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We were all immensely proud of the performances given by Juliette Roos (16) in the 2012 BBC Young Musician of the Year Competition. Although she was not chosen as the winner of the strings category, her outstanding potential and achievement were recognised in her being awarded the Walter Todds Bursary (in memory of the founder of the competition), which is given to the competitor showing most promise who did not go through to the final. She was called onto the stage of the Sage in Gateshead at the end of the concerto final (on 13 April) to receive her award which she richly deserved, as all those of you who saw her performance in the strings final (available to view on BBC Iplayer for a few more days) will no doubt agree. Well done, Juliette. Juliette Roos wins Walter Todds Bursary in BBC Young Musician 2012
Idil Biret Masterclasses
The renowned Turkish pianist Idil Biret gave a stunning performance of Beethoven and Liszt to a packed Menuhin Hall on Tuesday 8 May. Amongst her enthusiastic fans were the YMS pianists who also benefited from a public masterclass given by Ms Biret on Wednesday morning.
Olympic Showcase Concert
The School continued its celebration of the London 2012 Olympics with an Olympic Showcase Concert on 3 May. This first half of the concert had a pronounced sporting theme, beginning with a new two-piano version of Debussy’s Ballet Score Jeux (whose scenario involves a curious tennis match involving two female and one male player!) played by Rosalind Phang and Bella Tang. This was followed by Erik Satie’s even more curious Sports et Divertissements for piano (Anastasia Gilfillan) and narrator (the equally curiously attired William Dutton) which illustrated activities such as fishing, yachting, swimming and golf. The first half ended with Rackets for Trio Relay, a composition specially commissioned for the Olympic year from YMS alumna Cheryl Frances-Hoad. Scored for double piano trio (the Lawson Trio, assisted by YMS pupils Charlotte Saluste-Bridoux, Cosima Soulez Larivière (violin), Tamaki Sugimoto, Jean-François Carrière (cello), Ursula Perks and Leyla Cemiloglu (piano)), this was a highly entertaining piece, depicting various Olympic sports and containing a movement entitled Ping Pong, Table Tennis and Wiff Waff.
The second half saw the Lawson Trio extending the classical theme with Piers Hellawell’s Etruscan Games and ended with a performance of Debussy’s delectable Piano Trio in G Major. However, I suspect that the highlight for many will have been the competition between YMS violinists Evie Calver (9), Qian Hui Ho (15) and Jumash Poulsen (19) to see who could play Rimsky-Korsakov’s Flight of the Bumblebee in the shortest time (with a giant stopwatch projected onto a screen above the player).
Sports Stop Press: the winner of the gold medal was Jumash!
Come and Sing Rossini’s Petite Messe Solonelle
A large crowd of amateur singers joined the YMS choir for a ‘scratch’ performance in The Menuhin Hall of Rossini’s masterpiece on Sunday 29 April. An afternoon rehearsal was followed by a short concert of Rossini’s chamber music by YMS pupils and then the evening performance. The work, conducted by Director of Music Malcolm Singer, was performed in its original version, with two pianos (YMS students Menachem Rozin and Dorian Todorov) and harmonium (YMS Choral Director Richard Hills) and a quartet of professional soloists: Eleanor Bowers-Jolley (soprano), Kate Symonds-Joy (mezzo-soprano), Peter Davoren (tenor) and Richard Bannan (baritone). The general conclusion was that Rossini’s mass was neither petite nor solonelle but certainly great fun!
YMS Head talks to elite youth rugby coaches at Twickenham Stadium
On 26 April Headmaster Richard Hillier was guest speaker at Rugby House, Twickenham Stadium. To an audience of coaches involved in the Rugby Football Union’s Advanced Apprenticeship in Sporting Excellence (AASE) programme, he outlined the work of the School, describing the way in which the School selects its pupils, the way in which we combine an academic and musical programme, and the various issues and problems which can arise. The coaches proved to be a receptive audience and were keen to highlight the similarities with what they are trying to do in their youth academies.
