TOM DALE – Guitar this concert will be on 19th March 2024 at 7.30 pm at Boston Grammar School. Tickets are £12 at the door or in advance. Students and children have free entry to all concerts. To order tickets in advance please telephone 01205 366018 or contact bostonconcertclub@gmail.com. There is ample parking at the entrance off Rowley Road.

PROGRAMME

Heitor Villa-Lobos (1887-1959)

Cinq Preludes
- Prelude no.1
- Prelude no.2
- Prelude no.3
- Prelude no.4
- Prelude no.5

Cyril Scott (1879-1970)

Sonatina for Guitar
- I: Adagio, quasi introduzione – Molto Moderato
- II: Allegretto Pensoso
- III: Finale

Francisco Tarrega (1852-1909)

Lagrima

Isaac Albeniz (1860-1909)

Rumores de la Caleta

Interval

Francis Poulenc (1899-1963)

Sarabande

Peter Sculthorpe (1929-2014)

From Kakadu
- I: Grave
- II: Comodo
- III: Misterioso
- IV: Cantando

Federico Moreno Torroba (1891-1982)

Madronos

Toru Takemitsu (1930-1996)

Folios
- I
- III

John Lennon (1940-1980) & Paul McCartney (1842-)

Here, There and Everywhere (arr. Takemitsu)
Michelle (arr. Takemitsu)
Yesterday (arr. Takemitsu)

REVIEW OF JAMES BLACKFORD CONCERT on 20th February 2024

This concert was the penultimate one of the season and what an enjoyable concert it was. Australian, James Blackford plays the Euphonium, this is an instrument which looks like a small tuba and is sometimes called the tenor tuba. James is a winner of the Philip & Dorothy Green Award for Young Concert Artists, and on tonight’s showing is a worthy winner. Other winners of this prestigous award include Steven Isserlis, Elizabeth Watts and Craig Ogden.

James’s accompanist on the piano was Ruth Hollick. The first half of the concert was taken up by familiar works such as Villiers- Stanford’s Caoine a Clarinet Sonata and James played the second movement which has been arranged for the Euphonium. This was a delightful beginning to the concert. This was followed by Hummel’s Fantasy, James played the one on Mozart’s “Non piu andrai” (Figaro), Op.124. This was followed by the lovely Prayer, the first movement from Bloch’s A Jewish Life. Then we heard that wonderful Variations on a Rococo Theme by Tchaikovsky.

After the interval James and Ruth played for us Anthony Brahe’s Tour de Force, this music was written especially for James. It was indeed a a tour de force. This was followed by Piazzola’s tango Café 1930. Another treat followed, Martin Ellerby’s Euphonium concerto and we heard the 3^rd and 4^th movements. The last item on the Programme was Philip Spark’s Harlequin this piece was composed for and dedicated to the Euphonium virtuoso David Childs. It depicts the happy and sad masks of the Comedia dell’Arte, this features Harlequin as one of the main characters, the other eight are Zanni (Giovanni), Pantalone, il Dottore, Pulcinella, Columbina, il Capitano and Brighella. I enjoyed this piece very much and felt that it really showed off the versatility of the Euphonium. Judging by the whoops and loud clapping at the end, the audience felt the same.

We were treated to an encore – a very popular choice for a Lincolnshire audience – part of (another Australian), Percy Grainger’s Lincolnshire Poesy.

James was ably supported by Ruth who is a very fine pianist indeed and she was mentioned especially admiringly by a member of the Club that I met yesterday.

This was a very special concert.

JAMES BLACKFORD – Euphonium and RUTH HOLLICK – Piano will give a concert at Boston Grammar School, PE21 6JE at 7.30 pm on 20 February 2024. Tickets are £12 in advance or at the door. In advance telephone 01205 366018 or email bostonconcertclub@gmail.com

BIOGRAPHIES

Based in Melbourne, Australia, James Blackford is a Besson Sponsored Artist and one of Australia’s most eminent and versatile euphonium players. He is the solo euphonium player with the Royal Australian Air Force Band, teaches euphonium at the Melbourne Conservatorium of Music, and regularly travels around Australia and the world performing as a soloist.

