Bristol Festival of Music Speech and Drama.

Dear Members,

I would like to bring your attention to the Piano section of the Bristol Festival of Music Speech and Drama that is happening soon.

There are a number of piano classes that are suitable for our members and new ones have been added this year. Of particular interest is the Masterclass section that will be run by the exceptional pianist, teacher and adjudicator Jena Pang.

The website with all the details can be found at http://www.bristolfestival.co.uk/

The Piano sections are being held on Sat 8th and Sun 9th March 2025 and the closing date is 31st Jan. It is being held at Redmaids’ High School BS9 3AW.

Hope to see as many members of Bristol Piano Club as possible there.

Best wishes,

Leonora

http://www.bristolfestival.co.uk

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all Bristol Piano Club members and friends.

Bristol Piano Club meeting December 2024

Following Storm Bert in November, around 15 of us made it to Jan’s in Hengrove despite Storm Darraghs best efforts. We were rewarded with a warm welcome from Jan and brother Jonathan. The log fire, Christmas lights and decorations and a superb buffet were much appreciated! There was almost continuous music-making on Jan’s excellent Danemann grand for the four and a half hour duration of the meetings. The incomplete playlist gives a flavour of what went on.

*Performer*	*Composer*	*Piece*
Simon H	R Schumann	Kinderszenen no. 1
	C Schumann	Prelude no. 3
Brian W	Leroy Anderson	Forgotten Dreams
Simon S	Malmeck/ Signorelli	Park Avenue Fantasy
	B Mayerl	Marigold
		Shallow Waters
Mark W	J S Bach	Sarabande from French Suite no. 5
Richard W	F F Chopin	Waltz in Ab, op 69 no. 1
Leonora M (piano) and Chris UW(euphonium)	P Lovatt-Cooper	Donegal Bay
Chris UW	Guastavino	Cantilena no. 1
Len M		Melancholy Tango
Jean W	W Niemann	Evening in Seville
Ann G (partnered occasionally) with Brian		Misc. Christmas Songs

Bristol Piano Club meeting November 2024.

Bristol Piano Club meeting November 2024.

Just over twenty of us braved the onslaughts of Storm Bert to get to the Bristol 1904 Arts Club, a new venue for the piano club, in Park Row. The meeting was hosted by 1904 Club member Jonathan Price who very kindly gave up his Saturday to look after us. The 1904 has two medium size grands (Bechstein and Bluthner), both in very nice condition and placed facing each other on a stage. The hall is redolent with history and tradition and provided a very memorable setting for our meeting. Taking advantage of the twin grands members were able to indulge in two piano music by Kreisler and Rodney Bennet and also a movement from a Mozart concerto. We used the Club kitchen to organise hot drinks (much needed on a cold day) and lunch.

Many thanks, once again to our excellent host, Jonathan for a very special day.

Playlist

*Performer*	*Composer*	*Piece*
Jean	Florence Price	Fantasie Negre no. 1
Kay and Leonora	Kreisler	Liebesfreud arr. 2 pianos
Nancy	Schumann	Humoresque op. 20
Steve W	Tchaikovsky	Sweet Dreams – Children’s Album op. 29 no. 21
	Schumann	Of Foreign Lands and People, Kinderszenen op 15
Simon S	Stan Kenton	Artistry in Rhythm
Chris UW	Handel	Fantasia
Charles P	Beethoven	1^st mvt Pastorale Sonata op. 28
Peter H	Chopin	Mazurkas – op. 33 no. 3; op. 41 no. 2; op. 41 no. 4
Kathryn R	Fauré	Barcarolle no. 6 in Eb major
Ruth P	Gottschalk	Souvenirs d’Andalousie
Kit and Mathhew G	Mozart	2^nd mvt Concerto in A major, no. 23, K488 arr. 2 pianos
Kathryn and Juliana	Richard Rodney Bennett	Samba Triste from Four Piece Suite, 2 pianos
Juliana B	Kreisler/ Rachmaninoff	Love’s Sorrow (Liebesleid)
Jonathan P	Handel	Overture to Messiah
Juliana B	Gershwin	The Man I Love
Richard W	Grieg	Notturno op. 54
	Debussy	Clair de Lune
Jane G	Granados	El Caminante no. 3
	Piazzolla	Libertango
Matthew G	Chopin	Mazurka in G minor, op. 67 no. 2
		Waltz in A minor, disc. New York 2024

Playlist for October meeting

The Piano Club met at Nigel’s house on Sunday 20 October 2024. The piano, venue and food were all wonderful and we heard an interesting selection of music in varied genres ranging from baroque to prog rock (yes, really!).

This was the first time we had held an all-day meeting with two sessions and a shared lunch between. Some members came for the morning, others for the afternoon and some stayed all day, which all worked very well.

