.For example, it is the only music to which he ascribed anopus number and a key. Moreover, the title is a reminderthat it is far removed from the nature of his impressionistcompositions.

Within a year of completing the Quartet, he abandonedplans for a second, and embarked instead upon thecomposition of the Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune,which explores a quite different world in another, andstylistically newer, musical language. This might suggestthat Debussy turned his back on classicism for good; buttowards the end of his life he returned to the classicalforms in his three chamber music sonatas.

It was from César Franck that Debussy inherited the cyclicform which is such an important feature of the Quartet.The descending motif which is heard at the outset returnsin a different guise, marked 'gentle and expressive', inorder to become the second theme. In due course ityields further material besides, such as the viola's themeat the start of the scherzo, and the slow introduction andsubsequent faster music in the finale.

However, the noteable characteristics of the Quartet alsoinclude a remarkable intensity of feeling and flexibility oftempi. Thus the second subject of the first movementmust be played 'a little slower', while in the closing pagesthe music becomes increasingly faster and wilder. Thescherzo makes great play with pizzicati and a subtle ‘twoagainst three’ rhythm, while the middle section movesalong more peacefully.

There is no question that the slow movement forms theemotional heart of the Quartet, since it is a deeply movingsoliloquy of devotional character. The finale sets outslowly, but soon the music becomes more animated, untilit is played 'with full movement and passion', allowing thework to conclude with a brilliant affirmation.

© Terry Barfoot

Sponsored by Fairhurst Estates

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Shaw House Church Road Shaw Thursday 24 May 11.00am 3.00pm

The Queen – Art and Image

Since her accession in 1952, Queen Elizabeth II has beenthe subject of relentless visual scrutiny. Paul Moorhouse,curator of the exhibition “The Queen - Art and Image”which opens at the National Portrait Gallery on 17 May,explores the development of the Queen’s image duringthe course of her reign. He considers the role of formalpainted portraits, studio photographs, the mass-mediaand contemporary artists in influencing the way theQueen has been perceived. He argues that such imagesare much more than a fascinating biographical record:they provide vital insights into radical changes in socialattitudes and artistic values.

Paul MoorhousePaul Moorhouse isTwentieth Century Curatorat the National PortraitGallery, a post he has heldsince 2005. From 1985 to2005 he was Curator,Modern Collection, latterlySenior Curator ofContemporary Art, at Tate.A specialist in internationaltwentieth century art, hehas curated numerousexhibitions at major venues

within Great Britain and abroad and has published andlectured extensively.

Recent exhibitions he has organised include: The Queen -Art and Image (touring exhibition, including the NationalPortrait Gallery, 2011-12), Warhol/Icon (Byzantine andChristian Museum, Athens 2009), Gerhard RichterPortraits (NPG, 2009), Pop Art Portraits (NPG 2007-8),John Latham (Tate Britain, 2006), Anthony Caro (TateBritain 2005), Bridget Riley (Tate Britain, 2003), MichaelAndrews (Tate Gallery, 2001), John Hoyland (RoyalAcademy of Arts (1999), Francis Bacon (MilleniumGalleries, Sheffield 1996), Leon Kossoff (Tate Gallery,1995), and The Transformation of Appearance - Auerbach,Andrews, Bacon, Freud and Kossoff (Sainsbury Centre,1990). On joining the National Portrait Gallery he devisedthe Interventions series, a programme of specialmonographic exhibitions which explores innovatoryapproaches to portraiture by major 20th Century artists.Within that series the artists he has featured include AndyWarhol, Francis Bacon, Jim Dine, Anthony Caro, BridgetRiley, Frank Auerbach and Tony Bevan, among others.

Recent publications include the books The Queen - Artand Image (2011), Anthony Caro: Presence (2010);Bridget Riley - From Life ( 2010); Gerhard Richter Portraits(2009); Pop Art Portraits (2007); Interpreting Caro (2005);John Virtue - Paintings of London (2005); Richard Long -Walking the Line (2003); and Albert Irvin - Life to Painting(1998) as well as many exhibition catalogues and essays.Forthcoming publications include a book on CindySherman and essays for a major history of the RoyalAcademy of Art. Recent lectures and talks include the2010 Peter Fuller Memorial Lecture - In conversation withAnthony Caro, at Tate Britain; In conversation with BridgetRiley at St John’s College, Cambridge; and The Queen, atCheltenham Literature Festival. He is currently organizingthe exhibitions The Great War in Portraits and GiacomettiPortraits to be held at the National Portrait Gallery in 2014and 2015.

www.npg.org.uk www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

Paul Moorhouse Festival Talk 6

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Stephen HoughBeethoven Sonata in C sharp minor Op 27

No 2 MoonlightHough Sonata for Piano Broken branchesScriabin Sonata No 5

Interval

Liszt Sonata in B minor

Sponsored by Thomas Eggar LLP and Mr Leopold de Rothschild CBE

This concert will be broadcast inRadio 3 Sunday Concert on BBCRadio 3 on Sunday 3 June 2012 at2:00pm

Stephen HoughWith a singular artistic vision that transcends musicalfashions and trends, Stephen Hough is widely regardedas one of the most important and distinctive pianists ofhis generation. In recognition of his achievements, he wasawarded a prestigious MacArthur Fellowship in 2001,joining prominent scientists, writers and others who havemade unique contributions to contemporary life.

Stephen Hough has appeared with most of the majorEuropean and American orchestras and plays recitalsregularly in the major halls and concert series around theworld. He is a guest at international festivals and the BBC

Proms, where he has made over 15 concertoappearances. Recent engagements include performanceswith the New York and London Philharmonics, the Londonand San Francisco Symphonies, a US tour with theRussian National Orchestra led by Vladimir Jurowski, anda worldwide televised performance with the BerlinPhilharmonic under Sir Simon Rattle. In 2009 Houghplayed recitals in the Royal Festival Hall as well asbecoming the first British instrumentalist to give a solorecital on the main stage of Carnegie Hall in nearly 20years.

An exclusive Hyperion recording artist, many of StephenHough’s catalogue of over 50 CDs have garneredinternational prizes. His most recent releases are theComplete Works for Piano and Orchestra by Tchaikovskywith the Minnesota Orchestra led by Osmo Vänskä, and aChopin recital: ‘Late Masterpieces’.

Stephen Hough is also an avid writer and composer. Inaddition to scholarly and critically-acclaimed CD linernotes and articles for music publications, he has writtenfor The Guardian, The Times, and was invited by theTelegraph Media Group in December 2008 to start acultural blog. Hough has written extensively abouttheology for the print media and has been interviewed ontwo special guest-edited episodes of BBC Radio 4’s TheToday Programme by Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connorand Baroness Shirley Williams. Hough’s book, The Bibleas Prayer, was published by Continuum and Paulist Pressin 2007.

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Earlier in 2007, Hough’s cello concerto ‘The LoneliestWilderness’ was premiered by Steven Isserlis and theRoyal Liverpool Philharmonic and two choral works -Mass of Innocence and Experience and Missa Mirabilis -were performed at London’s Westminster Abbey andWestminster Cathedral respectively. In January 2009,Hough’s trio, Was mit den Tränen geschieht,commissioned by members of the Berlin Philharmonic,received its world premiere at the Berlin Philharmonie. Astring sextet, Requiem Aeternum: after Victoria, wascommissioned by the National Gallery for their majorautumn 2009 exhibition, The Sacred Made Real: SpanishPainting and Sculpture 1600-1700. Hough has alsopublished numerous compositions with Josef WeinbergerLtd.

A resident of London, Stephen Hough is a visitingprofessor at the Royal Academy of Music in London andholds the International Chair of Piano Studies at his almamater, the Royal Northern College in Manchester.

Programme NotesStrange sonatas is the theme behind this programme.‘Sonata’ was originally a term used to denote a piece‘sounding’ rather than ‘singing’ - for instruments ratherthan voices. It has had a rich history from the single-movement forms of Scarlatti through the classical centrepoint of the Viennese classics to the outer boundaries ofBoulez and Cage. For all its multiplicity, the term itself haskept meaning in its wordlessness and its seriousness: asonata, regardless of form, is a statement - of unity if notof uniformity.

LUDVIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)Sonata in C sharp minor Op 27 No 2 Moonlight

Beethoven’s astonishing Moonlight sonata is perhaps themost famous example of the genre in history. The firstmovement is an improvisation, a tuneless wash of colourwith gentle triplets blurred into mystery through longpedals and bass textures. After a short, lilting minuet andtrio, the C sharp minor arpeggios return in the finalmovement, but now with ferocity and velocity, andpunching accents on the final beats of the bar. Thismovement shares with the later Appassionata sonataFinale an unwillingness to let any light brighten the mood.It is turbulent without respite.

STEPHEN HOUGH (1961-)Sonata for Piano Broken branches

My sonata is constructed of sixteen small, inconclusivesections, but I wanted a title which would pull thesefragments together. The work is not a collection of albumleaves – of saplings existing comfortably in their ownspace – but branches from a single tree. Broken branchesin three senses: fragments of fragility, related in theme butincomplete and damaged; an oblique tribute to Janáek’s

cycle On an Overgrown Path; and finally a spiritualdimension: ‘I am the vine, you are the branches. Cut offfrom me you can do nothing’, said Christ to his disciplesin St. John’s Gospel. The climax of this Sonata is asection called ‘non credo’, based on material from theCredo of my Missa Mirabilis which explores issues ofdoubt and despair in the context of the concreteaffirmations of the Nicene Creed. The penultimate section,a wordless but metrically exact setting of the 6th centurytext Crux Fidelis, reveals another ‘branch’ - the wood ofthe Cross. The Sonata begins with a ‘Prelude (Autumn)’and ends with a ‘Postlude (Spring)’. The music is identicalin both except that the anguish of the former’s G sharpminor is blanched into G major at the end of the piece.Branches begin their lives anew in the Spring, andnothing is so broken that it cannot be healed.

ALEXANDER SCRIABIN (1872-1915)Sonata No 5

FRANZ LISZT (1811-86)Sonata in B minor

The Scriabin 5th sonata and the Liszt B minor sonatahave much in common. They are both in one movement,developing their thematic material with great economyand ingenuity; they share a similar circular form,beginning and ending with the same gesture - theScriabin with a ferocious scream to the top of thekeyboard, the Liszt sinking in sombre, twisted scales tothe deepest bass. Both sonatas take us on spiritualjourneys yet to totally different destinations. The Liszt isan epic, symphonic portrayal of the struggle betweengood and evil, the Scriabin a high-octane, concentrated,ecstatic trip to a place where those traditional moral termshave ceased to exist.

c. Stephen Hough

Sponsored by Thomas Eggar LLP and Mr Leopold de Rothschild CBE

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Harry the Piano

Sponsored by Dreweatts

HarrySince starting to play at the age of four Harry has setabout proving that he can do ‘absolutely anything onpiano’. Quite simply, he does things with the instrumentthat you've never heard before, moving seamlesslybetween jazz, cabaret and classical in a manner thathasn’t been seen in the UK since the heyday of DudleyMoore.

Very few artists can command respect in such differingfields, but Harry has such an extraordinary talent that aswell as running a 20 piece dance band by the age ofnineteen and appearing with a who's who of British jazzmusicians culminating with a night at Ronnie Scott’s lastyear, he has also accompanied just about everybody inthe business from Englebert Humperdinck and CharlotteChurch to David Bowie and James Belushi via ElvisCostello and opera star Sir Willard White as well as beingmusical director for top of the bill acts at the MoulinRouge in his early twenties and subsequently going on todirect performers as diverse as Alexander Armstrong, PhillJupitus, Rick Astley, The Opera Babes, Fay Presto andliterally scores of others.

He has also appeared on BBC Radio 3 taking requestsfrom a live audience to play any tune in the style of thecomposer of their choice to rapturous acclaim andprompted the comment from astonished presenter BrianKay ‘How does he do it?’ After a recent sell out concertcelebrating the best of British pianistic talent where Harry

was asked to perform, the international star concertpianist Martin Roscoe noted ‘You practise all your life andyou think you can play the piano and then you hear Harry’.

Harry's career began in earnest as resident pianist inSoho's Groucho Club where he was quickly spotted andgiven his own show on BBC Radio 2, he moved on tobecome the resident pianist on Channel 4's Big Breakfastfor 5 years and to run the nine-piece band on JohnnyVaughan Tonight on BBC1 for three series. He puttogether his one-man show along with the release of analbum In the Wrong Key in the mid-nineties and waslauded by the British Press as 'The New Victor Borge' andby Jonathan Ross as ‘The best damn pianist in thecivilised world’.

Another album All The Way Through followed - the showwent on to be seen in all six continents, and was recentlychosen to headline on the Maiden voyage of the QueenMary 2 alongside Dame Shirley Bassey and has sold outvenues everywhere from London’s famous Pizza on thePark (five times) and the 2000 seater Portsmouth Guildhallto the Holders theatre Barbados, the Hong Kong fringeclub, the Adelaide festival as well as countless venues allover Europe. Another recent highlight was stealing theshow in front of a packed Albert Hall when in a charityGala evening with Julian Lloyd Webber, G4, Amici and theRPO, host Aled Jones asked him to play ‘In an EnglishCountry Garden’ in the style of Wagner interspersed withsome Kylie! The result was a standing ovation.

Sponsored by Dreweatts

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Young Artists Lunchtime Recital 6Horia Vacarescu violinChiho Tsunakawa piano

Brahms Sonata No 3 in D minorDebussy Violin Sonata in G minorEnescu AubadeSchubert Ave Mariade Falla Suite Populaire Espagnole

The Young Artists Lunchtime Recital series is sponsoredby The Headley TrustAdditional support for this concert from the RomanianCultural Institute

Vacarescu-Tsunakawa DuoThe Vacarescu-Tsunakawa Duo was formed at thebeginning of 2010, while the two musicians were studyingat the Royal College of Music in London. In the UK theyhave made appearances at major venues, reaching as faras Wales and Scotland. They also toured Japan andRomania, and their performance at the Great Hall of theBucharest Athenaeum was received to standing ovations.

Combining a high mastery of the instrument that evokes apast era with an intense and emotional approach, HoriaVacarescu’s performances are a delight and alwaysreceived with enthusiasm by his audience. Critics calledhim “a great talent” and describe his performance as“exhilarating”.

Born in Romania in a musical family, Horia started playingthe violin at the age of three. Three years later he madehis first public appearance and at 15 he performed for thefirst time in the company of a symphony orchestra. Hestudied both at the National Music University in Bucharestand Royal College of Music in London.

Presently, Horia is enjoying an international career as asoloist and a chamber musician. Concert engagementshave taken him on three continents, from Europe to theUSA and the Far East. He has performed at various musicfestivals in Great Britain, France, Switzerland andRomania. Although now based in London, Horia returnsregularly to perform in his native Romania, where hecollaborated with some of the most prestigiousorchestras, including the Radio and the NationalPhilharmonic Orchestras of Bucharest. Horia plays asuperb 18th century Italian violin, kindly loaned by aprivate collection.

Chiho Tsunakawa was born in Japan and began learningpiano at the age of 3. When Chiho was only 12, she cameto London to study piano as a pupil of Noretta Conci-Leech, a great pupil of Arturo Benedetti Michelangeli.Chiho then became a student of Tessa Nicholson at thejunior department of the Royal Academy of Music, whereshe also took violin lessons. She attended the ArtsEducational School, London, before she joined thePurcell School of Music where she represented the Pianodepartment and gave many performances. Chiho thenreceived a scholarship to study at the Royal Academy ofMusic under Tessa Nicholson and Rustem Hayroudinoff,gaining both an undergraduate and a postgraduatedegree. Chiho has since gained her Master's degree atthe Royal College of Music, under the guidance ofGordon Fergus-Thompson. Chiho has given soloperformances on NHK Radio in Japan and her Schubert’sTrout Quintet performance at the Wigmore Hall was alsobroadcasted on radio in London. Chiho has been aprizewinner in over 25 competitions.

Programme NotesJOHANNES BRAHMS (1833-1897)Violin Sonata No. 3 in D minor, Opus 108

1. Allegro 2. Adagio 3. Un poco presto e con sentimento 4. Presto agitato

Brahms completed the D minor Violin Sonata in 1888,with a dedication to the pianist and conductor Hans vonBülow. The work is somewhat larger in scale than its twopredecessors, since it contains an additional movement,and the music has a natural lyricism which is a reflectionof the nature of the violin. Moreover the balance betweenthe two instruments is particularly successful.

The sonata opens with a sotto voce (whispered) passage,whose very restraint invites the release of moretempestuous emotions. As ever with Brahms, the firstmovement has a tightly knit structure, built around the twoclear subject groups of a classical sonata design.