He holds a Master of Music from the Royal Northern College of Music, in Manchester, where he studied under the guidance of David Thornton and Steven Mead. Whilst at the RNCM, James won the college’s concerto competition and received the highly commended award at their prestigious Gold Medal final. James’ studies were proudly supported by the Australian Music Foundation, through the AMF Overseas Study Award, and the Tait Memorial Trust, through the Tait White Loewenthal Award. He is the first euphonium player ever to receive an award from either foundation.

Whilst in the U.K., James won the Philip Jones Brass Prize at the Royal Over-Seas League’s Annual Music Competition. He was later invited to compete in the competitions ‘Overseas Final’, where he was awarded the ROSL trophy for the most Outstanding Musician from Overseas. In the same year, following a performance of the Martin Ellerby Euphonium Concerto at the prestigious RNCM Festival of Brass, James was invited to join The Cory Band to perform and compete with them at the 2023 European Championships, in Malmo, Sweden. James is a strong advocate for the virtuosic capabilities of the euphonium, and he looks forward to continuing to push the boundaries of euphonium performance in the years to come.

Ruth Hollick BMus(Hons) PGdip PPRNCM

Ruth studied Piano at the Royal Northern College of Music for six years, graduating in 2005 with postgraduate qualifications in Solo Performance , Piano Accompaniment and Chamber Music, in addition to her undergraduate degree. She was offered a job at the RNCM as a Staff Pianist soon after graduating and still works there, alongside a similar role at the University of Salford.

As part of her performing and teaching career, Ruth enjoys working with choirs; she is currently Principal Accompanist of Haydock Male Voice Choir and Bolton Choral Union.

In addition to the piano, Ruth has played various Brass instruments since a very young age and now enjoys it as a hobby, playing in a Championship section Brass Band. Ruth considers herself fortunate to be able to combine her career as an Accompanist with her passion for Brass Bands; she regularly performs with Brass soloists in recitals, for recordings and competitions.

PROGRAMME

Charles Villiers-Stanford

Caoine (arrangement of 2^nd movement)

Johann Nepomuk Hummel

Fantasy

Ernest Bloch

Prayer (the first of 3 movements from “a Jewish Life”

P Tchaikovsky

Variations on a Rococo Theme

INTERVAL

Anthony Brahe

Tour de Force (an Australian work written for James)

Astor Piazzola

Cafe 1930

Martin Ellerby

Euphonium Concerto movements 3 & 4

Philip Sparke

Harlequin

CHANGE TO CONCERT ON 19th MARCH

We are sorry to report that Chris Green and Sophie Matthews have had to cancel their proposed visit and give us their concert “A Brief History of Music”. However, we hope that they will be able to come to us next season. We are delighted that Tom Dale will appear instead. Tom is a very fine guitarist and members will recall that he has visited us previously as part of a guitar duo.

REV. JENNIFER DUMAT

It is with great sadness that the Committee of the Club announce the death of our Chairman and Concert Secretary, Rev. Jenny Dumat. Jenny died on 23rd December 2023. Her funeral will take place at Swineshead Parish Church on Tuesday 16th January at 1.00 pm. We should like to express our sincere condolences to her husband David, and to her family.

AMBER EMSON: Violin & LEAH NICHOLSON: Piano will give a concert at Boston Grammar School at 7.30 pm on 16th January 2024. Tickets are £12 either at the door or in advance from 01205 366018, children and students are admitted free of charge. There is ample parking at the entrance to the Grammar School off Rowley Road PE21 6JE.

