So Long, Farewell....

Last day of the Music Eisteddfod 2016, and even though the music section was winding down, the musical excellence and energy most certainly was not!

Joseph Tom and Jacob Mauger

We started the morning with the Piano Under 12, followed by the Viola Under 14. The adjudicator Peter Hewitt has remarked a few times how much he likes the Viola's sound. And I agree with him! The Viola, as an instrument, is often forgotten about (or made fun of), but it's tone is beautiful, and as an ensemble instrument it provides much needed 'cement' in the overall sound. It's clear to see why Peter Hewitt wanted to encourage Viola players to stick with it. I don't think he'll have a problem with this class of students though, as there was already some great quality playing to be heard. Next was the Vocal Boys Solo 10 and Under 12. Only two young lads in this class, but what a high standard of class it was! Jacob Mauger was performing in his first ever Eisteddfod class, accompanying himself on the ukulele - an unusual sight for this type of class. Jacob has a lovely voice, and I really hope he continues to sing more, as there is some wonderful potential there. Top class singing, with both performers receiving Highly Commended, Joseph Tom was the trophy winner on this occasion with his suitably dramatic song 'Windy Weather' by Lin Marsh. Finishing off the morning session we were treated to two more solo instrumental classes: the Instrumental Concerto, and the Orchestral Woodwind Under 14, both excellent! The Concerto class is an interesting one, as the instrumental performer would normally perform with an orchestra, but at occasions like the Eisteddfod, the orchestra is replaced by a pianist, which is an incredibly hard job! The adjudicator was quick to praise the 'orchestras' on their fantastic and supportive playing for these young soloists. A wonderful class this was, showcasing the talents of young oboists Annabelle Pizzey and Jack Tostevin-Hall, and violinist Charlie Brewin. On this occasion it was Jack Tostevin-Hall who won the class with a Distinction.

Kicking off the final afternoon session we had two high-class young performers in the Piano Sonata Under 18. A class I used to participate in, I can tell you, this is a difficult one, as the choice of repertoire is most definitely challenging! Both Jack Colley and Francois Cloete performed superbly, showcasing great and promising skills for the future. Continuing on we had the Vocal Girls & Boys 12 and Under 15 - it does seem a little strange to me that this is class for boys AND girls: the vocal classes are combined at Under 8, then they separate for Under 10 and Under 12 classes, and are suddenly back together for the Under 15, before separating back out for the Under 18.... particularly at this age, for me, it's a difficult one to judge vocally. All voices at this age go through a vocal transition, boys more prominently, and I do wonder whether the boys should have a separate class. Perhaps the combination of boys and girls for this class is purely because a lot of boys at this age maybe don't want to perform? I'm not entirely sure, it just intrigues me - Anyway, it certainly doesn't take away from the quality of the singing, as this was a lovely class, overall won by Ellie Evans. Next we had two classes which compete for the same trophy, the Orchestral Woodwind Under 16 & Under 18. Dominated by oboes this year, it's great to see excellent teaching for this instrument. It's a particular instrument which, when played well is stunning and evocative, but can take a lot of time and skill before reaching the 'played well' bracket. One performer who certainly deserves a mention for his fabulous playing is Jack Tostevin-Hall, who won the Under 18 (and thus, the trophy) with a stunningly played Sonata, achieving and Oustanding mark. Finishing off the afternoon, several more 'popular' styles of music, in the forms of the Piano Jazz Under 14, Under 16 & Under 18 (all competing for the Birch Trophy), and the Self-Accompanied Under 18. Some quality performing in these classes, with Jack Colley winning the Jazz trophy with excellent interpretations of Gershwin, and Jude Wegerer winning the Self-Accompanied with a Tim Minchin song 'Not Perfect'.

