Weekly Highlights 21st March 2025

Voice Masterclass

Last week, the singers were put through their paces by Linda Hurst, one time Head of Singing at Trinity Laban and a distinguished singer, particularly of contemporary repertoire. This was part of their preparation of the Berio Folk Songs which will be performed in the Wigmore Hall at the beginning of the summer term. Marija (Year 9), Sonya (Year 10), Lia (Year 10), Alina (Year 12), Adi (Year 13), Celeste (Year 11), Ramona (Year 13), Solomiya (Year 12) and Clem (Year 13) were the singers involved. Linda inspired them with her enthusiasm for this repertoire which she herself has performed and offered many technical and musical insights which were invaluable. Many thanks to Linda for an incredibly helpful session.

Concerts Review

Middle School Orchestral Concert on 17th March
On Monday 17th March, our Middle School Orchestra put on a fantastic concert of music by Haydn, Mozart, Glazunov, Dvořák as well as two original compositions by our students, Nemunis and Matilda. Chaeyu in Year 10 was the soloist in the exquisite violin concerto No.4 by Mozart and said, ‘it was an amazing experience to play Mozart’s violin concerto No.4 third movement with the middle school orchestra, which was my very first time performing with a whole orchestra! The piece is elegant and light, and closer to a chamber music piece, and I enjoyed it very much.’

Middle School Composers’ Concert on 18th March
The week pushed on strong with our middle school musicians, who had the world-premiere of their own compositions, created with Purcell’s composer-in-association, Robert Saxton, based on Voiles by Debussy. Ambrus in Year 10 composed Petrification and said, ‘I enjoyed listening to everyone’s pieces. The concert was a great display of compositional skills. My piece was performed superbly by Luca, and it helped me to develop a new perspective on the piece. I might write more movements now that I have heard it performed in a concert’.

Barnes Arts Festival 19th March
A group of six Sixth Form students performed at Barnes Arts Festival on 19th March in their lunchtime concert. The programme included a rare performance of the clarinet quartet by Walter Rabl, performed in full by Thomas, Tristan, Jessie and Yazdi. Phoebe and Leo opened the concert with an emotional rendition of Schubert’s Divertissement a la Hongroise for piano four hands. The audience included students from two secondary schools and the performances were received with enthusiastic applause and cheers at the end.

Session Bands Concert 19th March
The Purcell Session Bands presented a fantastic concert on Wednesday evening. The diversity of music and musical roles was fabulous and the students performed with wonderful energy, personality and professionalism. Well done to Oliver, Flo, Gabriel, Clara and Clara!, Ruby, William, Willow, Arlan, Seth, Elliott, Oscar, Cole, Yoel, Ramona, Adi, Rebecca, Angelica, Larissa, Lilly, Lia, Albert, Sam, Clem and Mahla.

Jonathan Levene Concert 20th March
On Thursday our students presented a stunning concert to a private invited audience of 180. The programme was a true showcase of how varied and talented our students are in their performance abilities. High class solos, duos, trios and quartets from the classical department were complimented with both the marvellous Middle School Jazz Group and one of our wonderful session bands, providing an excellent all round vision into the Purcell musical world.

Well done to Mason, Leo, Thomasine, Yifei, Stephanie, Zev, Zhuldyz, Aaron, Shlomi, Ken Ros, Tristan, Mahla, Julianna, Otto, Lucas, Seth, Boris, Marija, Albert, Cole, Sam, Angelica, Clem, Yoel, Thomas, Birce, Ella, Jessie, Teresa, Ostap, Lilly, Rowena and Elsa.

Lunchtime Concerts
On Monday our brass players Mason, Joshua, Rowena, John, Trevor, Willow, Skye, Alex, Brad, Rhys and Tristan presented the music of Vivaldi, Gounod and a traditional Scottish tune. On Tuesday we heard beautiful vocal and violin performances from Alina and Sonya. On Wednesday, Hannah performed a piano composition by Gerard and her own voice and piano composition Paradis sung by Sonya.

The Thursday finale was a wonderful presentation of choir pieces and solos sung by the lower school choir. Well done to Tongai, Elizabeth, Stephanie, Luca, Sherry, Milou, Jarvis, Dom, Summer Sky, Glyn, Ivan, Clara, Yisen, Gracie, Theo, Marcus, Tymofiy, Michael, Stelios, Asta, Norah, Alexandra and Rose, and Theo and Elizabeth for your solos.

Forthcoming Events

In addition to those highlighted events below, please visit our online Concerts and Events Guide.

