Pupils impress at Shrewsbury's annual Singing and Brass Festivals

Last Sunday saw the return of the annual Singing and Brass Festivals at Shrewsbury.   

Forty-five students took part in the annual Festival of Song. They were led by distinguished opera singer, soprano Claire Wild, who works internationally as well as with all the major UK companies, and has a special interest in contemporary music.  

Claire led a workshop focussing on the importance of the vocal warm-up to enable the best vocal performance and maintain good vocal health. This was followed by Intermediate and Senior song prizes in which the students each sang what they felt suited them best and meant that we were treated to a vast range of repertoire. There was lovely singing throughout, which was much enjoyed by a supportive audience of friends and family, and some outstanding performances which yielded the following prize winners: 

Senior Classical 

• First: Zara B (MSH, LVI) 
• Second: Oscar C (Rt, UVI) 
• Third: Oliver C (R, UVI) and Ed K (Rt, UVI) 
• Highly Commended: Aoife B (EDH, UVI) Limonée F (G, UVI) Dan M (O, UVI) 
• Commended: Eugene U (I, LVI) 

Senior Contemporary Commercial Music 

• First: Sarah L (EDH, UVI) 
• Second: Tilly C (MSH, LVI) 
• Third: Scarlett W (G, LVI) 
• Highly Commended: Libby H (MSH, UVI) and Kit S (SH, UVI) 

Intermediate Classical 

• First: Clara C-J (EDH, IV) 
• Second: Annabel F (EDH, IV) 
• Third: Leo T (O, III) 
• Highly Commended: Jerica C (G, LVI), Jaeyoun K (I, III) and Johnnie T (Ch, LVI)      

Intermediate Contemporary Commercial Music 

• First: Tommy G (SH, V) 
• Second: Georgie P (G, IV) 
• Third: Boe G (MSH, III) and Harrison R (Ch, IV) 
• Highly Commended: Grace G (M, IV), Violet H (M, V) and Martha S (EDH, III) 

For this year’s Brass Festival we welcomed Gareth Small, the principal trumpet player from the Halle orchestra to come and work with our brass department. To begin, the students were put into quintets and given a piece, with some input from a member of staff, the students rehearsed to learn the piece to performance standard. The workshop concluded with a performance to parents from each ensemble. Prizes were given for different skills and the winners were:  

• Leadership: Ellie L (EDH, V) 
• Musical Awareness: Rowan R (Rt, UVI) 
• Chamber Performance: Barney W (R, V) 

Gareth then gave a masterclass to seven of our advanced brass players, he brought a wealth of knowledge alongside some refined technical challenges for our students. Performances included a rather challenging rendition of a fiendishly hard piece on the trumpet:  ‘Bumblebee Fantasy’ by Oliver C (R, UVI), a lyrical, but equally challenging performance of F. Strauss’ Horn Concerto no.1 by Shawn L (S, V) and a solo performance of a Vocalise by Barney W (R, V) on trombone. 

Throughout the afternoon, all the students gained vital knowledge whether it was focusing on staccato tonguing, air flow, tuning or simply learning how to practise without blowing an instrument! Gareth was insightful and the improvement that each of our students made within their session was truly inspiring for all to hear.  

Maria McKenzie and Katy Landon