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The lyrical line of the violin's song remains virtuallyunbroken throughout the five minutes of the Adagio, amovement which recalls the Violin Concerto written tenyears before. Then as the third movement proceeds, sothe expression becomes more forceful, until in the laterstages the initial lightness returns, almost apologetically.

The finale has abundant vitality and fervour, a veritabletour-de-force whose powerful opening gesture isunequivocal indeed. As the music continues the sweep ofmomentum proves irresistible, generating a climax that isat once compelling and comprehensive.

© Terry Barfoot

CLAUDE DEBUSSY (1862-1918)Sonata for violin and piano

1. Allegro vivo 2. Intermède: Fantasque et léger 3. Très animé

'It is the music of a Debussy I no longer know. It is terriblymelancholy and I don't know whether one should laugh orcry - perhaps both?' These are the words of Debussyhimself, and they speak of his Sonata for violin and piano,written during 1917 and his last completed work.

During the war years Debussy embarked upon a series ofsix chamber compositions, which he described as thework of 'un musicien Français'. By this he meant that themusic was an act of homage to his predecessors and thetraditions they created; these are his most classicalcompositions. His other description - 'an example of whatmay be produced by a sick man in time of war' - revealshis own state of mind, and becomes a poignant commentin the context of his living to complete only three of theprojected series, the others being the Sonatas for flute,viola and harp, and for cello and piano.

The Sonata for violin and piano has a committedemotional language, often guided by its animatedcombination of fantasy and elegance. Debussy spoke of'the simple play of an idea turning upon itself, like a snakebiting its own tail', and the craftsmanship is typicallyrefined.

GEORGE ENESCU (1881-1955)Aubade

From the time he made a sensational recital debut at theage of just seven, Enesco was a major figure in the worldof music, and he ranks as the most important Rumanianmusician of the 20th century. He studied withHellmesberger in Vienna, and then at the ParisConservatoire, where his teachers included Fauré andMassenet. As a student Enesco's precocity was such thatin 1897 these famous musicians promoted a concert ofhis music. This Aubade – the name signifies ‘music for themorning’ – was a product of this period, dating from 1898.

FRANZ SCHUBERT (1797-1828) Arr August Wilhelmj

Ave Maria

Inspired by a passage in Sir Walter Scott’s The Lady ofthe Lake, Schubert’s Ave Maria is one of the most well-loved among his 600 songs. In order to bring these songsto a wider public and take advantage of their evidentbeauties, many musicians over the years madeinstrumental arrangements, the most celebrated beingFranz Liszt. This version of Ave Maria is the work of theGerman violin virtuoso August Wilhelmj (1845-1908).

MANUEL DE FALLA (1876-1946) Arr Paul Kochansky

Suite Populaire Espagñole

1. El paño moruno 2. Nana 3. Canción 4. Polo 5. Asturiana 6. Jota

Having gained the highest recommendation from theMadrid Conservatory, Falla persuaded the leadingcomposer of the older generation, Felipe Pedrell, to givehim private tuition, and as a result he developed a deepinterest in indigenous folk music. However, Falla’s chosenmethod was to assimilate the folk influence within his ownstyle, rather than to quote original tunes, saying, ‘I thinkthat in popular song the spirit is more important than theletter.’

The Suite Populaire Espagñole is derived from the SevenPopular Spanish Songs, which Falla wrote shortly beforethe outbreak of war in 1914. The present arrangement isthe work of the Polish violinist Paul Koncnsky (1887-1934).

The approach is typical of Falla’s attitude in thesematters, with some numbers directly folk-like in character,others altogether more sophisticated. Falla was alwaysone to follow his own muse. For example, El paño moruno(The Moorish Cloth) is little more than a transcription ofthe original song, whereas the Nana is an Andalusianlullaby, and in Asturiana the sophisticated accompanimentadds an extra dimension to the lamenting effect made bythe popular tune. The Canción and Polo are moreassertive, both deriving from images of a lover'sdetermination, while the Jota, one of the most celebratedof the Spanish dance-song forms, has strong contrastsbetween ‘voice’ and accompaniment.

The Young Artists Lunchtime Recital series is sponsoredby The Headley Trust Additional support for this concert from the RomanianCultural Institute

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Cantabile: The London QuartetOn the Funny Side of the StreetRichard Bryan counter-tenorSteven Brooks tenorMark Fleming tenorMichael Steffan baritone

Sponsored by Mr and Mrs David Male

CantabileCantabile - known increasingly as The London Quartet -have long been recognised to be one of Britain’s greatvocal groups. They were founded in Cambridge as apurely a cappella student group, whose members sang inthe University and Chapel Choirs. Despite such classicalroots, one of the group’s early performances was atCambridge’s ADC Theatre in pantomime for thecelebrated Footlights Comedy Club (contemporary alumniincluding Clive Anderson, Griff Rhys Jones and RoryMcGrath) and the quartet has continued to combine vocalvirtuosity with harmonious hilarity.

Connections made at this early stage were to be renewedlater on; reunited with Griff Rhys Jones they providedmusical items for Alas Smith and Jones. Their originalsong Orpheus in the Underground, with words by JohnHudson, was first performed in the Footlights Revue Tag(which also featured the current Artistic Director of theNational Theatre, Sir Nicholas Hytner). In the nineties itreappeared in the movie Peter’s Friends, sung anddanced to by Stephen Fry and Hugh Laurie (notforgetting Kenneth Branagh, Emma Thompson andImelda Staunton). The soundtrack won a BAFTA.

Cantabile came to wider prominence in London’s WestEnd as the hilarious Monks narrating the story in Tim Riceand Stephen Oliver’s musical Blondel which reopened theOld Vic Theatre, and then ran for over a year at theAldwych Theatre. During this time they met Ned Sherrin,leading to numerous appearances on his radio showLoose Ends, and in a variety of West End galas includinghis Young England at the Adelphi Theatre alongsideRonnie Barker, Millicent Martin and Simon Callow. Theysoon met up again with Simon Callow in the award-winning Radio 4 series, The Wordsmiths at Gorsemere; hewould later direct them at the Covent Garden Festival in atrilogy of works by Stephen Oliver, including Commuting,a wordless comedy romp in which they played no fewerthan twelve characters.

The London Quartet have pursued a policy of constantand dynamic renewal, pushing back musical frontiers,exploring ever-new territories and attracting a substantialfollowing right across the musical spectrum, both inEurope and further afield. They have appeared in a hugevariety of venues, singing programmes encompassingearly polyphony through to jazz and contemporary music.They have toured extensively - from the United States toSouth Africa to Southeast Asia and the Far East. Theyhave sung in the most prestigious venues for the mostprestigious clientèle, including Buckingham Palace forHer Majesty the Queen. Their itinerary has taken them tosuch distant places as Fiji, New Zealand, Australia,Singapore, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Estonia, Russia,Barbados, Hawaii and Tahiti. They have presented theirprogramme in a wide range of languages.

The London Quartet’s schedule over recent years bearswitness to the extraordinary variety of their activities. Theyhave toured Canada repeatedly from Niagara Falls toPrince Rupert near Alaska; they gave a concert for fivethousand people on the beach at the Torrent de Pareis inMajorca; at the other end of the scale they have been indemand at intimate exclusive private events, including twofor top Formula 1 teams. They sang in the presence ofthe Queen of the Netherlands and appeared on a bill atan exclusive private event in England with the legendaryDiana Ross. Following a run at Offenbach’s theatre inParis, the celebrated Bouffes Parisiens, their tour inFrance and Belgium of their all French-language showwas sold out. They are the first Artists in Residence at theBridewell Theatre in London, where they have presentedseveral shows.

Cantabile have had countless high spots, not leastguesting on several radio programmes with KennethWilliams, being accompanied at the piano by DonaldSwann and singing along with Richard Stilgoe. They haveperformed regularly for Richard’s Orpheus Centre,dedicated to providing opportunities to young disabledpeople with a passion for the performing arts. Richard

www.cantabile.com www.newburyspringfestival.org.uk

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also makes a number of appearances on Cantabile's newCD, Songs of Cricket, including a rousing rendition of histimeless anthem to the underdog, Barmy Army. RoryBremner adds some sidesplitting insights from famous‘commentators’. In December, in aid of UNICEF, theyjoined the star-studded line-up for a gala performance atthe Royal Albert Hall of Captain Beaky and His Band,sharing the stage with Sir Roger Moore, VanessaRedgrave and Joanna Lumley. Highlights of 2012 this farinclude appearing as guests of the Brandenburg StateSymphony Orchestra, touring Estonia for the first timeand giving a special one-off concert in St. Petersburg.