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Sunday 23 March – Stanborough Park Church Teatime Concert
Time: 3.00pm
Venue: Stanborough Park Seventh-day Adventist Church, 609 St Albans Rd, Watford WD25 9JL
Tickets: Free admission, no booking required

Programme:
Benjamin Britten Fanfare for St. Edmondsbury
László Zempléni Trio for Flutes
Lachlan Kuhn The Contraption
Samuel Scheidt Canzon Cornetto
Claude Debussy arr. Gordon Davies Petite Suite
Geoffrey Keating Dance Hall Suite
Ernesto Lecuona arr. Stuart Malcolm Malaguena

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Wednesday 26 March – Jazz Department Concert
Time: 7.00pm
Venue: CP Hall, The Purcell School
Tickets: Free admission, no booking required

The Purcell Jazz Ensemble presents a programme of original student compositions and arrangements.

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Thursday 27 March – The Purcell School Sixth Form Choir at St Dominic’s – The Rosary Shrine
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: The Rosary Shrine, Saint Dominic’s Priory, Southampton Rd, London NW5 4LB
Tickets: Free admission but donations are kindly welcomed to support both The Purcell School and the church organ restoration fund.

The Purcell School Sixth Form Choir, conducted by Chloë Allison, presents an evening concert at St Dominic’s Priory.

Programme:
Duruflé Requiem

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Friday 28 March – Hinchingbrooke Bosendorfer Piano Concert
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: Hinchingbrooke Performing Arts Centre, Huntingdon PE29 3BN
Tickets: Tickets are £15 (£5 for U21 and free for U16) and are available here

Programme:
Schubert Fantasia in F minor for Piano 4 hands
Schubert String Quartet No.14 “Death and the Maiden” i) Allegro
Rachmaninov 6 Morceaux Op. 11 for Piano Duo iii) Chanson Russe iv) Valse v) Romance
Mendelssohn Piano Trio in D minor movements 1, 2, and 4

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Monday 31 March – Trio Recital with Phil Cobb, Helen Vollam and Liz Burley
Time: 7.00pm
Venue: CP Hall, The Purcell School
Tickets: Free admission, no booking required

Programme:
G.F. Handel Happy We (from Acis and Galatea)
Dan Jenkins Exuberance & Hymn (2021)
Johannes Brahms So lass uns wandern!
Julia Simpson Come Buy! (2023)
Erich Korngold Dogberry and Verges
John Williams Born on the Fourth of July
Alfred Newman Street Scene
Peter Graham Meditation (2016)
Chick Corea Armando’s Rhumba

Phil Cobb (Trumpet) Principal Trumpet of the BBC Symphony Orchestra since 2020, previously with the London Symphony Orchestra. A fourth-generation Salvationist, he studied at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Renowned soloist and recording artist, he has contributed to major film soundtracks, including Harry Potter and Star Wars.

Helen Vollam (Trombone) Principal Trombone of the BBC Symphony Orchestra since 2004 – the first woman in this role in a London orchestra. She is a member of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and Bones Apart. A Guildhall graduate, she is an active educator and performer, premiering The Book of Miracles with ‘The Book of Miracles with the BBC Symphony Orchestra’.

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Wednesday 2 April – Alessandro Borgomanero and Sarah-Jane Bradley Recital
Time: 7.00pm
Venue: Recital Room, The Purcell School
Tickets: Free admission, no booking required

Programme:
W.A. Mozart Duo in G Major for Violin and Viola KV 423
J. S. Bach Chaconne from the Partita No. 2 in D Minor for Violin Solo BWV1004
David Matthews (b1943) “Darkness Draws In” (2005) and “Elegiac Variations” (2024)
Ernani Aguiar (1950-) “Duos de Prados” for Violin and Viola (1986)
Handel/Halvorsen “Passacaglia” for Violin and Viola

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Thursday 3 April – Musical Theatre Evening
Time: 7.00pm
Venue: CP Hall, The Purcell School
Tickets: Free admission, no booking required

Join us for an unforgettable evening celebrating the best of West End theatre. Experience the drama and joy of your favourite show tunes performed by outstanding vocal talent and live musicians.

Featuring hits from:
Six
Ghost
West Side Story
Everyone’s talking about Jamie
And many more

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Friday 2 May – Wigmore Hall Lunchtime Concert
Time: 1.00pm
Venue: Wigmore Hall 36 Wigmore Street, London W1U 2BP
Tickets: £18 and can be purchased here

The Purcell School Chamber Soloists return to Wigmore with a programme celebrating the anniversaries of Ravel and Berio. They include a work written for them by Robert Saxton, who studied with Berio. Saxton is deeply immersed in Ravel’s music, and closely involved in the education of young composers. His new work takes Ravel’s opera L’enfant et les sortilèges as a starting point.