A Legion of Fans...

Photo by me, with thanks to Colchester and Ipswich Museums service

New fans of the Roman River Festival are popping up all over....this guy, Longinus, came all the way from Bulgaria to be in the Castle Sunday to hear the lovely singing of Julia Doyle, whom I notice is singing at The Barbican Hall on Oct 17th with the Crouch End Festival Chorus. Sounds a great gig if you're in London that weekend.

 And Rock legend Rick Wakeman was so impressed with the programme he signed it for me...

And whenever I mention to someone 'Joe Stilgoe' they say 'oh, is he on in Colchester?' - YES (sorry, Rick Wakeman reference there...), he was, I mentioned it in every blog! ...still you can always get his album, New Songs for Old Souls - great stuff..

With great thanks to Joe Stilgoe - a real showman

The Song...well, it was going to be some YES ...Ritual from 'Tales from Topographic Oceans' - some vinyl I wore out back in 1975! (all 21 minutes - stay with it!). With thanks to Rick Wakeman, and Chris Squire rest in peace.

But if you want something shorter, how about a track Joe Stilgoe played from the Beach Boys seminal album Pet Sounds - I Just Wasn't Made for TheseTimes.

Star Struck.....

Great music-makers at the Moot hall Sunday - Tom Chippendale (Tenor) Roderick Earle (Musical Director Colchester Chamber Choir) John Furse (composer) and Mark Bellis (composer and Colchester Institute).
For me the one of the best things about the Roman River Festival has been getting to talk to so many music makers. For the most part they are pleased that people are interested in the music, and are happy to explain about the music, their instruments, technique....etc etc - I admit to usually being out of my depth after a few seconds! When a musician described the notation as 'like wallpaper' I didn't want to admit it all looks like wallpaper to me, just with different patterns of dots. I'm afraid I don't know my A flat from my D sharp!

More great Music Makers at Layer Marney Tower last night.Tom Poster and Elena Urioste are joined by Royal College of Music students Camellia Johnson (clarinet) and Jane Lau. Plenty more great music from Elena Urioste and young musicians at the Festival Finale at Stoke By Nayland this Sunday - get there if you can! - tickets only £6.

Dee (Dee) Sharp

A Flat

Today's Music - well it has to be 'Mashed Potato Time' by Dee Dee Sharp. Enjoy!

Pound Shop....

RRF pound shop? - no, but sounds a great gig tomorrow at Liquid Night Club aka the Hippodrome....not being a clubber, I've never been inside -can't wait! and Joe Stilgoe? - he looks pretty sexy in the programme! Not sure where we'll eat first - might go back to the Three Wise Monkeys - sounds like it was a much better bet than the George on Sunday.

Beef Brisket sub, stuffed squid, Colchester Brewery beer, Old Rosie Cider. Perfect!

Today's song - Pretty Green - the Jam (Paul Weller National Treasure)  Pretty Green, for those too young to know, refers to pound notes.

Gutted....

A period Viol de Gamba, played using a watercolour brush rather than a paint roller (a joke made by Matthew Truscott refering to the period bows they used). One of the interesting themes of this year's Roman River Festival is how the use of different versions of what are, ostensibly, the same instruments gives a very different feel to the music. The use of Gut strings on period instruments made the music of Purcell make so much sense. Click here to see how they are made. Orlando Jopling has written a facinating piece about the rise of period instruments in this year's festival programme - available at all concerts and well worth a read.
Anyone spotted other themes this year? I have enjoyed the singing of three very different Sopranos - The classically powerful Sally Matthews, the almost folk Amaia Azcona Cildoz, and the subtle, chamber treatment of Purcell by Julia Doyle. Same instrument, different outcomes. Anyway...enough of these musings, let's have another photo please Ian! (all photos except where credited snapped by me, live!)