YMS Students impress at Salters’ Festival of Chemistry
Daniel Penney writes: On 25 April the C2 group went to the chemistry department of the University College London for the Salters' Festival of Chemistry. The first of the two practicals that we had to do was an investigation to find out who murdered the victim Pete Grimes. Grimes was found dead with some powder and some ink on him. Our task was to find out which of the five suspects had the same ink and powder that was found on the dead body. The second practical that we had to do was to be able to control the rate of a reaction between two chemicals. Once all of the practicals were over, we were treated to a demonstration by a well-known chemist who showed us some experiments using liquid nitrogen and solid carbon dioxide. After this it was the prize ceremony where we were awarded 2nd prize for being the team who had the second closest reaction time to one minute. Our time was 59.55 seconds. It was a great day out and we would love to do it again!
Founder's Day: Celebrating the Guitar
This year the School marked Founder’s Day – the ninety-sixth anniversary of Lord Menuhin’s birth on 22 April 1916 – with a celebration of the guitar, which was added to the list of instruments taught at the School in 2004, thanks to a generous bursary donated by The Rolling Stones. Young (and not so young) guitarists from the local area flocked to the School in the afternoon to play in clinics led by our own guitar teacher Richard Wright, former pupils Tom Ellis and Laura Snowden, and Chris Stell (of the Eden Stell Guitar Duo). The clinics were followed by a masterclass involving our own current students and internationally acclaimed guitarist Jonathan Leathwood.
The evening concert comprised performances by the four YMS guitarists, as well as alumni Tom and Laura, followed by the hugely entertaining trio Mélange à Trois - Jonathan Leathwood, with YMS alumna Kathy Gowers (violin) and Chris Hill (double bass) - who played, amongst other things, music by Kreisler and Sarasate, Irish folk music and American Bluegrass. Not to mention the extraordinary encore Hot Canary which few will forget! A wonderful evening.
The Menuhin International Violin Competition Beijing 2012
As reported in the most recent newsletter, we were delighted that Gabriel Ng (17) was selected from hundreds of applicants to compete in the senior finals of the biennial Menuhin Competition which was held this year in Beijing. Gabriel’s playing won many fans and admirers and he was chosen as one of the ten contestants to perform in the second round of the finals. Although he was not one of the four violinists chosen to compete in the final concerto round, his playing was fittingly rewarded at the final gala reception with the prize for the most outstanding performance of Bach in the competition. Critic Nancy Pellegrini wrote in her blog on the Menuhin Competition website:
Senior competitor Gabriel Ng's first few notes exude a mournful sensitivity that is a fresh breeze in a stuffy room, the first breath of spring after a long winter. More importantly, he makes you straighten up, exhale and forget how long you've been sitting in one spot. Hailing from Singapore, Ng currently studies at Menuhin School and has racked up a couple of awards. Although shy about acknowledging applause … he projects the kind of warmth and passion that makes you feel you found a treasure you weren't looking for.
Pictured above is Gabriel with Wang Cizhao, President of the Central Conservatory of Music, and Lord Menuhin's eldest grandson Lin.
But Gabriel was not the only YMS student in Beijing. Nine other students, travelling with Headmaster Richard Hillier and Director of Music Malcolm Singer and joined by staff member Shu Wang in Beijing, had been invited to perform in the orchestra which would accompany the finalists in the junior section of the competition (alongside nine students from the Middle School of the Central Conservatory), in their chosen movement from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. In addition our students had the immense privilege of giving a concert in the vast Concert Hall of the Forbidden City, where they were again joined for some of the programme by students from the Middle School.
The first half of the week left little time for more than rehearsal, sleeping and eating (we were fed extremely well!). However, at the end of the week we had time for a whirlwind tour of the Forbidden City, a rickshaw ride around one of Beijing’s most picturesque areas, and a trip to the Great Wall (see below). Beijing 2012 was an unforgettable experience for us all.
Yehudi Menuhin founded our famous school in 1963 and created the ideal conditions in which musically gifted children might develop their potential to the full on stringed instruments and piano.
Since 1963 the School has expanded and now educates more than seventy talented boys and girls between 8 and 19. The range of instruments is limited to violin, viola, cello, double bass, guitar and piano. All pupils sing in one of two choirs and all string players also play the piano.
In 1973 the School was accorded special status as a Centre of Excellence for the Performing Arts. Since 1975, all UK pupils, as well as those who have been resident in the UK for at least two years, have been funded by the Department for Education and only pay a contribution to the cost of their child's education according to their means. The School's aim is to enable all children who have been selected for their exceptional musical ability and potential to attend the School, whatever their parents' financial background.
