In Session with Lewis Bell

6 March 2017

‘In Session with Lewis Bell’ was the most fantastic celebration of Lewis’ five years as a Music Scholar at Stowe. It featured all of Lewis’s friends from the Music Department and some of the groups that he has been a key member of during his time at Stowe. It featured 10 numbers from the Big Band, which Lewis has made his own during the last few years.

There were great solos from Ellen Arnall (Lower Sixth, West) on alto sax and Finlay Sutherland (Lower Sixth, Grafton) on trumpet, and of course Lewis (Upper Sixth, Grenville) on piano. Lewis even sang ‘Come Fly with Me’ with the full band and gave some great solo performances of Kapustin’s ‘Toccatina’, ‘Someone To Watch Over Me’ and ‘Man I Love’. He accompanied Mina Haas (Lower Sixth, Stanhope) for three songs; ‘Misty’, ‘The Girl from Ipanema’ and ‘Pure Imagination’. He also performed ‘Georgia on my Mind’ with Mali Aitcheson (Lower Sixth, Nugent).

Lewis has worked with Henry (Lower Sixth, Walpole) and Alex McQuitty (Walpole 16) as a jazz trio for several years now, and they showed just how well they understand each other with several trio numbers. It was great to see Lewis and Ben Andrew playing music from Rodney Bennett’s Suite for Two Pianos. Ben has taught Lewis since he arrived at Stowe and they performed beautifully. Lewis still has several concerts before he leaves us to take up his place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. We all wish him every success, and will keenly follow his career as a musician.

Photos from the event can be seen here.

Nigel Gibbon, Head of Brass, Wind and Percussion