Class - 29th September

We welcomed back Emily this evening...it was lovely to have her playing with us again! As well as continuing with the 'Christmas Oratorio', we began working on a new piece...'Elizabethan Serenade' (by Ronald Binge)...and there was much discussion as to whether it had once been used as the theme music to radio or TV programme in the dim and distant past! Well, thanks to Wikipedia, I can put everyone out of their misery, and reveal that it was indeed...it was the theme for 'Music in Miniature' on the BBC Light Programme...long before my time!

Small group items:

• 'Vocalise' by Rachmaninov - Theresa, Dermot & Angela
• Concerto in C by Vivaldi - Heather, Annabel, Emily, Mike & Imogen
• Quintet in G minor by Pepusch - George, Penny, Judy, Kath, Margaret & Joan

Class - 22nd September

Ooops - so sorry for not posting this sooner...I wrote it Thursday night, but then lost my internet connection when I went to publish it, and have just realised it was still sitting in the drafts folder...anyway, better late than never!

We had another visitor for a 'taster session' this evening...Katie on treble recorder (who will bring down the average age of the group dramatically if she joins!), as we continued working on the excerpts from J. S. Bach's 'Christmas Oratorio'. We've also been exploring some of the music that has been donated to us by the group's previous tutor (Denis Sobrielo), and all of this evening's small group items came from his collection:

• 'Serenade for Seven' by Ronald Hanmer - Penny, Judy, Annabel, Theresa, Anya, Dermot & Mike
• 'Chants sans paroles' by Tchaikovsky (Arr. Denis Sobrielo) - George, Margaret & Angela
• 'Quintet in D Minor' by Keller - Imogen, Katie, Polly, Kath & Joan

Class - 15th September

A new term usually means new music, but this evening we 'revisited' an old favourite...a selection of movements from J. S. Bach's 'Christmas Oratorio'. We first played it in 2005, and will be performing it, along with some new arrangements, in our concert at the end of term. We also welcomed a new member this evening (Anya on clarinet), and we may have another couple of prospective members coming for a taster session soon!

Small group items:

• Concerto No. 5 in C Major by Pepusch - George, Heather, Penny, Diana, Margaret & Imogen
• Trio Sonata in G Minor by Boismortier - Polly, Mike & Angela
• Trio Sonata in G Major by Telemann - Judy, Kath & Joan
• 'Caprice for Clarinets' by Clare Grundman - Helen, Theresa, Dermot & Anya

Summer Music @ Polly's

Our summer music sessions came to an end last night, with a most enjoyable evening hosted by Polly - thank you! We played a lovely (and varied!) selection of old (and not so old) favourites, then devoured a delicious feast, but the best thing about the evening was seeing Joan (and George!) up and about, and playing piano again!

Here's what we played:

• 'The Great Gate of Kiev' from 'Pictures at an Exhibition - Mussorgsky (Arr. H. Brammer)
• 'Serenade' - Bourgeois (Arr. H. Brammer)
• Andantino from 'The Trout Quintet' - Schubert (Arr. H. Brammer)
• Theme from 'Blackadder' - Goodall (Arr. H. Brammer)
• 'Fiddler on the Roof' Medley - Harnick & Bock (Arr. van der Goot)
• 'My Bonny Boy' from 'English Folk Song Suite' - Vaughan Williams (Arr. H. Brammer)
• 'Rondo' from 'Suite in B Minor' - J. S. Bach (Arr. H. Brammer)
• 'Capriol Suite' - Warlock (Arr. H. Brammer)
• 'Promenade' from 'Pictures at an Exhibition' - Mussorgsky (Arr. H. Brammer)
• 'Brandenburg Concerto No. 3 - Allegro' - J. S. Bach (Arr. H. Brammer)

Just a quick reminder before I go - term starts in two weeks (on September 15th). Looking forward to seeing everyone again...and working on some new music.