Juliana – Bach: Prelude and Fugue in B flat major BWV 846
Anne – Scarlatti: K 208
Simon S – Bach: Prelude and Fugue in B flat minor (WTC Book 2) BWV 891
Kay – Haydn: Sonata in C major, 2nd mvt
Simon H – Bach: Prelude in B major (WTC Book 1) BWV 868
Nigel – Bartok: Allegro Barbaro Sz.49
Simon S – Billy Mayerl: Amber Leaves
Juliana – Chopin: Etude in A flat Op.25 No.1
Chris UW – Gustavino: Cantilena No.1
Matthew G. – Bach: Prelude and Fugue in E major (WTC Book 1) BWV 854
Mark – Bach: French Suite No.5 BWV 816, Courante
– Brahms: Intermezzo Op.117 No.1
Kathryn – Bach: Partita No.1 BWV 825, Prelude and Allemande
Fran – Trad, arr. Julian Jacobs: Deep River
Peter – Mozart: Sonata in A minor K310, 2nd mvt, Andante
Brian – Mozart: Rondo in A minor K511
– Mozart: Gigue in G major K574
Matthew – Barry Mason & Les Reed: The Last Waltz
Fran – Chopin: Valse in D flat Op.64 No.1, “Minute Waltz”
Mark – Messiaen: Preludes pour piano, “Plainte Calme”
Nigel – Billy Joel and Genesis

Enya’s Watermark Album, Presented by The Fulltone Orchestra

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A Musical Journey: Enya’s Watermark Album

The Forum

This autumn, the fantastic Fulltone Orchestra, alongside the incredible voices of Cantiamo, will revive Enya’s pivotal Watermark album in a series of live performances. Set against the backdrop of stunning Forum in Bath—this is a rare opportunity for music lovers to experience the timeless beauty of Enya’s work in all its glory. Arranged by UK based arranger Dominic Irving, this stunning piece has been written for orchestra and voices and will transport audiences back to the late 1980’s. It will appear alongside other hits such as Riverdance, Enigma, Clannad and Karl Jenkins – hits that again will transport you to a magical place.

Watermark was Enya’s second studio album but was her first major commercial success. It catapulted her to international fame, largely due to the popularity of the hit single “Orinoco Flow” (remember her singing it on Top of The Pops for three weeks in the Number One slot?!) which audiences will hear in all its glory. The album is known for its ethereal, multi-layered sound, blending Celtic, classical, and ambient influences. Enya’s music is characterised by lush harmonies, created through the extensive use of overdubbing her own voice; Cantiamo will be performing this with 15 female voices and will be giving audiences a unique, otherworldly experience. This is set to be a completely iconic evening of music on both an exciting and big scale – for those who would love to reminisce and for those who music experiences are everything…!

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Enya's Watermark Album, Presented by The Fulltone Orchestra

Event Information

When…

5 November 2024 @ 7:30 pm

Venue

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The Forum

VENUE INFORMATION

Where

1A Forum Buildings Bath

Ticket Price

£26 (exc. fees)

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The FORUM

https://bathboxoffice.org.uk/whats-on/enyas-watermark-album-presented-by-the-fulltone-orchestra

Playlist for the September meeting

The Piano Club met at Cheryl and Bryan’s house on Sunday 22 September 2024. As can be seen from the playlist below, the variety and range of pieces performed by Club members continues to dazzle, while the quality of musicianship and interpretation in the performances was as wonderful as ever.

The meeting began, however, with the recorded performance of two pieces by Ernest, who is currently recovering from an injury. Ernest had recently discovered the cassette recordings, which probably dated from from the early 1980s. The recordings were played via a CD transfer after a message from Ernest was conveyed to the group by Cheryl. All present were hugely impressed by Ernest’s virtuosic playing and musicianship, and wished him a speedy recovery.

Playlist:

Ernest (via CD recording, see above) – Saint-Saens (transcribed for piano by Leopold Godowsky): The Swan from Carnival of the Animals
– Verdi, arr. Liszt: The Rigoletto Paraphrase

Gerard – Rachmaninoff: Prelude Op.3 No.2

Cheryl – Remo Giazotto (misattributed to Albinoni): Adagio in G minor

Mark – Bach: Allemande from French Suite No. 5 in G major BWV 816
– Mendelssohn: Songs without Words Op.38 No.6, “Duetto”

Chris – Billy Taylor & Dick Dallas: I wish I knew how it would feel to be free

Steve W – Chopin: Prelude Op.28 No.15 “Raindrop”

Brian W – Rodgers & Hart (arr. André Previn): Blue Moon
– Grieg: Lyric Pieces Op.38 No.1 Berceuse (At the Cradle)
– Ralph Burns & Herman Woody: Round Midnight