Here composer John Furse ('Moot Points') presents organist Tom Bell with a celebratory case of beer, and demonstrates (in verse) the correct method of use. Tom bravely said he'd wait until after the concert.
(I must thank volunteer Mike for this picture - as I entered the hall he said - 'there's one of the composers' and there happened to be a spare seat next to him... so there it is, a scoop for my blog!).
I did wonder what John was up to, fiddling nervously with what appeared to be a case of beer during the music!

And this picture shows another Roman River stalwart, Richard Spooner, having the tuning of the Harpsicord explained to him by Pawel Siwczak. Richard is one of many people that welcome the musicians into their own homes to provide them accommodation.

 

So, looking forward to Layer Marney tomorrow, my first listen to Elena Urioste. sorry, sold out I think (you could always try ringing).

Today's tune... London O'Connor - 'Guts' - took a while to find this, Enjoy!



 

 

Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon....

Phew, been a busy week, but Sunday at last beckons. A stroll in the park, a cool beer, and then time to hear the Moot Hall organ (sign of the times, an organ with it's own website. Can't wait to hear it's Tweets).

From here....
To here....

Via the Three Wise Monkeys - nice grub (and beer and cider)...

The Three Wise Monkeys

Nice to talk to so many festival goers today - musicians, composers, volunteers, audience. That's surely the point of a festival - to talk, discuss, meet, discuss, drink beer. So thanks to all who enthused about today. And for those new to my blog... Welcome! It is not just about the Roman River Festival, I will continue to write about what's on in Colchester long after all that has flowed under the bridge. And please click on the links...most names open to another website where you'll learn more about the artists, the venues, the food, the beer, the songs (someone even clicked on my Clash link yesterday...you won't believe the hours of happy research that go into this!).
Anyway...more tomorrow about the themes and undercurrents from today (undercurrents.. Roman River..not bad for this time of night I thought). But for tonight here's three pictures that capture what the festival is all about:

On the left, outstanding Tenor Tom Chippendale of Colchester Chamber Choir, now studying at Royal Holloway. On the right wonderful soprano Julia Doyle asks Zelie Jopling who's in charge...

 

 

and here we have composers John Furse(left) and Mark Bellis(right) with Tom Bell at the wonderful Moot Hall Organ. With Colchester Chamber Choir, this was an inspired program, short but exquisite pieces which the audience loved - even clapping in the 'wrong' places - bring it on! - let's have whooping and hollering, that's what I say....
Talking of which - sorry to miss the St George's Gig, which looked brilliant. So much interest, for those who I suggested to check on my blog, here are Dorian Kelly's notes on the history of the hall.

Let's rock....
By the way,the Colchester Comedy Festival is well underway, I hope to catch one of the films shown nightly at Firstsite.

Today's song Lazing on a Sunday Afternoon.....Rest in Peace Freddie.

Jimmy Jazz....

Feel like a bit of a jazz riff this Saturday morning, so this blog is just a few thoughts and images from this busy week......let's kick off with the Clash!
ok, not quite like that at Firstsite yesterday...

John Doubleday in conversation with Anthony Roberts

and I found an Organ with it's own website!

Moot Hall organ

And we all found St George's Hall (link courtesy Dorian Kelly)

Orlando Jopling introduces the first concert for 117 years

And I met some wonderful Roman River Festival volunteers

Brian, Wendy, Frances and Bob

And I'm booking a weekend in Folkestone next year courtesy the Sacconi Quartet

This Blog dedicated to Jazz Pianist John Taylor, (click on the name to hear his music) with great thanks to Gwilym Simcock.
See you in the Moot Hall tomorrow!

So what did the Romans (River Festival) do for us?

Firstsite, Friday, sun's out, time for a last deckchair of the summer. And Art. and Music. Drink to taste (mine's a pint at the Odd One Out - cheers John). It strikes me Firstsite deniers are like climate change deniers - they like to pretend it isn't there, despite overwhelming evidence to the contrary. And then they think that by ignoring it completely (rather than doing something positive) they can make it go away.