PROGRAMME

Sergei Prokofiev Sonata for violin and piano No.2 Op. 94a in D Major (24’)

I. Moderato

II. Presto

III. Andante

VI. Allegro con brio

César Franck Sonata for violin and piano in A major (29’)

I. Allegro ben moderato

II. Allegro

III.Ben moderato: Recitative-Fantasia

IV.Allegro poco mosso

Plus two smaller pieces:

Lili Boulanger 2 Morceaux: Nocturne and Cortège (5’)

Maurice Ravel – Tzigane

Biographies

Amber Emson, Violin

Amber (18) started playing violin at the age of 5 as a pupil of Margaret Norris and later Natasha Boyarsky; in 2009 she joined RAM’s Junior Department. As a student at Chetham’s School of Music 2014-16, she won the school’s Concerto Competition resulting in a performance of Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with Chetham’s Sinfonia at Manchester Cathedral, and the Catherine Perkins Chamber Music Prize. Between 2016 and 2019 Amber was member of the Royal College of Music’s Junior Department continuing her violin lessons
with Maciej Rakowski. Since 2020 she studies at the Royal Academy of Music under the tutelage of So-Ock Kim. Amber actively participated in a number of mastercourses, amongst these with Pavel Vernikov, Maurizio Fuks (International Violin Mastercourse Kronberg Academy) and Kolja
Blacher (Carl Flesch Akademie Baden-Baden). In 2018, Amber was awarded the 2nd prize at the X. International Competition for Violin and Viola “Szymon Goldberg” in Meissen. In June 2019 she won 1st prize in the National Round
of Germany’s “Jugend Musiziert” competition, and in the same year she won 1st prize at the International Music Competition Hohenpriessnitz.
Invitations to perform as soloist with orchestras included Lalo’s Symphonie Espagnole with the Orchestra of the City, the Sussex Concert Orchestra and with the Richmond Orchestra. In June 2019 she was invited as soloist of Paganini’s Violin Concerto No 2 with Reed’s School Orchestra at Cadogan Hall, followed by Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto with Sussex Concert Orchestra in Bexhill Festival, with Worthing Philharmonic Orchestra and, in November 2021,
with Sutton Symphony Orchestra. In November 2019 she made her debut playing Dvorak’s Violin Concerto with Enfield Chamber Orchestra. In 2020/21, Amber returned to Richmond Orchestra as a soloist, performing Sibelius’ Violin Concerto. Amber is a passionate chamber musician; together with her duo partner cellist Willard Carter, she won the RCM JD Chamber Music Competition and performed at the Wigmore Hall in June 2017 as part of their annual Young Artists’ showcase concert. Amber participated in the ‘Mit Musik – Miteinander’ Chamber Music course at Kronberg Academy in September 2018. Since August 2019, she is a member of LGT Young Soloists, performing in major concert halls worldwide as a soloist as well as part of the group. Recent tours have
taken her to Rheingau Musikfestival, Elbphilharmonie Hamburg, Berliner Philharmonie and Musikverein Wien, as well as a 2.5 weeks’ tour to Asia (Hong Kong, Singapore, Bangkok, Jakarta) and a CD recording. During the years, Amber’s musical activities have been supported by generous grants from
Awards for Young Musicians, EMI Music Sound Foundation, the Gerald Finzi Trust, the Rhona Reid Charitable Trust, the Nicholas Boas Charitable Trust, the Humphrey Richardson Taylor Charitable Trust, the Kathleen Trust and the Spoff’s Chamber Music Scholarships; she is a 2017, 2018 and 2019 Junior Scholarship recipient at the Hattori Foundation. Amber plays on a fine violin by Matthew Taylor from 1806.

