Becky Hill, HADOS Chair, writes:
We are looking forward to welcoming you to the next concert given by the Havant Symphony Orchestra, ‘Tidings of Love and Joy’ on 6 December. We have enjoyed rehearsing pieces inspired by the story of Romeo and Juliet including the famous overture by Tchaikovsky, and the Symphonic Dances from West Side Story by Bernstein. We are also rehearsing the Suite No 1 from Carmen by Bizet, another tangled love story and, as we approach the festive season, music from ‘Love Actually’, a film that is sure to be part of the Christmas television schedules this year.
Thomas Luke – soloist:
We are delighted that the talented pianist, Thomas Luke, will be joining us to play the Paganini Variations by Rachmaninov. Thomas has performed with us before as part of James Thomas’ bursary concert during his 2022 – 23 season, and came to national attention when he won the Keyboard Category of BBC Young Musician Competition in 2020. Read a 2021 interview with Thomas on MiP.
Quoting from Thomas’ website:
Born on the Isle of Wight, Thomas’ musical spark was lit in the room under his grandparents’ stairs, playing keyboard games on the organ with his grandfather. He began piano lessons with Judith Harvey aged four, continuing studies with Eleanor Hodgkinson at the Junior Royal Academy of Music. He now studies with Vanessa Latarche at the Royal College of Music, receiving further mentorship from Alim Beisembayev, as the Margaret Mount Scholar supported by the Cotes-Burgan Scholarship.
It will be wonderful to reunite James and Thomas again, especially as both of them are from the local area. James had a rehearsal with Thomas recently at the Royal College of Music, and I was sent a short video of Thomas’ performance which was outstanding! We hope you’ll be able to join us to hear him play in person at our concert.
SHYO
We are delighted that Ben Qureshi, the Assistant Conductor of the HSO, and Principal Conductor of our sister orchestra, the Southeast – Hampshire Youth Orchestra (SHYO), completed his first, very successful rehearsals and concert with SHYO at The Pallant Centre in Havant. A large audience enjoyed a repertoire which included smaller ensemble pieces for the wind and brass sections, the Pirates of the Caribbean Suite, and Mozart’s Jupiter Symphony. This was a challenging programme and the orchestra played superbly. Congratulations to Ben and the members of this wonderful orchestra for their outstanding performance. We are looking forward to more rehearsals and their next concert on Sunday 25th January at 5pm at The Pallant Centre, Havant. Huge thanks to Ginny Grant who has sponsored Ben’s conductor fees and expenses in support of his work with the orchestra this season. To learn more about SHYO and their concerts, please visit the SHYO website.
As always, we are pleased that some of the members of SHYO have joined the HSO for rehearsals and concerts. Three of the members of both orchestras, Will, Ben and Edelyn, are now members of both committees, and this will be a valuable link throughout the forthcoming season.
If you know of any young musicians who might like to join the SHYO, they will need to be under 18 and of Grade 6 – 8 standard. To learn more about SHYO and their concerts, please click the SHYO link above.
SHYO’s ‘umbrella’ organisation, The Southern Music Project, is led by Adam Denman and for more details about their work in our community, please visit its website.
The first Havant Chamber Orchestra (HCO) concert of our season is on Sunday 1st February at St Thomas’ Church, Bedhampton at 2.30pm. This concert, performed in a wonderful venue, will feature small wind and string ensembles formed from the larger orchestra.
If you would like to follow our orchestras and find out more about our concerts this season, they are available to book through our website.
I hope you are able to join us on Saturday 6th December in the Oaklands School Concert Hall at 7.30pm. Please bring your family and friends and we’ll fill the hall with wonderful live music, just for you.
If you see me at our next concert, please come and say ‘hello’ and make yourself known to me.
