St Joseph’s Church Hall, London, EC1

London Repertoire Orchestra

Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet Fantasy Overture
Dvorak: Carnival Overture

St Mary’s Church, Barnes, SW13

Barnes Concert Band

An early celebration of the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee!

Philip Sparke: Jubilee Overture
Holst: March from Second Suite in F
Vaughan Williams: Folk Songs Suite
Derek Bourgeois: Serenade
Philip Sparke: Concert Prelude
H Wood: Fantasia on British Sea Songs
Elgar: Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1

Beckenham Public Halls

SE Orchestra

The launch of a brand new orchestra in south east London – a full repertoire day to bring together the players from this area.

Tchaikovsky: Romeo and Juliet
Nielsen: Helios Overture
Wagner: Prelude from Act III of Lohengrin
Brahms: Academic Festival Overture

We still have room for string players if you’re interested – do get in touch: SE Orchestra

St Paul’s, Covent Garden

City of London Symphonic Winds

Michael Torke: Javelin
Holst: Songs of the West
Martin Ellerby: New World Dances
Richard Rodney Bennett: Reflections on a Sixteenth-Century Tune
Grainger: Molly on the Shore
Holst: First Suite in E flat

For further information contact the Box Office: cityoflondonsymphonicwinds@gmail.com

In the real world, the new SE London orchestra with which I’m involved in founding is well and truly off the ground. It’s worrying/exciting/nerve-wracking, all at the same time – will anyone actually be interested in joining (other than dozens of flautists and clarinetists), will we be pissing off other groups, will we ever agree on when to hold rehearsals? Tricky.

We’re delighted, however, that things are off to a flying start with more people than we dared dream contacting us within the first two weeks. And plenty of them have strings on their instruments.

And, in other news, I am actually playing the trombone this week! Take cover. It’s a pleasure to be in the orchestra for the world premiere performances of Thelma by Samuel Coleridge-Taylor – his ‘lost’ opera, being produced by Surrey Opera at the Fairfield Halls in Croydon. You can read Tom Service’s piece on the Guardian website for more info – he was at the dress rehearsal on Monday. The premiere is Thursday 9 February, with further performances on Friday and Saturday.

And it’s back to the wonderful City of London Symphonic Winds on Sunday, preparing for our 26 February concert. I know I pick the programmes, but why oh why did I think that Charles Ives would be fun? (OK, it will be fun, I know, but tricky for me!) Maybe less time on Football Manager, more with the score…

This yet-unnamed orchestra will launch in April 2012, with the intention of serving musicians and communities in and around the areas of Beckenham, Bellingham, Catford, Crystal Palace, Elmers End, Forest Hill, Norwood, Penge and Sydenham.

We are actively looking to recruit the first members!

Are you interested? The orchestra will first get together for a repertoire day that will end with an informal ‘open rehearsal’/play-through. This will be at a venue in or around Beckenham, in mid-April 2012. There will be some great music, combined with lunch together and the all-important social at the end of the day!

Interested? So what do you need to do now?

1. The first thing to do is simply to send us an email (seorchestra@gmail.com) to register your interest – tell us what instrument(s) you play, and anything else relevant, e.g. your experience, why you’re interested etc. As soon as we have fixed the date, venue and schedule, we’ll get back to you with confirmation. But we do need you to get in touch with us soon, because we won’t be able to go ahead if we don’t hear from enough people.
2. Please also help us to spread the word about the new orchestra with any/all players in your contacts book – send them the link to this page. Word of mouth is so important – and even if it’s not for someone in particular, if you ask them to send it on to their contacts too, then the word gets around even more. Thank you!

If you can help publicise the website – on Facebook, Twitter, emailing friends – then please do so: http://seorchestra.wordpress.com/

I will let you know how we get on!

St Joseph’s Church Hall, London, EC1

London Repertoire Orchestra

Haydn: Symphony No. 102 in B flat

Wathen Hall, Barnes, SW13

Barnes Concert Band

A charity concert in support of local charity FiSH, a neighbourhood voluntary care scheme in Barnes.

John Williams: The Olympic Spirit
Vangelis: Theme from Chariots of Fire
Arnold Steck: Sporting Occasion
Hammond/Bettis: One Moment in Time
John Williams: Olympic Fanfare and Theme
Leroy Anderson: A Christmas Festival
Irving Berlin: I’m Dreaming of a White Christmas
David Barker: Scherzo from A Christmas Suite
Clare Grundman: Three Carols for Christmas
Slade: Merry Christmas Everybody
Leroy Anderson: Sleigh Ride

Time to look friendly and encouraging!

The band wants to encourage young musicians to reach their potential and share the enjoyment of playing with a concert band. As such, a competition has been running for woodwind, brass and percussion players living in Richmond, Hounslow or Kingston to audition for this opportunity. Auditions took place in November 2011.

The concert on 10 March at Richmond Park Academy will feature the winners of the competition, each performing a solo work accompanied by the band. And now we know that the winners are:

• Matilda Ashe-Belton (trombone) – performing the Rimsky-Korsakov Trombone Concerto (first movement)
• Robbie Henderson (euphonium) – performing Goff Richards’ ‘Midnight Euphonium’
• Amy Tucke (flute) – performing the Chaminade Flute Concertino

The rest of the programme will be:

Leonard Bernstein: Slava!
Philip Sparke: Orient Express
Edward Gregson: Festivo
Frank Ticheli: Vesuvius
Morten Lauridsen: O Magnum Mysterium