Leah Nicholson, Piano

Leah Nicholson was born in 2001 and began studying with Galina Sandovskaya in St Petersburg, Russia, before continuing her musical education at Chetham’s School of Music in the UK with John Gough and Dr Murray McLachlan.
In 2018 Leah was awarded a Fellowship of the Royal Schools of Music in Solo Piano Performance Diploma (FRSM with Distinction) and has since won a scholarship to further her studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London, where she is studying with Professor Tessa Nicholson. She has won top prizes at numerous competitions internationally and throughout the UK, including the 2014 International Chopin Festival in Mazovia, Poland, Polyphonica International Competition in St. Petersburg, Russia, the Scottish International Youth Piano Competition, the Loretto James Waterhouse Piano Competition, EPTA Piano Competition UK and Chetham’s Bösendorfer Piano Competition. Leah is also the youngest ever winner of the Keldwyth Young Musicians Award.
Leah frequently performs in concerts and has appeared in many venues across Europe including the Wigmore Hall in London, Steinway Hall (UK), Sage Gateshead in Newcastle, Bridgewater Hall and Stoller Hall in Manchester, Petrikirche in St. Petersburg, Russia, and Kadriorg Palace in Tallinn, Estonia. As a result of winning Chetham’s Concerto Competition, she performed Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2 with Chetham’s Orchestra conducted by
David Chatterton, and has also performed Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto No.1 and Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.3 under the baton of conductors such as Ryan Bancroft and Leon Reimer. As a developing artist, Leah has performed in masterclasses for renowned artists such as Christopher Elton, Stephen Hough, Noriko Ogawa, John Gough, Ory Shihor, Peter Frankl, Eugen Indjic, Pas

ANTOINE PRÈAT will give a solo piano recital at Boston Grammar School on Tuesday 10th October 2023 at 7.30 pm

Parking is available at the Rowley Road entrance PE21 6JE. Tickets are £12 in advance or at the door. Children and Students have free entrance to all concerts. To order a ticket in advance please telephone 01205 366018 or send your details to bostonconcertclub@gmail.com

BIOGRAPHY OF ANTOINE PRÈAT

Antoine is a Winner of the Philip and Dorothy Green Award 2020 and a City Music Foundation Artist, Franco-Belgian pianist Antoine Préat is a young artist to watch.

London-based for several years, Antoine has been invited to perform in prestigious venues including the Wigmore Hall, St John’s Smith Square, Salle Gaveau, Salle Cortot, Paris Beaux Arts Museum, Frederyk Chopin Insitute, as well as festivals such as the Nohant Chopin Festival, Lisztomanias, Chopin à Bagatelle, Les Nuits du Piano in Paris, IMS Open Chamber Music at Prussia Cove and Encuentro de Santander. He has appeared on BBC Radio 3, France Musique, Scala Radio and TRT Radio 3.

Antoine has performed alongside leading artists and orchestras including Maté Szücs, Manuel Blanco, Sinfonietta Lausanne, Lesley Hatfield, Robin Ireland, the Centre de Musique de Chambre de Paris, Sainsbury Soloists, Academy Festival Orchestra, University Orchestra of Alicante and London Student Orchestra. He is also a founding member of Trio Cordiera with whom he performs regularly.

Throughout his career, Antoine has also been fortunate to receive guidance from Philippe Cassard, Cedric Pescia, Thomas Adès, Robert Levin, Jerome Lowenthal, Richard Goode, Imogen Cooper and Stephen Hough.

After graduating with honours from the Ecole Normale de Paris where he studied with Liudmila Berlinskaia and Guigla Katsarava, Antoine furthered his studies at the Royal Academy of Music under the tutelage of Tatiana Sarkissova and Christopher Elton, while studying harpsichord and fortepiano under the guidance of Carole Cerasi.

Antoine was awarded the first prize of the Concours international d’Ile de France and the Los

Angeles Colburn Piano Festival Competition, the honour prize at the New York Début Piano Competition and most recently was a semifinalist at the Clara Haskil Competition 2021.

Antoine is generously supported by Talent Unlimited, the Munster Derek Butler Award, Hattori Foundation and the Winifred Christie Trust Award.