Sarah Tennant with the
Longmire Baton

The final session of the music festival, Saturday evening. Reading the programme, you knew we were in for a night of great music making, but I'm pretty sure no-one was expecting quite what we got!
- Before I talk about the performances, I'd like to talk first about the Special Awards that are given out on the final night of the Eisteddfod. Peter Hewitt made comment before awarding on how we are very lucky to have such high quality music making, across all instruments, genres and age brackets. He went on to say how wonderful the community spirit is here, and talked about the islands love of music, and that we need to "desperately hold on it for as long as possible" - I really hope this is a message that spreads like wildfire thorough the island, because he's right. We make music in Guernsey, and we do it damn well, and we need to continue this tradition, and continue to support, nurture and improve!

Marilyn Pugh with the June
Bourget Trophy

Lots of well-deserved winners for these awards - I'm very pleased for Elizabeth Beacom winning the Peter A Malley Trophy for her contribution, in all forms, to the Eisteddfod this year. Sarah Tennant won the Longmire Baton for conducting, which was wonderful to see, as she has done incredible work with the musicians from St Sampsons High School. My mother (Marilyn Pugh) also collected the June Bourget Trophy for Most Outstanding Choir, this year awarded to 'The Accidentals', and I was really pleased that the Music Centre Chamber Strings were awarded the most memorable performance for their performance on Tuesday Night (in the Orchestral Open Class). The list of all the Special Award winners can be found by following this link: http://guernseyeisteddfodmusic.blogspot.com/p/special-awards.html


Musically, the music stated quite low-key (in a way), with the Brass Solo Open, contested only by Arton Hockaday. A lovely small class to behold, with Arton showing us the wonderful musical capabilities of the Trombone. Next, things took a slight humorous turn as we saw two excellent pianists (Jack and Laura Colley) ushered onto the stage by a storm trooper in order to play their Open Piano Duet, "Cantina Band from Star Wars". One of the most memorable performances I have to say, which quite rightly earned them an outstanding 90 Marks - Laura did say to me that they nearly pulled out of the class, because they were under-rehearsed.... hmmm, not sure Laura's definition of 'under-rehearsed' is the same as mine! Following the duet class was the Piano Solo Over 18 for Film/TV themes. Another class which treated the audience to well-known musical themes played superbly - John Morris performed 'Teddy Bear's Picnic', being praised for this technical theatrics, whilst Marilyn Pugh "really made the piano really sing" (in Peter Hewitt's words) with her 'Remembrance Theme' from Schindler's List. A most outstanding class, John Morris took home the trophy with 90 marks.

Jack and Laura Colley, with their Storm Trooper

Finally, we got to the turning point of the evening: The Novelty Song Class. New this year, this class is for songs and pieces that don't fit anywhere else. I myself performed in this class with a piece written for Toy Piano, written by a friend of mine from America, Calvin Hitchcock - perhaps not the 'funniest' song I've ever done, but it certainly ticked the novelty box, and I'm very pleased to have been able to perform new music (quite literally, it was written in 2015) at the Eisteddfod, and enable my friend across to pond to put an 'international premiere' on his CV! Highlights for me from the rest of this class have to include Lindsey Veillard swanning out on stage dressed as a carrot (yes, you read that correctly), and Elaine Chapman's delightfully innocent (well... most of it) rendition of "Health And Safety". In particular, Elaine's sense of comedic timing is second to none, she just really knows how to hit the audience with a comedy gem and hold them until she's ready to continue! On this occasion however, it was Julie Tostevin's "It would Never have Worked" by Victoria Wood which stole the show, and was awarded the trophy, presented for the first time by Rodney Collenette. The final class of this years Eisteddfod was (as it has been for a few years now) The Corporate Class - designed as a class to encourage companies and groups that might not ordinarily perform to get up and have a go, this class has become a festival highlight. The Fire Department pulled out all the stops (and pulled off nearly all their clothes) and we were roaring with laughter at their expertly choreographed "If I were a fireman" - I must say, it wasn't all about the humour, there are some excellent musical voices in our fire department!.... And I'm pretty sure that's the first time the Eisteddfod's seen a bare bum on stage! Bravo! A well deserved win indeed!
- and there is in fact a very sneakily filmed video, which you can watch here (but don't say I didn't warn you!): https://www.facebook.com/GuernseyFireAndRescueService/videos/739473226154542/

