News from the Music Department | July 2021
Playing on!
University of Kent | Music Department | July 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
It actually happened. In a year full of uncertainty, with events and rehearsals cancelled or curtailed, it was a testament to the willingness of everyone who participated that we were able to present a modified incarnation of our annual Summer Music Week festival, a musical farewell to the academic year.
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University of Kent | Music Department | July 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Summer Music Week: June 2021
A series of four events finally gave our musicians – students, staff and external players – the opportunity to perform once more, filling ColyerFergusson Hall with live music in front of live audiences for the first time in over a year. And what a relief it was! There was a real sense of appreciation amongst the (sociallydistanced) audiences of the efforts involved in order to bring live music into being, and the performers
revelled in the chance (for the first time this academic year) to perform together. The series launched on Sunday 6 June with the University Big Band, under the direction of the irrepressible Ian Swatman, in an hour-long set of swing and big band classics, together with thirdyear Social Anthropology student and singer, Elle Soo. As well as
playing to a hugely appreciate live audience, it was also an opportunity to present the department’s first formal livestream – the event remains online, and you can relive the experience here; it’s had well over 1,000 views at the time of writing, and has been a great success – expect more of these next year! https://youtu.be/RSruRi0F31I
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University of Kent | Music Department | July 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
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University of Kent | Music Department | July 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Summer Music Week: June 2021 (cont)
We were also able to present several of this year’s Music Performance Scholars in two recitals; the first, a lunchtime recital in Colyer-Fergusson Hall on the Tuesday, followed by an evening recital in the Nave of Canterbury Cathedral on Friday evening. Our Scholars and Music Award Holders have continued with their lessons during the past, strange, year, and it was lovely to be able to offer them a platform to showcase their efforts. It’s a real tribute to their willingness to continue developing as musicians and to balance their musical activities with the continued
demands of their academic studies. The concert-hall was filled with music including a vivacious duet for two violas by Telemann, the soulful At Last made famous by Etta James, robust Schumann and scintillating Chaminade. It was an especial privilege to return to Canterbury Cathedral on the Friday evening to fill that glorious acoustic with music; third-year Biomedical student, Eloise Jack, opened with a stirring medley for bagpipes (when was the last time bagpipes were played in the
Cathedral, mused one of the Cathedral staff that afternoon in rehearsals!). We were particularly delighted to welcome to the performance members of the late David Humphreys' family, who generously support the annual summer concert in the Cathedral in memory of David’s wife, Julia. Our musical year came to a vibrant conclusion on the Saturday with the Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Choir, Concert Band and pianist Michael Lam creating a lively Music for a Summer’s Day.
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University of Kent | Music Department | July 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Scholars’ Spotlight
Scholars’ Spotlight: movements from ‘Album für die Jugend’ (Album for the Young) Op. 68, Robert Schumann performed by Michael Lam https://youtu.be/ovfMrGdWc7k
The success of our Scholars’ Spotlight series over the course of the year continues – the latest is a sequence of movements from Schumann’s Album für die Jugend Op. 68, performed from memory by first year Kent and Medway Medical School Music Performance Scholar, Michael Lam. We’ve been delighted to welcome Michael into the Music department this year, and the various filmed performances he has created for us have been both a privilege to watch and a treat to share with everyone – and his latest film is no exception. We look forward to continuing this series with our returning Music Scholars and Award Holders next academic year.
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University of Kent | Music Department | July 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Ave atque vale So, after a difficult, challenging year of finding opportunities to bring people together, whether virtually or in-person, we’ve made it to the end of the academic year.
From finding new, creative digital opportunities to hosting live webchats, filmed student performances, and five frenetic weeks of actual live music-making, it’s been quite a period as, for the first time since March 2020, concerts returned to Colyer-Fergusson Hall. Our flourishing extra-curricular music programme occupies a vital creative and social aspect of University life, for both students and staff, as well as members of the local community; it is a testament to the commitment, dedication and hard work of all those involved throughout this year, and in particular during the summer term, that we were able to present a modest concert series to bid a musical farewell to the academic year. This summer is an especially busy time in the year, as students are preparing for or taking examinations, and staff are marking them. I am hugely grateful to everyone who
made such a determined effort to attend rehearsals since 10 May, fitting them in around their already busy lives. Since September last year, through the varying situations in which we found ourselves, it has been a considerable team effort from all those involved, and I would like to pay particular thanks to all the visiting music teachers for their heroic efforts in contributing to making this year work musically at all; and in particular to Ian Swatman, Flo Peycelon, Jo Saul, Sara Thorpe, Rachel Waltham and Alex Callanan for their analogue and digital efforts that have done so much to keep musicians engaged this year. Thanks also to Thomas Connor
and the technical crew for their support with filming and recording all throughout lockdown; and (last but by no means least), to the engine that drives the Music Department and contributes so much to the dayto-day administrative and planning, for her unstinting support throughout this year – Sophie Meikle. Thanks also to our music donors for your continued support over the course of this weird and wonderful time, and for continuing to allow us to find opportunities for students, staff and community to carry on making music a part of their lives during an especially challenging time; we look forward to what next year will bring! Dan Harding and Sophie Meikle
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www.kent.ac.uk/music Colyer-Fergusson Building, Giles Lane, Canterbury CT2 7NB
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