English

Weekly Highlights 9th May 2025

Purcell Students Shine at Wigmore Hall – and in the Press

We’re delighted to share that our recent concert at Wigmore Hall – which featured a powerful programme including Berio’s Folk Songs – has received a glowing review on the Get the Chance website.

In a review full of praise, music journalist James Ellis opens with ‘In what might be the finest hour of music making I have seen in London for some time, I was caught off guard with The Purcell School,’ and closes with ‘A genuine joy to see young musicians play on this scale’.

We are so proud of everyone involved – not only for the musical excellence displayed but also for the professionalism, poise and passion each student brought to the experience. This kind of recognition is a real testament to their hard work and to the support of our dedicated staff and wider school community.

You can read the full review here.

Congratulations to all who took part!

Purcell Pianist Performs Solo Recital in Spain

On 2nd May, Year 12 pianist Teodora gave a solo recital at the Sala Eutherpe in León, Spain, following an invitation from the prestigious Fundación Eutherpe. Supported by Spain’s Ministry of Culture, the foundation has hosted more than 7,500 musicians from over 50 countries since its founding in 2004, providing a truly international platform for young talent.

Teodora performed an hour-long programme featuring works by Beethoven, Bach, Debussy and Prokofiev – composers to whom she feels a deep artistic connection. Her performance was met with such enthusiasm that the audience called her back for three encores.

She extends heartfelt thanks to her teacher, William Fong, and to the school for their ongoing support in shaping her musical journey.

Congratulations to Teodora.

Purcell Pianist Performs on International Stage

We are thrilled to share that Year 10 pianist Kevin recently gave a full-length evening recital at the prestigious Philharmonic Hall in Bucharest, Romania, on 15th April. The sold-out performance was recorded by Romania’s national radio broadcaster and will be shared across the European Broadcasting Union.

Congratulations to Kevin, who studies at Purcell under Florian Mitrea, on this exciting milestone.

Purcell Composer Receives International Recognition

Year 13 composer Adi continues to make waves in the world of contemporary music. She was recently named the winner of the High School category in The Sound Ensemble Composition Competition with her piece Flourish Regardless. The work will receive a public performance by the ensemble on 16th May, along with a cash prize – a fantastic achievement that reflects her growing stature in the field.

Earlier this year, Adi was also a dual finalist in the ORIENT/OCCIDENT Music Composers’ Competition, held in Ukraine in February. Her orchestral works Dragonflies Indoors and Emergence were professionally recorded and filmed during rehearsals and performances by the KLK Symphony Orchestra. Among a field of adult composers, Adi stood out as the youngest competitor, with Emergence receiving a special mention from the jury.

We’re immensely proud of Adi’s success and look forward to hearing more from this outstanding young composer.

Purcell Harpist Wins 1st Prize at Festival

Congratulations to Year 11 harpist Selin, who was awarded 1st Prize in her harp class at the North London Music Festival on Bank Holiday Monday 5th May.

Congratulations to Selin, who studies at Purcell under Charlotte Seale.

Concerts Review

Wigmore Hall – Friday 2nd May
The Purcell School Chamber Soloists, conducted by Paul Hoskins, gave a captivating performance at Wigmore Hall on 2nd May 2025, celebrating the birth years of Ravel and Berio with a varied programme. Highlights included Ravel’s Tzigane, exquisitely performed by Year 12 student Julia and Year 13 student Phoebe; Berio’s Folk Songs, brought to life by 11 Purcell singers who portrayed the unique characters of each song; and the world premiere of Robert Saxton’s Le tombeau de Ravel. Year 10 pianists Luca and Stephanie concluded the concert with an engaging performance of Ravel’s La Valse arranged by Iain Farrington for Piano 4 hands. All works were performed with commitment and maturity. Congratulations to all the performers and to Purcell’s composer-in-residence, Robert Saxton.

Lunchtime Concerts
The first two weeks of the Summer Term have seen fabulous lunchtime concerts.

Last week we were given a sneak preview of the Wigmore Concert from Julia and Phoebe on Monday, Luca and Stephanie on Tuesday and musicians Tristan, Theo Kuan-Lin, Dianna, Teresa, Prince, Natalie, April, Ostap, Rhys, Alex, Matias, Selin, Suanoi, Birce, Oliver and Hannah on Thursday. Solo voices in the Berio were also brilliantly sung by Ramona, Marija, Alina, Celeste, Clem, Sonya, Adi, Solomiya, Lia and Lilly.

It was a pleasure also last week to hear the clarinet ensemble play Dubois Quatuor, well done to Tom, Birce, Samsara, Yulin and Dianna.

A wonderful Wednesday concert led by Clem, supported by Natty, Cole, Lucas and Sam put everyone in great spirits for the rest of the day.

This week the premiere of Tom‘s song cycle ‘Five Golden Songs’ took place on Tuesday, the accomplished piano accompaniment from Tom complimenting the controlled and atmospheric vocal lines sung by.

Cole, Keir, Albert, Flo and Yoel delivered a wonderful jazz set on Wednesday. The set was perfectly balanced building up towards the end with energetic numbers by Herby Hancock and Snarky Puppy.

The two weeks were completed with a perfectly poised performance of Bach by Sofiia and beautiful presentations of Debussy and Rachmaninov by Asher.

Purcell Return to Watford Palace Theatre – With Clare Teal!

We’re thrilled to announce our return to the iconic Watford Palace Theatre for a very special concert on Tuesday 24 June.

This year, we are honoured to be joined by celebrated jazz vocalist Clare Teal, who will perform alongside our outstanding Jazz, Commercial and Classical music students. Together, they’ll present an unforgettable evening of Clare’s own music and arrangements.

Tickets went on sale earlier this week and are expected to go quickly! Priced between £8–15, they are available through the Watford Palace Theatre box office here.

Don’t miss this spectacular night of live music in one of Hertfordshire’s most beloved venues. We can’t wait to see you there!

 

Forthcoming Events

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


Monday 12 May – Benslow Music Trust
Time: 3.00pm
Venue: Benslow Lane Hitchin SG4 9RB
Tickets: £10 and can be purchased here


Tuesday 13 May – Chiltern Arts Festival Concert: Piano Recital
Time: 6.00pm
Venue: St Michael & All Angel’s Church Hughenden, HP14 4LA
Tickets: £15-£20 and can be purchased here

Programme:
J.S Bach Prelude and Fugue in F# minor, BWV 859 Book I
Beethoven Sonata Op.53 in C major
Chopin Sonata in Bb minor, Op.35
Debussy Images Book 2
Janáček Sonata 1.X.1905 I. Presentiment II. Death


Friday 16 May – Chiltern Arts Festival Strings Concert: The Instrumentalist
Time: 7.30pm
Venue: St. Peter’s & St. Paul’s Church, Church Street, Great Missenden
Tickets: £15-£35 and can be purchased here

Harriet Constable author & reader
Lucy Russell violin
Musicians from The Purcell School

Read by the author herself, excerpts from Harriet Constable’s debut novel, The Instrumentalist, are woven together here with music by Vivaldi, Correlli and Tartini to tell the story of young Anna Maria, a musical prodigy studying under Vivaldi at the Ospedale della Pietà, an orphanage for girls in Venice in the 1700s. When Anna Maria hears music, she sees colour: this representation of what we now call synaesthesia is told beautifully and sensitively through Harriet’s writing — and has inspired us to bring colour into this musical event, too. Featuring extracts from The Four Seasons and Tartini’s The Devil’s Trill, we also hear new music from Deborah Pritchard — a synaesthetic composer herself — commissioned especially for the event and created through work with colour and sound with local primary school children and composers from The Purcell School.