We thought the class was over.... it wasn't - the theatre was suddenly 'alive with the sound of music...' and the curtains rolled back for us to see Fran Bourget, the executive officer of the eisteddfod and all her helpers onstage about to perform a final number - a medley of songs from "The Sound of Music", with cleverly re-written words. With Fran retiring from her position of executive officer this year, handing over the reigns to Katherine Wegerer, it was a delightful way to say 'So long, farewell' to Fran, and for us as the audience to applaud her for all her hard work over the last 12 years (and yes, they did get me, I did have a little cry about it!). Feeling much the same sentiment, Peter Hewitt decided to award the final Special Award, The Adjudicator's Cup to Fran Bourget, for all her hard work over the last 12 years. A fitting end to a brilliant day, and indeed, a brilliant festival.

So, that's it for another year! I hope everyone who has entered this year has had success, joy, learned from their experience and is raring to go for next year! See you all in 2017!

The true spirit of the Eisteddfod - never being afraid to have a go (and if needs be, wearing silly outfits!)

"Surprise Surprise! I'm a Spring Chicken!"

I know, I know, my titles this year are bonkers - but really, it's all coming from the Eisteddfod itself! Rather fittingly though, after all the hideous weather we had recently (which destroyed our TV aerials... not that it matters, as I've been literally living at the Eisteddfod! haha!), it was nice to see some vaguely Spring Weather today!

Starting the morning in colourful style was Acorn House, 'Rainbow Rhythms' in the Music Making Infant School Age Class. The curtains pulled back and we were shown a gorgeous display of colourful bells, boom-whackers and even t-shirts! A slight request for some willing volunteers to get up on stage to cover the 'missing children' (I assume due to illness), and we were off with a lovely display of the music making skills these young performers are learning. A lovely way to start the day! Continuing on we had the Under 9 Viola class - a new class, as the Eisteddfod committee have decided to split the Under 9 and 11 Violins and Violas into separate instrument classes due to the hefty number of young performers - no bad thing! But, it does mean that the poor violas now have no trophies to compete for! Come on Guernsey, let's get all these classes with trophies by 2017 eh? I've even gone to the trouble to make a full list of every class without a trophy (and those that share as well) which you can read by clicking on the "Donations" page (or following this link: http://guernseyeisteddfodmusic.blogspot.com/p/donations.html). This viola class really was lovely, again, showcasing the excellent tuition from the islands string teachers. A full and high quality class, Peter Hewitt decided to award the class (*hint, no trophy) jointly to Louisa Hughes and Rory Kennedy.

Jean W Martin presenting Peter Hewitt with a new trophy

Next for this mornings session were two of my favourite classes: School Choirs/Groups Special Needs, one class for junior school age, and one for secondary school age. Every year I am always blown away by both Le Rondin and Le Murier's performances at the Eisteddfod, and always end up mesmerised by Juanita Byrne's (Le Rondin conductor) ability to sing, play piano, conduct AND sign at the same time! In particular, Le Rondin's performance really shone for me - their delightfully humorous song "When I was Small", followed by their jumping number "Teddy Bear Rock n' Roll" was absolutely deserving of a Distinction Mark (... Outstanding in my opinion!). Well done both schools for your brilliant work today! It was also lovely to see a trophy presented to the Secondary School class, from Jean W Martin. Following these classes we had the Under 8 and Under 9 piano classes, both showing some excellent promise in these very young pianists. I especially want to highlight the Under 9 winner Sze Lam Chung, for what I thought was some incredibly mature playing for such a young musician, with a lovely sense of musicality and precision. Well done indeed!

