Get ready for some angelic voices. We're excited to announce we’re being joined by Red Maids Close Encounters choir for our Christmas concert on Sunday 11 December at Henleaze United Reform Church in Bristol. The choir sing unaccompanied close harmony and pride themselves on their musical ability and strong reading skills.
Trumpeter Julius Scholz (pictured) joins forces with us for our autumn concert on Saturday 12th November at 7.30pm at the Victoria Rooms, Bristol. The programme has a real Halloween flavour to it, featuring witches, spirits, Satan, obsessive unrequited love and nightmarish hallucinations with Berlioz Symphonie Fantastique and Mussorgsky Night on a Bare Mountain. We're also offering a rare opportunity to hear the Arutunian Trumpet Concerto, a beautiful, flamboyant Russian piece referencing folk music and dance.
The violin cake rota
Returning by popular request this term is the violin cake rota. Spoilt, happier (and heavier) as we were last term, there was great enthusiasm to put on our pinnies and bake once again. Each week a different desk bakes some scrummy nibbles for us all to enjoy, and power us through the second half - to be honest I worried how the William Tell would go without cake on concert day but check it out on YouTube, complete with our ricochet bowing.
Spring concert, spring clean
With our spring concert just days away, it's time to give Lucy (my fiddle) a clean up - she's got pretty dusty of late. Whilst it's always worth wiping your violin and bow with a duster after playing to keep rosin build up under control, once in a while she needs a little more love.
So here’s how to give your violin a quick spruce up:
From ricochet rookies to old hands
Last week was sectionals week and the first violins were looking to work on our ricochet technique as Rossini’s William Tell Overture demands some fine rhythmic control. The cellos were having bit of a debate too about the bowing beforehand, so were looking forward to mastering the technique.
Want to go from being a ricochet rookie to an old hand? Here are some tips:
Whether you’re bitten by the love-bug or reaching for the bucket, there’s no denying that Valentine’s Day is a great excuse to dig out some beautiful music.
So when we asked our players what music puts them in the mood for love, what conjures up the essence of romance for them, they came up with some gorgeous pieces which would melt even the hardest of hearts. So curl up with that special person or, if Valentine’s Day leaves you cold, put your feet up, plug in your headphones and enjoy the music.
Lots of love from Brunel Sinfonia xx
Shostakovich 15: Surprising, beautiful and somewhat understated
Mark Gateshill talks about the symphony we're working on in preparation for our concert on 19th March.
The thing that always strikes me about Shostakovich’s final symphony is how unsettling it is, despite the fact the composer was looking to create an uplifting piece. Though beautiful, it’s evidently the work of an already sick man facing the end of his life.
Marina Martins
Performing Tchaikovsky's Variations on a Rococo Theme with Brunel Sinfonia
Last November, we had the pleasure of accompanying Marina Martins, a prize winning young cellist who started playing aged 3! She currently studies with Richard May at Wells Cathedral Specialist Music School and has performed internationally at music festivals. Here's what she had to say about playing with us:
A new score arrives
A new score has landed! My 2014/15 season finished on a high with a performance of Brahms Symphony no.3 at the Frome Festival, one of my favourite gigs of the year. When my weighty copy of Rachmaninov's 'Symphonic Dances' is handed to me, it’s my cue to get cracking on the new season which kicks off with Brunel Sinfonia in November. I love turning the pages on a new, unfamiliar piece, it opens the door on an exciting unknown musical world.