PROGRAMMME

Rameau – Suite en Sol

Schumann – Papillons op 2

Debussy – Images Book I

INTERVAL

Brahms – Klavierstucke op 119

Debussy – Images Book II

Faure – 3 Songs without words

73rd SEASON 2023-2024

The new season begins on 10^th October at 7.30 pm. We welcome back Antoine Préat, pianist who will play music by Schumann, Debussy, Brahms and Fauré.

On 21^st November we welcome back the Woodwind Trio, “Trio Volant” who will play music by Rossini, Beethoven, Canteloube, Mozart and Milhaud.

19^th December “Cao Trio” a flute duo and piano who appear by kind permission of the Royal Northern College of Music.

16^th January 2024 Amber Emson, violin and Leah Nicholson, piano playing Sonatas for violin and piano by Sergei Prokofiev and Cesar Franck.

20^th February James Blackford, euphonium with piano accompanist. James is a Young Musician and winner of the Philip & Dorothy Green Award for Young Concert Artists.

19^th March “A Brief History of Music” with Chris Green and Sophie Matthews. 600 years of musical history in 90 minutes.

All concerts are at the Boston Grammar School PE21 6JE and there is ample parking at the entrance off Rowley Road.

Tickets are £12 in advance or at the door. Children and Students have free admission.

There will be further details on this web site as and when we know the full programmes.

REVIEW OF CONCERT ON 21 MARCH 2023 GIVEN BY LAURENCE PERKINS, BASSOON AND JOHN FLINDERS, PIANO

This was the third time that Boston Concert Club had welcomed Laurence Perkins and the first time for John Flinders. They gave us a wonderful concert at the Grammar School on 21 March. This concert was dedicated to the memory of long-standing Concert Club member, Brenda Lane, who passed away on 10 February 2023. Brenda wrote the Reviews for the concerts for many years and she is a very hard act to follow. In his opening remarks Laurence said that he and John were proud to give this concert in memory of Brenda.

The concert began with Gabriel Pierné’s Solo de Concert for bassoon and piano. The piano began and John made it sound very dramatic and then the bassoon joined in and both of these instruments complemented each other perfectly.

Laurence is a wonderful communicator and told us that this programme of music was all about the imagination. In the next piece, Concertino by Michael Haydn, there was lyrical playing by John with the bassoon singing in the lower register and purring away like a huge cat.

In Catalonia by Paul Reade, the imagination really got going; we were at a Festival in the South of France and a very jolly one it was too with a lot of dancing.

Ravel’s Habaňera was originally written as a vocalese for a mezzo and I thought that the bassoon was the perfect instrument for this. At the end there was the lovely silence as we all came back down to earth.

Before the interval Laurence and John played Carl Maria von Weber’s Andante e Rondo Ungarese. The bassoon sang accompanied by the piano. This is a pseudo-Hungarian rondo but it is a lively piece and must be great fun to play. In fact, I loved imagining all those “Hungarians” clumping round and round! It made me laugh.

After the interval, Laurence and John played Gounod’s Funeral March of a Marionette. This was enjoyed by at least two members of the audience who bumped shoulders in time to the music! I was reminded at first of the Teddy Bears’ Picnic and then I thought that this is really “circus like”.

The Romance by Saint-Saens was a huge contrast to the previous piece, I found it very peaceful and soothing.

A further contrast followed and this was Laurence playing Alan Ridout’s Caliban and Arial on the bassoon. First, we hear Caliban, the brutish slave of Prospero, earthbound and full of anger and impotence regarding his lot in life:

“This island’s mine by Sycorax my mother,
Which thou tak’st from me. When thou cam’st first,
Thou strok’st me and made much of me… …and then I loved thee…
Cursed be I that did so…
For I am all the subjects that you have,Which first was mine own king; and here you sty me
In this hard rock, whiles you do keep from me
The rest o’th’island!”
In contrast we heard Arial, that airy spirit, also wanting his freedom but in a lighter way:
“All hail, great master! grave sir, hail! I come
To answer thy best pleasure; be’t to fly,
To swim, to dive into the fire, to ride
On the curl’d clouds; to thy strong bidding
task Ariel and all his quality.”
Laurence told us that he had given the first performance of this piece in 1975 in Canterbury.