So, lots of positivity on show tonight for the world premiere of Gwilym Simcock's 'Quartet' written specially for the Roman River Festival. And an interesting talk beforehand with Colchester's finest, Anthony Roberts (left), gently prompting Gwilym to lay bare the creative process. Gwilyn was disarmingly frank, admitting to writer's block, and talking passionately about the death of his friend and great jazz Pianist John Taylor. He said that creating art is a privilege but not always easy. And the third movement is short because he suffered tendonitis. Music can be tough work!
And Robin Ashwell of the Sacconi Quartet could hardly get a word in edgeways  - but what was so exciting was his phrase ' hopefully we'll nail it tonight' - it's so easy to think of classical music as dots on a page by dead composers, but this was on the edge.  Brilliant.

Mike Earle takes the choir through their paces at St. Martin's

I only caught a few snippets of Colchester Chamber Choir's rehearsal at St Martin's last night, but you can catch them with the beautiful Moot Hall Organ on Sunday, 5pm Tickets here

Today's song - Always look on the Bright Side of Life - of course! -(note the plug for buying the record)!. Monty Python, thank you Graham Chapman

Brushing off the dust...

Just a sniff of Gunton's fine coffee was enough to revive then RRF team

With thanks to Zsolt-Tihamer Visontay, Elena Urioste, Gillianne Haddow, Ruth Gibson, Nathaniel Boyd and Tim Hugh

So St George's Hall gets it's moment... what a lot of hard work by Pam King and a trusty band who were still working there at 5 pm today, but with both concerts sold out worth it I hope. Anyone with ideas (and preferably money) to take this forward? - I'm sure Orlando is listening (though maybe not until after 4th October).

Tempting attractions on the way to St George's - mine's an IPA

Another Colchester hidden space is St Peter's - it comes as a surprise to walk in and see all those galleries! What a great opportunity to see and hear a performance of Handel's Messiah something like it would have been in 1763! When I asked Orland Jopling what it was that excited him about this chamber version of the familiar music sung by every choir the length and breadth of the land, he said 'It will be fresh, fleet-of-foot and zingy'. Sounds like the perfect thing for a late-summer afternoon. (I think he was describing the music, and not a cool glass of Greene King IPA).



today's song (just click on the title to listen)
Brushing off the Dust - Helen Connelly. Helen appears at the Beth Chatto Gardens Saturday 8pm. Tickets £10 on the door.

Come to Town.....

I hope she's amused by the organ (and the Choir)

You don't need me to tell you what the Roman River Festival has in store over the next week in Colchester. I can't get to all the gigs (Saturday night I've got my own here at the Beth Chatto Gardens), but try to get to something. Moot Hall, Sunday 5 pm, seems a good choice if you haven't heard the newly-restored organ (and our wonderful Colchester Chamber Choir) . Lovely timing too, a day in the garden and/or a lazy lunch, take in the concert, maybe a beer afterwards (Queen St Brewhouse for me I think), then home for supper. And if you do enjoy something this week, tell everybody! We need to get across what a vibrant place Colchester is....and of course the old adage of  'use it or lose it' applies.


It's important to get the lighting so the musicians can read the music!

St Martin's is an atmospheric jumble and a great venue - I popped in to catch the first half of the Amaia Cildoz (on the right)and Morgan Szymanski (seated) Concert - wonderful! - this is my scene Orlando, something eclectic, unknown...but it rocks! More please!  I couldn't stay long - had to get home to get the hard-working Mrs. Blogger's supper on the table - someone has to pay for all this art and my broadband connection! Why not drop in tomorrow evening to catch the Chamber Choir there at 9 pm? (nice to see a few members in the audience).

Today's song  - just click on the title to play (clever eh!)
- Come to Town by the wonderful Blackdoghat - hoping to tempt them up to Colchester some time! OK actually the song is 'Just for the Hell of it' because there is no easily link for 'Come to Town' - I wrestled with this for some time, even contacted John (half of Balackdoghat) who said 'Yes, need to sort this out'. Sorry! Which brings me to the last bit... Buy the CD! Musicians such as Morgan don't make a fortune, and rely on sales of cds to make ends meet.  so if you enjoyed the gig, and want to keep music live, Buy The CD. I know that sounds like a paradox...
Sorry, should have credited Paul Simon and Art Garfunkel for yesterday's song.

