Autumn Concert

11 November

What a wide-ranging mix of moods and styles, entirely fitting to the season, Autumn being what it has been this year

– a breath-taking mix of warm sunshine, frost, gusting wind and driving rain! With a hint of things to come, the programme began with ‘Showstopper’ by Kimber, a powerful and dynamic percussion piece, and continued with an item from Wonderbrass. It was good to hear them playing a classical Renaissance Sonata; what a contrast from their last performance on Jazz Night! Bel Canto, a Year 7 choir, was delightfully fresh and confident singing two contemporary pieces, as was the Concert Orchestra. ‘Harvest Home’ from the Four Seasons  and ‘The Dambusters March ’ stirred our English pastoral sense and  patriotic fervour, and then the Chamber Orchestra played Stravinsky’s ‘Pulcinella Suite’, based on the Commedia dell’Arte tradition; a lovely juxtaposition of sounds.

More to come! In the second half, the Symphony Orchestra whirled us through Sullivan’s ‘Iolanthe’, Sibelius’ ‘Finlandia’, and finished with music from ‘The Gadfly’ by Shostakovitch at a cracking pace. It was hard to believe the pupils had only been rehearsing with their teachers over a period of 7 weeks. What ambition! What skills!