Simon – Ernest Fischer: A Little Piece of Lace

Simon H – Debussy: Album Leaf (Page d’album) L.141 (133)
– Elissa Milne: Indigo Moon

Margaret – Isabel Morrison: Comme Vous Voulez (Improvisation for Antoine) – this piece was the winner of the 2024 Pianist magazine Composing Competition

Jean – Clara Schumann: Scherzo in C minor. Op.14

Graham – Debussy: Arabesque No.2

Richard – Tchaikovsky: August and October, from The Seasons Op.37

Juliana – Trad. arr. Keith Jarrett: Danny Boy (Londonderry Air)
– Moszowski: Etude Op.72 No.2

Peter – Bach: 3 Part Intervention in G minor BWV 797
– Bach: 2 Part Intervention in F major BWV 779
– Bach: 3 Part Intervention in F minor BWV 795

Ruth – Mozart: Sonata No.13 in B♭ K333, 3rd movement Allegretto grazioso (Rondo)

Piano Club Masterclass with Helen Reid

Join other Bristol Piano Club members for an informal masterclass to be led by Helen Reid, one of Bristol’s leading teachers.

When: Sunday 10 November 2024, 11:30–17:00
Location: Failand, Nr. Bristol (venue details provided on booking) Fee: £47 (playing); £10 (observers)
Lunch: participants should bring a packed lunch

Up to eight places are available for pianists who will perform a piece of prepared repertoire. The teaching sessions will be approximately 30 minutes long per pianist, and will focus on interpretation, performance, and technique, but all participants are welcome to offer other topics for discussion during the day.

In addition to the participants, there will be places available for a small observers at £10 for the day.

Helen Reid (see https://helenreidpiano.com) is a former BBC Young Musician of the Year keyboard finalist, and currently pursues a busy career teaching and performing around the UK. As well as performing as a soloist, she is in demand as an accompanist, and regularly performs with the Bristol Ensemble and other chamber groups. Helen works with advanced piano students, both privately and at the University of Bristol.

Helen has given recitals all around in England, at venues including the Wigmore Hall, Purcell Room, Fairfield Halls and Blackheath Halls, London, St. George’s, Bristol, Cheltenham, the Bridgewater Hall, Manchester and the Aldeburgh and Buxton Festivals. She has performed in Spain, Slovakia, Hungary, Germany, Austria and the Czech Republic. Performances have included Rachmaninov’s Piano Concerto No.2, Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue and the world premiere of David Matthews’ Piano Concerto at Dartington International Summer Festival, a work written for Helen.

To reserve a place or for further details, do not reply to this email but contact Club member Mark Ware at mark@markwareconsulting.com or 07973 824378.

(NB, the fee shown above has been calculated assuming the full number of 8 attendees; it may be slightly higher if demand is lower, and will be finalised as soon as numbers are known)

A lovely message from Kathryn after her very successful recital in Chippenham

Finally, the real recital at St. Andrew’s Church in Chippenham today and I was so pleased to see Leonora, Paul, Margaret and Graham who travelled all that way to hear the concert. Nice to see some familiar friendly faces. About 45 people attended, and the concert went really well. All that previous rehearsal helped so much. I had such good support from the Bristol piano club, first a run-through at Leonora’s house with great feed back from members who helped enormously with suggestions. Then Nigel kindly let me have a run-through on his wonderful Steinway, all of which helped the performance to mature and grow.

I’m pleased to say that we raised £185 which I have now sent to Dorothy House hospice care who were really pleased.

It was a lovely piano ( Yamaha C3 ) and the church was a great venue to play at .

Many thanks to all the Bristol Piano Club members!

Kathryn

A Piano Recital by Bristol Piano Club member Kathryn

Details of the recital are:

Time – 3pm Saturday 7th September 2024

Venue – St. Andrew’s Church Chippenham

Seats available on the door. Please make a £5 minimum donation to aid Dorothy House Hospice Care.

Title ” Chopin and his Russian Followers ”

Sergei Prokofiev Op. 12 Preludes Nr.7 from 10 Pieces

Frédéric Chopin Fantaisie in F minor Op.49

Sergei Rachmaninov Etudes -Tableaux Op.33 nr. 5 in D Minor and

nr.8 in G minor

Alexander Scriabin Prelude Nr.1 op16 in B major

Etude Op. 8 Nr. 2 in F#minor

Poeme Op.32 Nr. 1 in F#major

Sergei Rachmaninov Prelude Op.23 Nr. 4 in D major

Prelude Op.23 Nr. 5 in G minor

Sergei Prokofiev Op12 Nr. 6 Legenda from 10 Pieces

Op.75 Nr.10 Romeo and Juliet Parting

Please do come along for a first class afternoon of playing in support of Kathryn, and also to provide much needed funds in aid of Dorothy House Hospice Care.