Serenade

7 October 2016

The ancient Church of St Peter and St Paul, King’s Sutton, Oxfordshire welcomed us on Friday 7 October for ‘Serenade’, the first concert of the year for both the String Orchestra and Wind Band. Directed by Mr Windass and Mr Gibbon respectively, this was an impressive achievement after only a few rehearsals, incorporating seven new Third Form wind players and four new string players.

Highlights were ‘Fantasia on Greensleaves’ by Ralph Vaughan Williams, featuring Music Scholar Charlotte Brennan (Lower Sixth, West) on harp and Ms Adams on flute; music from ‘Les Misérables’ and ‘Gladiator’; the first movement of the ‘Holberg Suite’, Op. 40 by Greig, the Rondo from Mozart’s ‘String Duo No. 1 in G major for violin and viola’, K. 423, by new Music Scholars Audrey Au (Third Form, Lyttelton) and Rosia Li (Third Form, Stanhope). Other notable contributions included an arrangement of an ‘Adagio’ by Mozart by the clarinet quartet, an impressive horn fanfare, and crowning the evening with music from ‘The Lion King’.

Our visiting music staff made excellent contributions to this event, and helped bring together some ensembles for the first time: Mr Loveridge, cello; Mr Lewis, French Horn; Mr Turner, percussion; Ms Adams, flute; Mr Howse, clarinet and we also welcomed accomplished violinist Dr Waine, Stowe’s new Head of Chemistry, to the String Orchestra. 

Geoffrey Silver, Director of Music