Class - 7th July

There was a touch of deja vu about this evening's class...the final rehearsal before next week's concert. We even had a small audience for our 'dress rehearsal', of family members and one very confused gentleman who didn't seem to know why he was there! They seemed to enjoy our large ensemble items, and we now know that if we want louder applause, we need to play faster!

Small group items:

• 'General Radetsky goes Cuckoo' by Michaelson - Heather, Annie, Helen & Mike
• Telemann Trio Sonata in F Major - George, Imogen, Margaret & Joan
• 'Trois Duos de Mendelssohn et Lachner' - Judy, Diana & Angela
• 'Summertime' by George Gershwin - Penny, George, Annabel, Kath, Theresa, Polly, Mike, Margaret & Joan
• Trio Sonata in D Minor by Quantz - Annie, Annabel, Margaret & Joan
• 'Shimmering Flutes' by John Cacavas - Annie, Judy, Penny & Imogen
• Trio Sonata in G Major by C.P. E. Bach - Diana, Kath & Imogen
• 'Salut d'Amour' by Elgar - Penny, Theresa & Mike
• 'Pavane pour une infante defunte' by Ravel - Heather, Polly & Angela
• Telemann Trio Sonata in D Minor - George, Judy & Angela

Phew! I think that must be a record for the most number of pieces rehearsed in one class!

Class - 30th June

It was good to be back nearly up to full strength last night, and our large ensemble pieces are sounding good, even though we'd picked up some speed in the 'Marriage of Figaro' which took a few people by surprise! With only a couple more classes before our concert, we had a 'whistle-stop' tour through (nearly) all the other concert items too...a dress rehearsal for all the room & personnel changes in next week's final rehearsal!

Small group items:

• 'General Radetsky goes Cuckoo' by Michaelson - Heather, Annie, Helen & Mike
• Telemann Trio Sonata in F Major - George, Imogen, Margaret & Joan
• 'Trois Duos de Mendelssohn et Lachner' - Judy, Diana & Angela (with substitutions of Heather & George!)
• 'Summertime' by George Gershwin - Penny, George, Annabel, Kath, Theresa, Mike, Margaret & Joan
• Trio Sonata in D Minor by Quantz - Annie, Annabel, Margaret & Joan
• 'Shimmering Flutes' by John Cacavas - Annie, Judy, Penny & Imogen
• Trio Sonata in G Major by C.P. E. Bach - Diana, Kath & Imogen
• 'Salut d'Amour' by Elgar - Penny, Theresa & Mike

Class - 9th June

I don't know if it was the week off...or lots furious practising over half-term...but our large ensemble pieces sounded so much better this evening...lots of contrasts in dynamics...and we're picking up speed in 'The Marriage of Figaro'...didn't realise the metronome went up that high!

Small group items:

• 'Scherzo & Trio in G Minor' by Schubert - Heather, Penny, Polly, Helen, Theresa, Dermot & Mike
• C. P. E. Bach Trio Sonata in G Major - Diana, Kath & Imogen
• Quantz Trio Sonata in D Minor - Annie, Annabel & Joan
• Telemann Trio Sonata in C Major - George, Judy, Margaret & Angela

Class - 26th May

We're still cracking on with our large ensemble items...and they were certainly sounding more together this week, with dynamics too! It's half-term next week...which is usually the point at which practising gets more serious, so I'm looking forward to hearing big improvements at the next class!

Small group items:

• 'Vocalise' by Rachmaninov - Theresa, Dermot & Angela
• C. P. E. Bach Trio Sonata in G Major - Diana, Kath & Imogen
• J. C. Bach Quintet in G Major - George, Penny, Judy, Polly & Joan
• General Radetsky Goes Cuckoo (with apologies to Johann Strauss) by Michaelson - Heather, Annie, Helen & Mike

Class - 10th March

We were a rather select gathering this evening...but still managed to make good progress with the final, definitive version of 'The Hebrides Overture', despite being lacking in the bass department.

Small group items:

• Boismortier Sonata in A Minor - George, Heather, Penny & Joan
• C.P.E. Bach Trio Sonata in G Major - Diana, Kath & Imogen
• 'Summer Sketches' by Alfred Castle - Annie, Polly, Dermot & Theresa