Barry CryerBarry Cryer is a truly great comedy writer and performerwho has contributed to our national well-being for overfifty years. With such a range of musical and comic stylesfrom which to draw, Cantabile are delighted to havepersuaded Britain's comedy Godfather to help prepareand stage tonight's programme, which brings togethersome of The London Quartet’s own comedy highlights inan evening celebrating eighty years of Great BritishComedy Song.

Chris HattChris Hatt is a musical director and composer of long anddistinguished pedigree. He is currently Musical Director ofBilly Elliot - The Musical in the West End and has beeninvolved in the productions in New York and Chicago. Heis also Musical Supervisor, fixer and arranger for FirstFamily Entertainment, a new pantomime companyheaded by the Ambassadors Theatre Group. His musichas been heard on BBC Television, and his musicalDestiny is regularly performed throughout the UK.

Chris and The London Quartet first worked together in2008 in the Tim Rice/ABBA musical Chess in Concert atthe Royal Albert Hall (also released as a Warner BrosDVD) starring Josh Groban and Idina Menzel. They weredelighted that since then he has been able to join themfor all their major shows in London, as well as a numberof special appearances overseas.

Sponsored by Mr and Mrs David Male

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MONTEVERDI

1610 VESPERS

www.choros.org

Douai Abbey, Upper Woolhampton

Saturday 30 June, 2012, 7.45pm

Tickets: £18, £14 concessions

Box Office: www.cornexchangenew.com

01635 522733

English Cornett and Sackbut Ensemble

Monteverdi String Band

Tenebrae

Choros

Conductor, Janet Lincé

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Douai Abbey Upper Woolhampton Friday 25 May 7.45pm

The Tallis ScholarsThe Field of the Cloth of GoldPeter Phillips conductor

Jean Mouton Nesciens mater William Cornysh Ave MariaMouton Ave MariaMouton Quaeramus cum pastoribusBrowne Salve regina

Interval

Mouton “Kyrie” and “Agnus dei” from the Missa Dictes moy toutes vos pensées

Mouton Salva nosCornysh Ah RobinCornysh Woefully arrayedCornysh Magnificat

Sponsored by Horsey Lightly and the Friends of Newbury Spring Festival

The Tallis ScholarsThe Tallis Scholars were founded in 1973 by their director,Peter Phillips. Through their recordings and concertperformances they have established themselves as theleading exponents of Renaissance sacred musicthroughout the world. Peter Phillips has worked with theensemble to create, through good tuning and blend, thepurity and clarity of sound which he feels best serve theRenaissance repertoire, allowing every detail of themusical lines to be heard. It is the resulting beauty ofsound for which the Tallis Scholars have become sowidely renowned.

The Tallis Scholars perform in both sacred and secularvenues, giving around 70 concerts each year across the

globe. In 2011-2012 the group will visit the USA threetimes and appear at festivals and venues across the UKand Europe including in their own Choral Series atCadogan Hall. In 2012 The Tallis Scholars team up withthe National Centre for Early Music and the BBC for thebi-annual nationwide composition competition, designedto encourage young people to write for unaccompaniedvoices. The winning entries will be performed by The TallisScholars in a concert recorded and broadcast by BBCRadio 3. In 2013 the group celebrates their 40thanniversary with some exciting new projects,commissions from Gabriel Jackson and Eric Whitacre andextensive touring.

The Tallis Scholars' career highlights have included a tourof China in 1999, including two concerts in Beijing; andthe privilege of performing in the Sistine Chapel in April1994 to mark the final stage of the complete restoration ofthe Michelangelo frescoes, broadcast simultaneously onItalian and Japanese television. The ensemble havecommissioned many contemporary composers duringtheir history: in 1998 they celebrated their 25thAnniversary with a special concert in London's NationalGallery, premiering a Sir John Tavener work written for thegroup and narrated by Sting. A further performance wasgiven with Sir Paul McCartney in New York in 2000. TheTallis Scholars are broadcast regularly on radio (includingperformances from the BBC Proms at the Royal AlbertHall in 2007, 2008 and 2011) and have also been featuredon the acclaimed ITV programme The Southbank Show.

Much of The Tallis Scholars reputation for their pioneeringwork has come from their association with GimellRecords, set up by Peter Phillips and Steve Smith in 1980solely to record the group and recordings by the TallisScholars have attracted many awards throughout theworld.

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Programme NotesThe Field of the Cloth of Gold

“…the Tower was set with compassed images of auncientPrinces, as Hercules, Alexander and others… richly limnedwith gold and Albyn colours.”

The meeting between Francis I of France and Henry VIIIof England in June 1520 may have yielded no lastingpolitical outcome, but the encounter between these twogreatest of Renaissance monarchs at the Field of TheCloth of Gold will remain forever gilded in historicalmemory. Fountains flowed with red wine, tents glitteredwith gold thread, and among the feasting, jousting andrevelry, two political strategists sought to redraw the mapof European alliances.

Men of learning and culture as well as warfare, eachdelegation strove to outdo the other – in no sphere morespectacularly than in their music. At the head of theFrench musicians was composer Jean Mouton; leadingthe English entertainments was courtier, dramatist andcomposer William Cornysh.

Although he never became head of the chapelle royale,Jean Mouton (c1459-1522) served at the French court formost of his adult life, employed by three successivemonarchs. Described by a contemporary as “the mosthumble man that one could find”, Mouton’s reputationhas latterly been obscured by his pupil Adrian Willaert,who would go on to shape the Venetian style of the HighRenaissance. Few works offer more substantial testimonyto Mouton’s own compositional legacy however than hisNesciens mater. Blending supreme technicalaccomplishment with sensitivity to text, the motet ischaracterised by a calm that even Mouton’scontemporary musicians recognised as distinctive.

The popular antiphon depicts the Virgin feeding her babyson with milk given by the angels. While the intimacy ofthis tender scene is captured in the gentle harmonicwaves that pulse and shift through the work, animated bythe most delicate of scalic embellishment, the stature ofthese divine figures is expressed in the work’s polyphony.The motet’s eight voices are divided in two, with fourproviding the strict canonic echo of their fellows. A tenorline based on a traditional paraphrase of the antiphon’splainchant melody further complicates this masterfulstructural scaffolding, an edifice all the more impressivefor being barely perceptible and certainly never intrusiveto the ear.

In similar fashion the measured intensity of Mouton’sCompline antiphon Salva nos, Domine conceals within itssix-part texture a canon between alto and second tenorbased on the original plainchant. This rigid structureprovides the fixed point around which the other four partsembroider their counterpoint. While this prayer for peace

is aptly expressed in Mouton’s treatment, it’s hard not tofeel the text is secondary to the composer’s enjoyment inhis own polyphonic invention.

As with Mouton’s Nesciens Mater, the Marian imagery ofthe Ave Maria draws the smoothest of polyphony from thecomposer. Two simple motives (one rising, the otherfalling) form the melodic basis of this five-part work, givingit a characteristically organic sense of wholeness. Upperand lower voices suffice to create textural contrast withinthe imitative flow until the text’s climax in a threefoldaddress of the Virgin – “O Maria Dulcissima/O MariaPiissima/O Maria Sanctissima” – where suddenhomophony interrupts the flow with an appeal to Mary, allthe more touching for its sudden plainness.

Although celebrated primarily as a composer of motets,some fifteen masses by Mouton also survive. The Missadictes moy toutes voz pensees is based on a popularchanson by Loyset Compere, and Mouton subjects hissource music to characteristically playful treatment. Theoriginal tenor line is retained most clearly, its openingmelodic gambit functioning as the head motif for varioussections of the mass, and its distinctive close (with adescending sequence) often emerging to signal the endof an episode. This tenor also appears complete andunaltered in the third (and final) section of the Agnus Dei– an elegant structural climax to the work.

The contrast between Mouton’s Marian antiphons andWilliam Cornysh’s (1465-1523) Ave Maria is striking. Thecareer of Cornysh the Younger (there is still someconfusion between works by this Cornysh, Master of theChildren of the Chapel Royal, and those of an elderCorynsh, thought to be his father) spans a period of fluxin English music. The florid counterpoint beloved of thecomposers of the Eton Choirbook is the preferred stylefor many of Cornysh’s works, yet others seem to seek acontrasting, simpler solution to the English tradition ofself-regarding virtuosity that was moving daily further fromthe spiritual texts it served.

