MUSIC

The Joint Schools' Concert and Jazz Evening

This year’s Joint Schools’ Concert was a great success, showcasing the exceptional talents of the pupils of both St Albans School and St Albans High School for Girls. It began with Beethoven’s rarely performed Elegischer Gesang (Elegiac Song), beautifully blending strings and choir and giving a taste of what was to come in the second half of the concert. This year’s orchestral piece was an opportunity for pianists from both schools to come to the fore: Liam and Peter (both Lower Sixth Form) represented the School in Mozart’s Double Piano Concerto with extraordinary virtuosity and a superb sense of ensemble while the orchestra soared through the exquisite music. Britten’s St Nicolas was the final tour de force of the night, featuring professional soloist David de Winter as Nicolas, and the Choral Society were also in outstanding voice, rising to the occasion and comfortably matching the precise and expressive performance of the orchestra. The orchestra was led by Arun (Lower Sixth Form) whose delicate opening solo set the scene, whilst the stirring percussion and wind blew the storms of Nicolas’ journey with perfectly timed accents adding to the soaring strings and choral textures. Kevin, Thomas and Max (all Second Form) gave an atmospheric performance as the Pickled Boys, particularly during their procession down the Cathedral Nave. Enormous credit must go to Mr Tom Young who led both orchestra and choir with flair and control in these complex pieces.

Jazz Concert

This year’s Jazz Evening raised money again for Cancer Research UK and featured some rousing music from many of our outstanding young musicians. There were traditional standards such as Fly Me To The Moon sung by Emmanuel (Fifth Form) and Birdland, expertly played by the Sax Group to more modern interpretations of My Favourite Things and The Fools Who Dream performed by Emily, Grace and Millie (Upper Sixth Form). The first half of the evening rounded off with Harry (Lower Sixth Form) leading his band (Millie, Will and Maya) in renditions of Misty and Hit The Road Jack which featured John-Ellis (Lower Sixth Form) in Gregory Porter-esque form, with excellent backing vocals provided by Emily and Bea. M.S.G. opened the second half of the concert (after consumption of some excellent baked goods provided by parents and staff!) with Pentatonix’s inspiring Run To You and a bombastic arrangement of I Got Rhythm before the Jazz Band concluded the evening with several jazz standards featuring solos from Ross (Upper Sixth Form), Ben (Third Form) and Tom (Upper Sixth Form). Throughout the evening we were treated to the amazing skills of Mr Craig at the piano, and huge thanks must go to him for curating the event. Click on the video for an impression of the evening.