Monday, January 2, 2017

Music in Lent Term 2017

A very busy term lies ahead for the Vaughan's musicians with a series of concert opportunities that sees the boys and girls performing all across London and beyond.


Throughout the term we will run our Annual Music Competition. Each competition is held at the Vaughan, starting at 6 pm.

Wednesday 25 January: Strings: Adjudicator Adrian Bradbury (cellist)
Tuesday 31 January: Piano: Adjudicator, Anthony Williams
Wednesday 8 February: Woodwind: Adjudicator, Amanda Moore (flautist)
Wednesday 22 February: Brass: Adjudicator, Amos Miller (trombonist)
Wednesday 8 March: Singing: Adjudicator, Diana Moore
Wednesday 29 March: Prize Winners final: Adjudicator, David Hill

The term also contains our annual collaboration with Southbank Sinfonia, our orchestra in residence. They will lead a composing workshop on Tuesday 7 February and then our musicians will sit side-by-side with them for a performance of Brahms' Fourth Symphony at 6 pm on Thursday 2 March at St John's, Waterloo.

The School's orchestras and other instrumental ensembles will be on display at our Spring Instrumental Concert which will be held at St Paul's School at 7 pm on Friday 24 March (please note this date has changed from that given in the School Calendar).


The Big Band will be performing that evening and also making two further appearances, at the Half Moon in Putney on Sunday January 29 (1.30 pm) and at the annual Big Band Evening which this year is held in the New Hall on Friday 3 February. The Big Band will be joined for this event by Junior Big Band.

Sixth Form Choir will sing an Evensong at St Gabriel's Church in Pimlico on Sunday 5 March (6.15 pm) and also join with the School Choir for the annual Easter Concert which this year to be held at St John's, Smith Square on Saturday 8 April (please note this is the day after the end of term). The School Choir that evening will sing Vaughan Williams' monumental Sea Symphony. The soloists will be Sarah Fox and Duncan Rock. In the first half of the concert Owen Saldanha will perform Ravel's G major Piano Concerto. This promises to be a memorable evening.

The Schola Cantorum, as well as providing music for the School's weekly liturgies, are to sing two concerts this term. On Thursday 26 January they sing a programme of twentieth century music (Dupré, Walton and Duruflé) at St Peter's, Eaton Square. This concert will raise money for the charity Aid to the Church in Need. On March 14 the Schola will join forces with His Majesty's Sagbutts and Cornetts for a concert entitled Festa Veneziana, an evening of Venetian polychoral music, which is the held at the historic Temple Church in the City of London. Joined by tenor soloists Nicholas Mulroy and Peter Davoren, this concert is given as part of the Temple Music Foundation Concert Series.

In addition the Schola will sing for the Vigil Mass at Westminster Cathedral at 6 pm on Saturday 21 January and 18 March. The choir will also sing for the Solemn Mass at Liverpool Metropolitan Cathedral on Sunday 5 February and will sing Evensong at Westminster Abbey on Tuesday 28 March.