The Sound of Silence

Yer actual Roman River

All quiet at the piano 









So no actual music for us punters at  the Roman River Festival today, but of course there's lots to do - you could check out the Minories where John Doubleday's work is on display. When I spoke to John in Manningtree last week he was very excited about the conjunction of the Minories, Firstsite and Roman River Festival, so why not get along to all 3? The world premiere at Firstsite on Friday still has tickets - see you there, and don't forget the pre-concert talk with Anthony Roberts and John Doubleday. I'm looking forward to it.

courtesy John Doubleday

St Martin's

And there's also tickets for Amaia Azcona Cildoz soprano and MorganSzymanski guitar at St Martin's Wednesday. There's a theme of place, and musical response to place, running throughout the festival and it will be interesting to hear how different this Spanish and South American music is to the very English songs sung by Sally Matthews at Copford last Sunday.

The Sound of Silence

Angel, Angel of...Copford

Maybe I'm supposed to be blogging about the Roman River Festival music, but food just keeps getting it the way. Plus Celia Crossley is writing much better about the music than I could. And if you really want to know what it was like - come along! Many concerts still have tickets available. Of the many angels on show at Copford yesterday Anne, Heather and Barbara were very popular for their stunning range of cakes. At least one RRF volunteer appeared to have two pieces on her plate! But the unexpected display of baking prowess reminded me that the Festival, despite the increasingly stellar performers, is still rooted in the community and local people are proud to help out at these events.
Anyway, a day off for audiences today, but not for your intrepid blogger, who found himself behind W&G where official RRM 'Angel' Brian Bolton was finally able to remove a large obstacle to the St George's Hall concerts.

to here...

From here....



using this...

 With huge thanks to Ed of Empire Pianos, and John, Tony and Pentlis of Knightbuild. And of course our own RRM Angels.

Ed's more usual van contents. Familiar shape, but I never realised it would go in on it's side! So about the music? how about this couplet 'It was a cold and damp September day/when we touched the ground behind WillieG' - could be a song in there somewhere I think.

Song sung blue....

Is song the most relaxing, easy-on-the-ear, expression of music? Two different singers either end of this week, different genres, both, well, without damning with faint praise, just so easy to listen to. And accompanied by just one instrument. Sally Matthews at Copford for Roman River Festival today was at first overpowering and a little scary, an international opera star in a comparatively tiny space (compared to yer average Opera House). But soon she relaxed into subtlety, without losing the punch. Quite Brilliant. And I was contemplating the role of Accompanist - Simon Lepper (pictured above, he's the nervous-looking one - with good reason) - you are concentrating on the voice, so the role of accompanist is to accentuate that, while at the same time adding rhythm, harmony and colour. Both Simon and Adriano (below) were quite excellent.

Helen Connelly (pictured with Adriano Gangarosa at Slack Folk) sings with equal power, but in a jazz/blues influenced vein. She will be singing at Beth Chatto Gardens next Saturday. Tickets just £10, on-line or on the door. See you there!
With thanks to Neil Diamond, and, apparently, Mozart. Google it!

Shopping on Saturday, Church on Sunday

Courtesy Keeper's Nursery, Lawford - and Wivenhoe Farmer's market

For those of you new to this blog I must make it clear that I am modestly sponsored by Roman River Music (alright, they gave me a few tickets) but I work hard for it - visiting venues, turning up for previews and rehearsals, getting the right photos, well, you get the idea. But this morning was all pleasure - shopping at the excellent Wivenhoe Farmer's market for local fruit, veg and pork (thank you Primrose Pork, the best you can buy! - a tenderloin marinated with herbs, oil and a dash of cider vinegar is great gently grilled on the last of the summer's BBQ). Then on to Abberton church for the solo violin concert by Fenella Humphreys, as part of, well, you guessed it, the Roman River Festival.