While Mouton’s motets draw the ear to the vertical,harmonic sonorities, Cornysh’s Ave Maria is driven byhorizontal melodic forces. Eschewing a cantus firmus orsimilar structural framework, Cornysh’s parts weave freelyand without imitation, propelled by complex rhythmicconvulsions. Duets and trios punctuate the texture, withthe full four voices reserved for moments of climax suchas the intricate ornamental flourishes of the Amen. Yet thiscomplexity is as nothing compared to the composer’sMagnificat.

Of the many Magnificats found in the Eton Choirbook andmanuscripts of the period, Cornysh’s is among the mostsplendid. The scope of this five-part setting, with itsathletic vocal lines, dense polyphony and rhythmic


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invention, represents a bold treatment of the traditionalalternatim structure. Verses of plainchant alternate withthe polyphony, cleaning the aural palate between eachvirtuosic onslaught. Listen particularly for the rhythmiccontortions of the “et divites” section for male voices andmelodic feats for the women at “et in saeculorum”.

The consummate courtier, Cornysh also produced musicfor the secular life of the English monarch and his court.Found in Henry VIII’s own book, Ah Robin is a three-partcanon, no less lovely for its simplicity. Cornysh treats histext – seemingly a dialogue on romance between twofriends – in the manner of medieval carol, complete withrepeating burden. Woefully Arrayed preserves a similarstructure of verse and burden, but perhaps in echo of thetext’s painful contemplation of the crucified Christ(possibly written by England’s first poet laureate JohnSkelton) sustains a far starker harmonic landscape,shaped by the bleakness of the opening burden.

In the French court Mouton’s music also displayed theinfluence of the popular carol form, and nowhere moreattractively than his Christmas motet Quaeramus cumpastoribus. Later used as the basis for mass-settings byMorales and Willaert, the motet is far lighter in texturethan the composer’s Marian works, favouring a moredeclamatory, almost rustic approach to word-setting.Dominating the texture is the exultant refrain “Noe, noe” –a popular trope that pervaded even English works of theperiod.

While much of the music performed at The Field of TheCloth of Gold may have been Cornysh’s own, it is likelythat other works from the Eton Choirbook also featured.John Browne, a contemporary of Cornysh’s, is strikingamong these composers for the sheer diversity of hisworks. While Cornysh’s technical facility turned outwards,to display and embellishment, Browne’s is a moreunderstated skill. His Salve Regina sustains its five voicesin lively, non-imitative counterpoint, but is most striking forits harmony. While at its most comfortable Browne’sharmonies sit far closer to conventional tridiac tonalitythan Cornysh, this only serves to make their modalswervings and chromatic departures all the moreunnerving to a contemporary ear.

© Alexandra Coghlan

Texts and Translations

Jean Mouton (1459-1522)Nesciens Mater

Nesciens mater virgo virum peperit sine doloresalvatorem saeculorum. Ipsum regem angelorum, Solavirgo lactabat ubere de caelo pleno.

A mother though she had no knowledge of man, gavebirth without travail to the Saviour of the world. She alonesuckled the very king of the angels with heavenly plenty.

William Cornysh (1465-1523)Ave Maria

Ave Maria, mater Dei, regina, caeli domina, mundiimperatrix inferni. Miserere mei et totius populi Christiani; et ne permittas nos mortaliter peccare, sed tuamsanctissimam voluntatem adimplere. Amen.

Hail Mary, mother of God, queen, lady of heaven andempress of the world below. Have mercy on me and on all Christian people; and let us not fall into mortal sin, but let us perfectly fulfilyour most holy will. Amen.

Jean MoutonAve Maria

Ave Maria, gratia plena,Dominus tecum, virgo serena,Tu parvi et magni,leonis et agni,Salvatoris Christi,templum extitisti,sed virgo intacta.Tu floris et roris,panis et pastoris,virginum et regina,rosa sine spina,genitrix es facta.Tu civitas regis justitiae,Tu mater es misericordiae,de lacu faecis et miseriae,Theophilum reformans gratiae.Te collaudat caelestis curia,tu mater es regis et filia.O Maria dulcissima, per te reis donatur venia.O Maria piissima, per te reis donatur venia.O Maria mitissima, per te jusits confertur gratia.Pro nobis semper Christum exora.Amen.

Hail Mary, full of grace,the Lord is with you, serene virgin.For lowly and great,lion and lamb,our saviour Christ:you have been his temple,while still a virgin.For the flower and rose,the bread and the shepherd:you queen of virgins,a rose without a thorn,you became their mother.You are the royal seat of justice,you are the mother of mercy,from out of the depths of dregs and misery

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hast seen Theophilus to grace.The heavenly court praises you,you the king’s mother and daughter;O sweetest Mary, through you the accused is forgiven.O most pious Mary, through you the accused is forgiven.O most gentle Mary, through you favor comes to the just.For us always entreat Christ.Amen

Jean MoutonQuaeramus cum pastoribus

Prima pars Quaeramus cum pastoribus Verbum incarnatum; cantemus cum hominibus regem saeculorum. Noe. Quod tu vides in stabulo? Jesum natum de Virgine. Quid audis in praesepio? Angelos cum carmine et pastores dicentes: Noe.

Secunda pars Ubi pascas, ubi cubes? Dic, si ploras, aut si redes: Te rogamus, Rex Christe. Noe. Cibus et lac virgineum, lectus durum praesepium, carmina sunt lacrimae. Noe.

First Part Let us seek with the shepherds the Word incarnate; let us sing with all mankind for the King of the ages. Noel. What do you see in the stable? Jesus, born of the Virgin. What do you hear in the manger? Angels with a song and shepherds saying: Noel.

Second part Where do you eat, where do you lie? Say, whether you weep or laugh: we ask you, Christ the King. Noel. My food is milk of the Virgin, my bed a hard manger, my songs are tears. Noel.

John Browne (fl. ca. 1480-1505)Salve regina

Salve regina, mater misericordiae:vita, dulcedo, et spes nostra, salve.Ad te clamamus, exsules filii Hevae,Ad te suspiramus, gementes et flentesIn hac lacrimarum valle.Eia ergo, advocata nostra, illos tuos

Misericordes oculos ad nos converteEt Iesum benedictum fructum ventris tuiNobis post hoc exsilium ostende:

Virgo mater ecclesiae,Aeterna porta gloriae,Esto nobis refugiumApud Patrem et Filium,O clemens!

Virgo clemens, virgo pia,Virgo dulcis, O Maria,Exaudi preces omniumAd te pie clamantium,O pia!

Funde preces tuo nato,Crucifixo, vulnerato,Et pro nobis flagellato,Spinis puncto, felle potato.

O dulcis Maria, salve.

Hail, queen of mercy,Our life, our sweetness and our hope, hail!To you we cry, exiled children of Eve,To you we sigh, groaning and weepingIn this vale of tears.Therefore as our advocateTurn your merciful eyes towards usAnd after this exile show us Jesus,The blessed fruit of your womb.

Virgin mother of the church,Eternal gate of glory,Be for us a refugeBefore the Father and the son,O clement!

Clement, holy virgin,Sweet virgin, O Mary,Hear the prayers of allWho piously cry to you,O holy!

Pour out your prayers to your Son,Crucified, wounded,And scourged for us,By thorns pierced, with gall for drink.

O sweet Mary, hail!

Interval

Jean MoutonKyrie and Agnus Dei fromMissa Dictes moy toutes vos pensées

Kyrie

Kyrie, eleison.Christe, eleison.Kyrie, eleison.

Lord, have mercy upon us.Christ, have mercy upon us.Lord, have mercy upon us.

Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis. Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.

Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, havemercy upon us.Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, havemercy upon us.Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, grantus peace.

Jean MoutonSalva nos

Salva nos domine vigilantes, custodi nos dormientes, utvigilemus cum Christo, et requiescamus in pace.

Save us, O Lord, waking, and guard us sleeping, that wemay watch with Christ, and rest in peace.

William CornyshAh Robyn

Ah, Robin, gentle, Robin,tell me how thy leman doth and thou shalt know of mine.My lady is unkind I wis,alack why is she so?She lov'th another better than me,and yet she will say no.

