A Super November Concert

Oakham’s singers and instrumentalists once again gathered together for a fantastic evening of performances in our ‘Seasonal Sounds’ concert. With a mixture of top student soloists and high-quality ensemble performances, it was an evening truly celebrating musical life at the School.

The concert began with solos from three music scholars. Hattie’s performance of Handel’s ‘Eternal Source of Light Divine’, accompanied by trumpet and organ, made for a dramatic start, followed by two contemporary works, one on piano by Faith and one on horn by Joshua. The Form 1 Singers then took to the stage, many of them making their concert début at Oakham with an energetic performance of Jonathan Dove’s Fire. This was followed by Sing written by Gary Barlow and Andrew Lloyd Webber, a fitting message about the place of music to finish their performance.

Our next soloist was Ivor, treating the audience to Gilbert Vinter’s witty The Playful Pachyderm. The Chamber Orchestra then took to the stage with a stylish performance of Antonio Corelli’s Christmas Concerto. Their performance had clarity and energy, with a great sense of ensemble across the orchestra. They then joined forces with the String Ensemble to perform an audience favourite, the first movement from Karl Jenkins’ Palladio. With a great sense of excitement and build up, it bought the first half to a fantastic close.

The Big Band, one of the School’s top ensembles, treated the audience to a selection of swing and jazz hits in the second half. They began their programme with numbers by Quincy Jones, Marvin Gaye and Duke Ellington with fantastic solos from across the band on sax, trumpet, trombone and electric guitar. Dividing the Big Band’s set was Sam’s performance of Fazil Say’s Black Earth for piano, an atmospheric combination of lyrical writing and contemporary performance techniques. The Big Band then rounded off the evening with Isaac Hayes’s theme from Shaft, and Joe Sample’s Street Life, to rapturous applause from the audience for the work of all the students involved. Congratulations to all; the evening was a real celebration of music-making at Oakham!

Find the recording and programme here: Concerts – Oakham School