From Left to right; Orland Jopling, Artistic Director, Roman River Festival, Fenella Humphreys, and composers of two pieces she played, Cheryl Frances-Hoad and Adrian Sutton. An adventurous programme based around Bach's Partita no. 3. I enjoyed the thrill of the new, and shall write more on this tomorrow (so that's just my mum reading then...). For something completely different, there's still tickets for tomorrow evening's concert at St. Michael and All Angels church, Copford. English songs, mainly from the 20th Century. With Roman River, you can be sure the musicianship will be of the highest quality, in this case Sally Matthews and Simon Lepper. And you can always look at the wall paintings (some of the most interesting in the country, another hidden Colchester gem). And all for just £12, or £6 if you're under 30. See you there! With thanks to the Churchwardens at St Andrews, Abberton.

Standing Sentinel

Great to see the Sentinel Gallery in Wivenhoe packed for the recent poetry evening (shame I couldn't make it). I'll be keeping my eye open for more events after this saturday's opening of the new exhibition. If you're interested why not join their email newsletter? I popped in today and met new gallery assistant Sarah Waters. I had intended to write about the prints and paintings at tomorrow's opening (from 11 am), but my eye was drawn to these striking and very usable bowls from potter Sara Paynter. Christmas present? - I hope Mrs Blogger is reading!
If you're in Wivenhoe why not head for the Farmer's Market in the morning....yummy stuff, particularly local apples and pears, and pork from Primrose Pork in Great Bromley.

With thanks to all the traders at the market, fuelling this blog!

Roman River flows to the Stour

Out to Mistley and Manningtree today for a taster of the Roman River festival - I feel a bit of a traitor on the banks of the Stour, but I appreciate just how positive a force Roman River Music has become for Music (and the arts in general) in North-east Essex. Though I would say, if you're going to Mistley for RRM, then why not the Harwich Festival next summer? This year it was packed with brilliant events and definitely not sold out. Check it out next summer.
Anyway, a stellar line-up for this evening's concert - 2 leading musicians from the LSO - Roman Simovic and Tim Hugh, with pianist Alissa Firsova. This is the sort of quality that Orlando Jopling attracts, but of course the proof is in the playing, and I was lucky enough to catch part of the rehearsal. All I can say is ...amazing! And to witness at first-hand the sheer effort they put in - I gaily assumed they would play a few bars, then head off to the bar,  but no, 3 hours is allotted for rehearsal! It just shows the hard work required to be that good. To be in a village church with those star musicians was a humbling experience. So book now for Abberton this Saturday and Copford sunday, which promise to be just as good - in totally different ways! See you there!

I also popped in to the North House Gallery for a preview of John Doubleday's paintings, which will be on show at the Minories throughout the Festival. More about this later.

Roman River patron the Hon Bernard Jenkin mp explains to John Doubleday how he knows Jeremy Corbyn. Funny how everyone suddenly knows a man who a month ago no-one knew!
With thanks to Penny Hughes-Stanton

Where the suburbs met Utopia

Colchester is just bursting with 'hidden' art - the humble aim of this blog is is to make it just a little bit less 'hidden'. The CO3 gallery opened a couple of years ago in Shrub End road (CO3), and it is a hive of creativity, with shows, courses and events. That's what happens in Colchester - want an outlet for your art? - then make one! - and at the same time encourage others through courses, studios and exhibitions. So hats off to Angella and Richard Horner.  I just popped in to the selling exhibition of Angella's work....she explained to me that she found it therapeutic to put all her works on the walls and decide which direction she wanted to go in ...and sell the rest! Her new works in oil are ethereal and expressive. Her studios are a real hub for locally based artists.. here is Angella (middle) with Sue Pownall and Mike Murtagh.

With thanks to CO3 Gallery 90 Shrub End Road. CO3 is leading the Big Draw at Firstsite 25th October. Thanks to the Pet Shop Boys for the title!