Ah, Robin, gentle, Robin,tell me how thy leman doth and thou shalt know of mine.I cannot think such doubleness for I find women true;in faith my lady lov'th me well; she will change for no new.Ah, Robin, gentle, Robin,tell me how thy leman doth and thou shalt know of mine.

William CornyshWoefully arrayed

Woefully arrayedMy blood, man for thee ran, it may not be nayed;My body, blo and wan;Woefully arrayed.

Behold me, I pray theewith all thy whole reasonand be not hard-hearted,and for this encheason,sith I for thy soul sakewas slain in good season,Beguiled and betrayedby Judas’ false treason,unkindly entreated,with sharp cord sore freted,the Jews me threated,they mowed, they grinned,they scorned me,condem’d to death as thou may’st see;Woefully arrayed.

Thus naked am I nailed.O man, for thy sake;I love thee, then love me,why sleepst thou, awake,remember my tender heartroot for thee brake;with pains my veins constrained to crake;thus tugged to and fro,thus wrapped all in woe,whereas never man was so entreated,thus in most cruel wisewas like a lamb offer’d in sacrifice;Woefully arrayed.

Of sharp thorn I have worna crown on my head.So pained, so strained, so rueful, so red,thus bobbed, thus robbed,thus for thy love dead;unfeigned, not deigned,my blood for to shed,my feet and handes sorethe sturdy nailes bore;what might I suffer more,than I have done, O man, for thee?Come when thou list, welcome to me!Woefully arrayed.

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William CornyshMagnificat

Magnificat anima mea Dominum.Et exultavit spiritus meus in Deo salutari meo.Quia respexit humilitatem ancillae suae: Ecce enim ex hoc beatam me dicent omnesgenerationes.Quia fecit mihi magna qui potens est: et sanctum nomenseius.Et misericordia eius a progenie in progenies timentibuseum.Fecit potentiam in brachio suo: dispersit superbos mentecordis sui.Deposuit potentes de sede; et exaltavit humiles.Esurientes implevit bonis: et divites dimisit inanes.Suscepit Israel, puerum suum, recordatus misericordiaesuae.Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros, Abraham et seminieius in saecula.Magnificat anima mea Dominum.

My soul doth magnify the Lordand my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour.For he hath regarded: the lowliness of his handmaiden.For behold, from henceforth: all generations shall call meblessed.

For he that is mighty hath magnified me: and holy is hisName.And his mercy is on them that fear him: throughout allgenerations.He hath showed strength with his arm: he hath scatteredthe proud in the imagination of their hearts.He hath put down the mighty from their seat: and hathexalted the humble and meek.He hath filled the hungry with good things: and the rich hehath sent empty away.He remembering his mercy hath holpen his servant Israel: as he promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed,forever.My soul doth magnify the Lord

Sponsored by Horsey Lightly and the Friends of Newbury Spring Festival

The Benedictine community of Douai Abbey is delightedto welcome the 2012 Newbury Spring Festival.

The Abbey is the home of a community of Benedictine monkswho lead the Christian life in the monastic tradition and

welcome others to share their life as guests.

Concerts are held in the Abbey Church throughout the year.

Advance Notice: Friday 14 December – Gabrieli Consort

Details on our website: www.douaiabbey.org.uk

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Swinging at The Cotton ClubThe Jiving Lindy Hoppers & HarryStrutters Hot Rhythm OrchestraTake a step back into 1920’s New York and through thedoors of Harlem’s hottest nightclub, The Cotton Club,with a programme of great jazz chosen from thefollowing:-

Jubilee Stomp That Lindy Hop I’ve got my fingers crossed It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing Swannee ShuffleC Jam Blues Charleston Exactly like you Black Beauty Everybody loves my baby Eeney Meeney Miney MoWherever there’s loveOld Man River

Miss Jenny’s BallI must have that manJungle JamboreeGoody GoodyDrum CrazyAm I blue?Just a moodI want a little galDinahI can’t give you anything but love

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Jiving Lindy HoppersThe Jiving Lindy Hoppers are Europe’s first and finestauthentic jazz dance company. Perhaps they are bestknown for their spectacular and breathtakingperformances of the “Lindy Hop” - the original form of jivedancing that developed in Harlem in the late 1920’s.However, their talent and versatility is also expressed inthe range of dances they perform all influenced by theauthentic jazz dance tradition.

Hundreds of performances and workshops have followedsince their first public performance at London’s 1984Notting Hill Carnival. They have won numerous awards forboth their education and performance work and regularlyappear both here and abroad in venues ranging fromcommunity centres, jazz and arts festivals, corporateentertainment events and major concert halls andtheatres, in addition to making numerous TV and filmappearances. The energy, excitement and enthusiasm ofthis highly talented and professional company of youngdancers continues to create a huge demand forperformances and workshops throughout the world.

Harry Strutters Hot Rhythm OrchestraHarry Strutters Hot Rhythm Orchestra specialises inrecreating the jazz and hot dance music of the 1920’s and1930’s with characteristic drive and visual appeal. TheOrchestra has toured extensively in Britain, Europe andScandinavia, and claims the title of ‘Europe's Hottest JazzOrchestra’.

Using its own special arrangements of familiar as well asthe less well hackneyed numbers from the repertoires ofthe famous English and American bands of the period,the Orchestra has extensive experience of a wide varietyof venues and events, appearing at numerous festivals,concerts and in TV programmes across Europe.

It is the collective capacity to communicate theexuberance of the music and humour of the Jazz Age thatgives Harry Strutters Hot Rhythm Orchestra such uniquestrength.

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The Cotton Club

The Cotton Club was the most glamorous and glitzy ofHarlem’s night clubs during the prohibition era of the1920s and 1930s. Located upstairs on 142nd Street inHarlem, it opened in 1920 as the Club Deluxe by formerheavyweight boxing champion Jack Johnson. It becamethe Cotton Club in 1923, when it was bought by mobsterOwney Madden.

The club was a magnificent ensemble of vast dance floor,stage, and opulent décor. The entrance was in log cabinstyle, but the bandstand was done in a Southernplantation mansion motif. From the ceiling hungenormous chandeliers. The club seated some 500people. It is little wonder the Cotton Club was dubbed“the aristocrat of Harlem” by a British visitor. The $5entrance charge bought the most spectacular show intown. The main visual attraction at the club were the 30 to50 chorus girls, advertised as “the most beautifulCreoles.” They had to be at least 5’ 11” tall and very goodlooking. The club opened at 10 p.m. with swinging dancemusic. Two shows followed at midnight and 2 a.m., andthe club closed at 3 a.m. The house band when thevenue first opened was Andy Preer's Cotton ClubSyncopators; after Preer's death in 1927, Duke Ellington'sorchestra was engaged and its residency became themost celebrated in the club's history, lasting until 1931.Cab Calloway and his Missourians, who had firstappeared with great success in 1931, then took over, andCalloway's time as the Cotton Club's bandleader (whichextended to 1934, when Jimmie Lunceford succeededhim) was to make his reputation.

Most of the principal jazz musicians, singers, and dancersof the period appeared at the Cotton Club at some stage,including Louis Armstrong, Ethel Waters, Ivie Anderson,Bill Robinson, and the Nicholas Brothers. The heyday ofthe club's existence was re-created in Francis FordCoppola's film The Cotton Club (1984).

Although the entertainers and waiters were black, theclientele was white, with only a few black stars everadmitted. This was not an uncommon practice at thetime, and though it is clearly racism by today’s standards,it helped pave the way to integration. Temporarily at least,the Cotton Club provided a place for whites to experienceblack culture where black artists and entertainers wereseen favourably - handsome, accomplished, talented,and elegant. Yet bigotry remained the norm of the day,and the Cotton Club closed its doors on February 16,1936 after riots in Harlem in 1935. It was reopened inSeptember 1936 at a new location and operated untilJune 1940. Today, the Cotton Club retains its aura ofexotic mystique, and conjures up images of a great jazzage gone by.

Sponsored by Maxx Design

Berlin Symphony OrchestraMario Venzago conductorAgata Szymczewska violin

Weber Overture to Der FreischützProkofiev Violin Concerto No 1

Interval

Beethoven Symphony No 3 Eroica

Sponsored by Weatherby Holdings, Thomas Eggar LLP,the Sheepdrove Trust and the Contributors Scheme

Mario VenzagoSwiss-born conductorMario Venzago holds theposition of ConductorLaureate of the BaselSymphony Orchestra andis Chief Conductor of theBern Symphony Orchestra,Principal Conductor at theNorthern Sinfonia andPrincipal Guest Conductorof the StaatsphilharmonieRheinland Pfalz in

Ludwigshafen. He is also “Schumann Guest Conductor”of the Düsseldorfer Symphoniker, was PrincipalConductor of the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra from2004-2007 and until August 2009, was the Music Directorof the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra.

