Langtree Sinfonia

Langtree Sinfonia performed on Saturday evening at Wallingford in a church called St Mary le More. We have not played there before, and it was really nice venue. It is surprisingly modern inside, having recently been refurbished, and the lighting is excellent, given that there was plenty of light to read our music, but no glaring light fittings to distract people. The acoustic worked quite well and there was a really good ambience in the place.

The programme was good, with diverse pieces of the orchestral repertoire:

• Dvořák - Czech Suite
• Vaughan Williams - The Lark Ascending, Soloist: Sharon Warnes
• Haydn - Aria “On Mighty Pens” from The Creation, Soloist: Bethany Cox
• Schubert - 2nd Symphony

The concert opened with the Czech Suite, five movements that have dance themes in them, with trumpets only in the final movement. This was followed by an excellent rendition of The Lark Ascending. The orchestra accompanied very well, supporting without overshadowing the soloist who played with tremendous feeling and skill. It worked really well in the intimate atmosphere of this small venue. Next came the soprano solo from The Creation, with Bethany singing with great expression and feeling. It was a beautiful performance. Finally, we performed the Schubert Symphony, and the trumpets could rejoin the orchestra having sat out for the quiet pieces.

It was a great way to spend a Saturday, having spent part of the afternoon rehearsing and preparing. I am looking forward to the Spring programme.

Trumpet duets

Because I was originally supposed to be in Mali by now, Cathy took the kids to the in-laws in Yorkshire, and they won't be back until after I leave for Ghana on Saturday. So I was delighted when Simon texted me this morning to see what I was doing this evening. How about trumpet duets says he? Absolutely says I. You bring the beer, and I'll supply the food. What a great noisy, self-indulgent evening. Both of us have improved a lot since we last attempted duets, which was quite a while ago now. Most satisfying.

Trumpets

Having accepted an impromptu invitation to make up a foursome for a trumpet quartet, standing in for an absent member, I had a pleasant couple of hours blowing on Friday evening. After running through several well-known tunes arranged for 3-4 trumpets, the conductor of their band, who happens to be the conductor of my orchestra, arrived and we spent an enjoyable half an hour or so working on a difficult and complex piece that they are rehearsing in their band. Saturday morning saw the first rehearsal of the new term for the Saturday Morning Orchestra. The usual conductor was not well, and the deputy conductor was not available, so we had a deputy deputy conductor who coped rather well under the circumstances, being the first play through of the pieces we had. We creaked and struggled our way through Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture and Mendelsohn's Violin Concerto. It'll get better, I'm sure...

Saturday morning orchestra

Feeling that I was not getting enough time to play my trumpet, I accepted the invitation of a fellow trumpet player, Dave Johnson, to tag along to another orchestra. This one is quite handy as it rehearses exactly the same time, as the orchestra in which my son plays double bass, and just across the road. Since he needs taking and collecting every Saturday morning anyway, it is very convenient for me to join in. I took part for the first time today, and they were a very friendly bunch. Not too bad at sight reading. The timps and harp parts were put in by a guy on a keyboard with an amp, which was novel. We worked through Schubert's Unfinished Symphony, McCunn's Land of the Mountain and Flood, and Wagner's Prelude from Tristan und Isolde. Not much for the trumpets in this latter one, but enough to keep us busy in the other two pieces. This also gives ma an opportunity to use my new trumpets because each piece demands a different instrument. Indeed, the Wagner starts with an F trumpet and then changes to an E trumpet, neither of which I have! However, Dave had a useful tip. Using the C Trumpet, the transposition is pretty straightforward because the key signature is obvious. It's good to be practicing and learning more!

Trumpets

Although the modern trumpet is pitched in the key of B flat, a large proportion of classical music was written when valved trumpets were rare or not yet invented. As a result, much of the music that I play in Crowthorne Orchestra is written for trumpets in different keys. Because our next concert involves two trumpets and two cornets (Franck's 1st Symphny), Dave Johnson, who I used to play next to in Thames Wind Band and Woodley Concert Band, has come to join us temporarily to bump up the trumpet section. He turned up with several trumpets and cornets, and was showing me one that he recently bought on e-bay. This is a trumpet in C that can convert to B flat. It plays well in C, and the sellers appeared to be shifting one of these every day. So I have been joining in the bidding day-by-day, and yesterday I won an auction! For £125 I am getting a new trumpet. This is an incredible price if the instrument plays well, and I am looking forward to its arrival. I guess I won't see it until I get back from Dubai next week.