Then there was the lovely melancholy Romance by Elgar, beautifully played by John and Laurence. Laurence is quoted in the Programme notes as ascribing its sadness as arising from the death of two of Elgar’s close friends who were featured in the Enigma Variations, A J Jaeger (Nimrod) and Basil G Nevison (BGN).

The bassoon is well suited to the three following traditional Hebridean Melodies arranged by Laurence, the beautiful ‘Mountain Shadow’, the lyrical ‘My fair-headed Mary’ and the jolly ‘The Cockle Gatherers’.
The final piece of music was Gilbert Vinter’s, “The Playful Pachyderm”. This is laugh-out loud stuff and the image of a dancing elephant was irresistible.
The audience clapped long and hard and there were bravos and cheers and then an encore. Laurence told us that John works with soloists and choirs but he “nearly fell under the table” when Laurence suggested as an encore Quenton Ashlyn’s “The Bassoon Song”. Ashlyn was a star of the Music Hall in Victorian times. Laurence sang the song and the bassoon did the bassoon bits in the song. It was wonderful. We all enjoyed every part of this final concert of the Season and we were left wanting more.

Laurence and John had earlier today visited Gipsey Bridge Primary School and on Wednesday they were to visit Sutterton Primary School. What a wonderful treat for the children.

REVIEW OF PASSACAGLIA TRIO CONCERT

on 21 February 2023 at Boston Grammar School

The last visit by the Passacaglia Trio to the Concert Club was on 18 December 2018, and the Trio received a very warm welcome from a capacity audience on their return to us on 21 February. The Trio specialise in Baroque Music and are Annabel Knight, recorders and flute; Robin Bigwood, harpsichord and Reiko Ichise viola da gamba.

The concert began with Handel’s Sonata in G major for flute and basso continuo. This was beautifully played with the viola da gamba growling away at the bottom, the flute dancing at the top and harpsichord singing away in the middle. I loved the sound of the viola da gamba.

Robin then played a solo on the harpsichord and this was a set of variations by C P E Bach. The variations are based on a well-known dance tune of the era, La Folia, and the harpsichord showed us all the colours and rhythms in this music.

It was sheer delight to listen to Greensleeves to a Ground from the first part of the Divisions and published by John Walsh in 1701; Divisions means variations and these were played on the recorder supported in the base line by the harpsichord and viola da gamba. Telemann’s Trio sonata for recorder, viola da gamba and basso continuo followed seamlessly and both pieces complemented each other wonderfully.

After the interval, Reiko played J S Bach’s Sonata in G major for viola da gamba and basso continuo (Robin on the harpsichord). This was beautifully played by both and I think that the singing voice of the viola da gamba has a much warmer tone than the cello, which supplanted it in the 18^th century.

Robin then played Couperin’s Les Barricades Mystėrieuses from Ordre 6ème de clavecin. This is a short piece and I was sorry when it ended, I loved the cascading sound of the harpsichord.

Robin was joined by Annabel and Reiko for C P E Bach’s Trio Sonata in F major for bass recorder and viola da gamba. The bass recorder is mighty instrument and I loved the sound it made. The concert ended with Anna bon di Venezia’s Sonata in G minor for flute and basso continuo. Anna bon di Venezia spent some time at the Court of Frederick the Great and I wonder if he played this piece of music. There is a very famous painting of Frederick the Great playing the flute at Sanssouci, his palace outside Berlin. It was a wonderful end to a very enjoyable evening and judging by the applause at the end everyone felt as I did. I hope that it won’t be too long before they make a return visit.