Mario Venzago's distinguished conducting career hasincluded engagements with the Berlin Philharmonic,Leipzig Gewandhaus Orchestra, Munich Philharmonic,London Philharmonic, BBC Symphony Orchestra, City ofBirmingham Symphony Orchestra, Vienna Symphony, LaScala di Milano, Melbourne Symphony Orchestra and theNHK Symphony in Tokyo. In North America he hasappeared with the Boston Symphony, PhiladelphiaOrchestra, Toronto Symphony, and the BaltimoreSymphony. He has also conducted, among otherprestigious festivals, at the Salzburg and LucerneFestivals.

Maestro Venzago has recorded widely and his varieddiscography has earned him several major awards,including the Diapason d’Or, two Grand Prix du Disque,and the Edison Prize. With the Basel Symphony he hasrecorded the complete symphonic works of Schumann,Ravel and Nono, with the choir and orchestra of the MDRLeipzig the whole choral works by Othmar Schoeck, andwith the Gothenburg Symphony Orchestra all orchestralworks of Alban Berg.

Mr. Venzago continues to maintain a high profile inScandinavia and has established strong relationships with

the Finnish Radio, Tapiola Sinfonietta, BergenPhilharmonic Orchestra, Malmö Symphony Orchestra andwith his old orchestra, the Goteborg SO, where he returnsregularly. Mr Venzago performs with many renownedartists of the world’s concert stage including Argerich,Bell, Freire, Josefowicz, Kremer, Lang Lang, Levin, Lupu,Maisky, Mutter, Nicolet, Ohlsson, Pletnev, Shaham,Steuerman, Tetzlaff, Vengerow, Zehetmair, K. Zimerman,F.P. Zimmermann and many of the world’s finest singers.

Agata SzymczewskaWinner of the 2006 HenrykWieniawski InternationalViolin Competition inPozna, AgataSzymczewska wasawarded the Prize of theAudience and specialprizes, including majororchestra and recitalengagements. She alsoreceived the London MusicMasters Award given for

the first time by a committee composed of members ofthe London Philharmonic Orchestra, Wigmore Hall andthe Royal College of Music. In October 2009 Agata madeher debut at Wigmore Hall, following which she receivedan invitation to play at the Royal Festival Hall with theLondon Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by OsmoVanska in autumn 2010.

She graduated from the Academy of Music in Pozna, andsince 2004 has studied with Professor Krzysztof Wegrzynat the Hochschule für Musik und Theater in Hannover.Since October 2010 Agata has been a faculty member ofthe Music Academy in Pozna.

She has performed in numerous European countries aswell as in Israel, Russia, Canada, China, Korea andJapan, appearing with orchestras including SinfoniaVarsovia, Warsaw Philharmonic (the NationalPhilharmonic Orchestra of Poland), National Polish RadioSymphony Orchestra, Lahti Symphony Orchestra, VilniusState Symphony Orchestra, and Russian Philharmonic.She has collaborated with outstanding conductorsincluding Krzysztof Penderecki, Andrey Boreyko, MosheAtzmon, Dmitri Liss, Saulius Sondeckis, Antoni Wit,Maxim Vengerov and Jerzy Maksymiuk.

Besides these, Agata is a very active chamber musician.Every year since 2005 she has taken part in theprestigious International Music Academy Switzerlandfounded by Maestro Seiji Ozawa. In 2005 she touredJapan and China with Maestro Seiji Ozawa as theyoungest member and concertmaster of Ongaku-jukuOrchestra. In 2010 she took part in the KronbergAcademy’s “Chamber Music Connects the World”

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Festival, where she had the chance to play with GidonKremer, Yuri Bashmet and Franz Helmerson.

Agata’s recent and forthcoming concert highlights includeappearances at the Théatre des Champs-Élysées in Paris,Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, Konzerthaus Berlin,Victoria Hall in Geneva, the Bolshoi Theatre in Moscow,Schleswig-Holstein Music Festival in Germany andBeethoven Easter Festival in Warsaw. She plays anAntonio Stradivarius violin (Cremona, ca. 1680) on loanfrom Deutsche Stiftung Musikleben.

Berlin Symphony OrchestraThe Konzerthausorchester Berlin has been delightingaudiences for more than 50 years. Founded in 1952, theBerlin Symphony Orchestra (BSO) gained internationalrecognition under Chief Conductor Kurt Sanderling (1960-1977). Numerous stars from the music world such asDavid Oistrach and Emil Gilels performed regularly withthe orchestra. Sanderling also succeeded in building up astrong core of regulars for his subscription series eventhough the BSO moved between several differentlocations.

In 1977, Günter Herbig was appointed Chief Conductor,followed by Claus Peter Flor who took over in 1984. In thesame year, Karl Friedrich Schinkel's famousSchauspielhaus was reopened as a concert hall. TheBSO thus got its first permanent residency on the city'smost beautiful square, the Gendarmenmarkt. Under thebaton of Flor, the orchestra made numerous world tours.In 1988, they toured Great Britain, the U.S.A. and Japanfor seven weeks.

During Michael Schønwandt's term (1992 to 1998), theBSO officially merged with the Konzerthaus, becomingthe house's own orchestra. From 2001, the year of theorchestra's 50th anniversary, Eliahu Inbal led the BSO intothe next generation, engaging young musicians fromaround the world. In 2001 the BSO successfully touredJapan, playing 15 concerts in 13 cities. In 2004 Inbal andthe orchestra made a two-week tour in Spain, and in 2005the BSO were invited to perform in China, Japan andKorea. In 2006 the orchestra toured Spain and Germany.

A new chapter began in August 2006 with LotharZagrosek as new Chief Conductor and a new name forthe orchestra: the former Berliner Sinfonie-Orchester wasrenamed Konzerthausorchester Berlin. The name reflectsthe bond between orchestra and house, shaping theKonzerthaus programme with nearly 100 concerts perseason.

Programme NotesCARL MARIA VON WEBER (1786-1826)Der Freischütz: Overture

The operas of Carl Maria von Weber are not greatlyfavoured in this day and age, and apart from DerFreischütz, undoubtedly the most popular, his typicallyromantic stage works are only very rarely to be seen,even in Germany. This is due to a large extent to theweaknesses of the various libretti, and these failings onthe dramatic side have resulted in the neglect of a wealthof nobly expressive music. Nonetheless the overtures thatWeber wrote for these works have retained theirpopularity. They carry all before them with their brilliantuse of the instrumental forces and their gripping dramaticqualities. They serve more than one purpose: as absolutemusic they are noteworthy symphonic structures, and asstage music they lead directly to the psychologicalclimaxes of the action, combining the principal musicalthemes into a self-contained tonal picture of the drama.

Beethoven, in his third Leonora Overture was the first topresent the content of the drama in purely orchestralform. Weber, too, preserved the essentials of sonata formin his overtures, drawing his themes from significantpoints in the unfolding of the opera’s plot. He, likeBeethoven, was not content to string together a numberof the opera’s most tuneful melodies to form a kind ofmusical potpourri, being far more deeply concerned withportraying the essential nature of the dramatic work forwhich the overture was to set the scene.

The Overture to the opera Der Freischütz (meaning inEnglish ‘The Marksman’ – with charmed bullets), whichwas first performed in 1821, begins with a short, evocativestring introduction. Then the horns transport the listenerto the enchanted depths of the German forests, with ahighly expressive, atmospheric melody. The Allegroconjures up the sinister world of the fiendish huntsman,the villainous Samiel, with its disturbing knocking in thebass, string tremolandi, and deep clarinet passages. Thesecond theme is the love song of the heroine Agathe forthe opera’s hero, the marksman Max, and Weber’sbrilliant treatment of it brings the overture to a close on anote of noble exultation.

SERGEY PROKOFIEV (1891-1953)Violin Concerto No. 1 in D Op. 19

AndantinoScherzo – VivacissmoModerato

The beautiful opening theme of Prokofiev’s First ViolinConcerto was written in 1915. Work on the opera ‘TheGambler’ intervened, and to Prokofiev’s regret, preventedhim from returning to this pensive initial melody and tocontinue composing the Concerto. The Revolution of1917 had a direct effect upon everyone living in Russia,even though some artists sought to assert theindependence of art in the face of it. While Prokofievhimself was immediately concerned about the fate of ‘TheGambler’, which was removed from the repertory of theMaryinsky Theatre in St. Petersburg by the provisionalgovernment, his feverish activity as a composer duringthe year of revolution suggests that he was not unaffectedby it.

Not only did he return to and complete the First ViolinConcerto during 1917, he also composed his FirstSymphony, known as ‘The Classical’, the ‘VisionsFugitives’ and Third and Fourth Sonatas for solo piano,and the powerful ‘Chaldean Invocation’: ‘Seven, They AreSeven’. The première of the Violin Concerto was plannedfor November 1917, and in anticipation of this Prokofievsought advice from the Polish violinist Paul Kochanski,who was then teaching at the St. PetersburgConservatory, on a number of technical details. With thepolitical situation worsening, the concert was cancelled,and the Concerto had to wait another five years before itwas finally to receive its first performance.

Prokofiev had offered it to several distinguished violinists,including Bronislav Hubermann, before eventually askingthe leader of Serge Koussevitsky’s orchestra in Paris,Marcel Darrieux, to play it as part of the series ofpremières of music by Prokofiev which Koussevitskypresented in Paris during the 1923-1924 season.Prokofiev’s magical lyricism by then seemed old-fashioned and the Concerto came in for some criticismfrom the French modernists. Georges Auric dubbed it‘Mendelssohnian’. The Concerto was redeemed by theHungarian violinist Joseph Szigeti, who played it at afestival of new music in Prague in 1924 to great acclaim,and subsequently performed it with success throughoutEurope. By the time of the following season, 1924-1925, ithad already been taken up by a number of violinists inSoviet Russia.

The music of 1917 represents a distinctive shift byProkofiev away from the grotesqueries of some of hisearlier works, such as the First and Second PianoConcertos. In place of musical extremes he now soughtgreater simplicity and clarity. Both the ‘Classical’

Symphony and the First Violin Concerto arestraightforward and uncomplicated in structure, harmonyand rhythm. In addition they have wit and transparency,and stand free of the literary, visual or ideologicalbaggage that at times weighed down works of Prokofiev’syouth.

The opening of the first movement, marked Andantino, iscontemplative, with the lyrical theme first sketched in1915. A bravura passage full of runs and trills acts as abridge to the second theme. As the developmentprogresses, the opening theme is increasingly modified,and at the climax of the development loses its originalcharacter as it is transferred to the orchestra,accompanied by plucked chords on the solo violin. Thisgives way in turn to a calm passage taken from materialheard at the end of the earlier exposition, which is playedby the orchestra dolce while the soloist plays con sordinoin the violin’s highest register. The recapitulation is short,with both the second theme and usual concluding sectionomitted.

The second movement by contrast is a sparkling andvirtuoso Vivacissimo filled with scherzo-like moods andimages. It is in the form of a five-part rondo. The firsttheme, based on an ascending chromatic figure with apronounced and sharply accented rhythm, is filled withyouthful zest. The joyful mood of the opening gives wayin the two middle episodes to music of a more sinistercharacter. In the first episode the violin playing becomesharsh with marked staccatos. In the second the moodbecomes even darker. With the arrival of the coda theviolin moves to its higher register, with a sequence of trillsplayed pianissimo, followed by an unexpected fortissimoconclusion.

Lyricism returns in the finale, marked Moderato, the maintheme of which has a similar character to the introductorytheme of the first movement. In the middle section themechanical action of rapid runs looks back as well to thesardonic music of the second movement, but this is soonrelegated to the background. After a statement of theopening theme, the climax of the movement, an extendedcoda, is reached. Here Prokofiev masterfully combinesthe two lyrical themes of the Concerto. The orchestraplays the theme of the finale, and the solo violin and agroup from the first violins reiterate the first movement’sopening theme. To quote Nesteyev, Prokofiev’sbiographer: ‘The result is a wonderful tonal effect, evokingin the listener’s imagination the picture of a joyous springlandscape bathed in sunshine.’

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LUDWIG VAN BEETHOVEN (1770-1827)Symphony No. 3 in E flat major (Eroica) Op. 55

Allegro con brioMarcia funebre (Adagio assai)Scherzo (Allegro vivace)Finale (Allegro molto)

Beethoven’s notebooks indicate that work on the ‘Eroica’Symphony commenced in 1803. It was completed in Mayof the following year, and first performed privately at thehouse of Prince Lobkowitz. The first public performancetook place a year later, on 7th April 1805, at the ‘Theateran der Wien’, in one of Franz Clement’s concerts, withBeethoven himself conducting. It was for Clement thatBeethoven was to compose the Violin Concerto Op. 61 in1806. The orchestral parts only of the Symphony werepublished in Vienna in 1806, as was then the custom. Thefull score was eventually published by Simrock in 1820.

Ries, Beethoven’s contemporary, suggested that theSymphony was inspired by Beethoven’s admiration ofNapoleon Bonaparte as the First Consul of France, inwhom he initially saw the champion of liberty, equal to thegreat consuls of Ancient Rome. However when Beethovenlearned that Napoleon had proclaimed himself Emperor,he was enraged, declaring his hero to be ‘no better thanother men’. He destroyed the manuscript’s title page,which according to Ries, simply bore the inscription‘Buonaparte – Luigi van Beethoven’. The printedinscription on the 1820 published score was to read‘Sinfonia Eroica, composed to celebrate the memory of agreat man’.

This account of Ries of the genesis of the purpose anddedication of the Symphony has encouraged the ideaprevalent during the nineteenth century that theSymphony had a ‘programme’, closely following thevarious episodes of the Napoleonic drama. Berliozcertainly maintained this view. More sustainable isWagner’s interpretation of the Symphony. He saw inBeethoven’s hero an archetype of man, capable ofexperiencing all the human emotions of love, sorrow andstrength. Certainly with the ‘Eroica’ Beethoven introducedinto the form of the symphony a range and intensity ofemotion not previously experienced.

The first movement, marked Allegro con brio, starts aftertwo brisk staccato chords with a simple theme directlyquoted from the Overture to Mozart’s youthful operaBastien and Bastienne. The enunciation of this theme isfollowed by a bridge passage characterised by thecontrasting orchestral timbres of oboe, clarinet, flute andstrings. The second subject is essentially melodic andfeatures a similar sequence to the bridge passage playedby clarinet, oboe and flute.

After the traditional repeat of the exposition, a highlydramatic development section commences, during thecourse of which a third theme appears which, with its fluidorchestration, provides an element of contrast to what hasgone before. The recapitulation opens with a passage inwhich the second horn, anticipating the return to thehome key, plays the common chord of E flat under theharmony of the dominant seventh. At the time of theSymphony’s first performance this passage was seen ashighly unorthodox and aroused much comment. Anextensive coda of 120 bars, in scale matching thedevelopment section, brings the movement to an end.

The second movement, the famous ‘Funeral March’, hasbeen the subject of several interpretations. According toSchindler, Beethoven, on hearing of Napoleon’s death,commented that he had composed his funeral marchseventeen years earlier. Marked Adagio, the movement isin the form of a long song, the main theme of which isdivided in to three parts, A-B-A, with the third sectionrepeating and developing the first. A second theme in themajor key, which has been variously interpreted asrepresenting serenity and an after-life, and played by theoboe, alternates with the first theme. The last appearanceof the principal theme is veiled and disrupted bysyncopations in a way that recalls the ending of theOverture to Coriolan, but in an even more sombre mood.

The third movement, the Symphony’s scherzo, is markedAllegro vivace, and is an enlarged replica of the oldMinuet form, with a trio and repeats. The main theme isgiven out by the oboe over a muttered and staccato stringaccompaniment, played pianissimo. The trio is entrustedto the horns, whose theme has a pronounced ‘open-air’character.

The finale, Allegro molto, consisted of free variations on atheme previously employed by Beethoven in theincidental music to The Creatures of Prometheus, Op. 43,and prior to that in the ‘Fifteen Variations in E flat’, Op. 35for solo piano. This initial theme is enriched by a melodysuperimposed upon it from the third variation, and playedby the oboe. This secondary theme gives rise to a seriesof twelve variations. The climax is the penultimate andantevariation, richly harmonised and of great power. The finalvariation, marked Presto, provides a peroration to thework of brilliance entirely in keeping with the Symphony’stitle ‘Heroic’.

© David Patmore

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