Rounding off the morning we had even more fantastic music from the island's very young performers, in the Choirs (Infant School Age) Unison Singing. We were treated to four excellent young choirs, from Melrose, Forest Primary, Blanchelande and Acorn House (Beechwood), all showing us how fine their voices were, and each bringing their own unique spin to songs with actions and even props. I was particularly impressed by the growing plant for Acorn House's performance, and some amazingly well timed bin-bag collecting by Blanchelande (seriously, impeccable timing from the lovely young Bin-Lady on the end! Superb!) I was also very impressed with how fine a voice the young 'chicken' from Forest School had! Brilliant! - A really tough one to call, with every school receiving a Highly Commended award, it was Forest Primary School who came away from the morning with the trophy. I must say I was also really pleased with how supportive each school was of the other schools, with there being a wonderful moment during Forest's performance of "Spring Chicken" were Melrose were dancing along (quietly and respectfully though, I might add!). The camaraderie in the Eisteddfod, it must be said, is truly fantastic, and long may it continue in every section of this Festival (and hopefully spill out into other areas of island life as well!)

In the afternoon we began with the ECJS Steel Pans - it's great to hear the steel pans on stage (we heard them twice today!), and I really enjoy how conductor Richard Sutton manages to arrange such interesting and varied (and recognisable) music for these students to perform. The pans do need tuning though, and I did overhear Mr Sutton talking to the adjudicator about how they are lucky to have donations of new equipment, but the pans really do need some professional maintenance. Now... I've seen a lot of these 'random acts of kindness' things happening around the island - is this not something that could be done?..... None-the-less, ECJS performed brilliantly, both in their Music Making Junior Class, and their Orchestra, Band and Instrumental Ensemble (Junior School Age) Class. Following this we heard more great solo work from Double Basses (Under 16 and Under 18), Percussion (Under 18) and Cello (Under 16). Highlight for me from these players include Elizabeth Beacom's "West Side Story", a medley arranged and performed by fellow local musician Rickey Long a few years ago (I remember it well!), and Abigail Dempsters performance in the Cello Under 18. Especially for the cello class, there is some fantastic playing from these young players, with each showing a great sense of musicality, and showmanship - I did nearly have another panic attack after agreeing to turn pages for Chris Holland (cello teacher) and then realising what I had to follow! Finishing off the afternoon were more large ensembles, in the form the Brass Ensemble Under 18, and the Choirs Secondary School Age (years 7-11) classes. More fine works from all these schools/ensembles here, in another close run competition for the choirs class, with the Music Centre Intermediate Choir just pipping everyone else to top spot.

The evening class began on epic proportions tonight, with possibly one of the most difficult classes in the whole Eisteddfod - Piano Repertoire Over 18, featuring four of Guernsey's veteran first-class pianists. The repertoire class means that the pianist has to provide a small programme of music which showcases the pianists' ability to play a selection of styles/composers - no easy task (and when people ask me if I ever do it, then I laugh!), this is a demanding class! There's a reason this class was such high quality, it was a great display of both exceptional skill (with everyone getting a Distinction Mark) and a the variety of piano music available. John Morris was the winner of this class, in a very tough to call decision. Before the interval we had two smaller classes, the Over 18 Self-Accompanied, and the Over 18 Piano Duet. I was performing in the Self-Accompanied class, competing, in fact, for my own trophy (one I donated last year). I always do a piano piece for the Self-Accompanied, which is a challenge with that piano, it must be said! And I try, every year to get the angle right to perform over (too forward facing to the audience your voice gets swallowed up by the piano, too flat on and your voice disappears into the wings). I think I managed to get it right this year, as I did win the class with an 89 (yay!).

After the interval, two fantastic classes, the Folk Song Groups Over 18, and the Over 18 Pop Song Class. The Folk Song Groups class was a really lovely class, with three completely different groups, giving the audience a complete cross-section of folk singing. GU10 with their 'Sea-Chanty' style sound, The Accidentals with a much more 'classical folk' sound, and SWATS with something between the other two. Peter Hewitt expressed his dislike of having to choose between these groups, having enjoyed each performance so much, but he decided to go with what he considered to be the most 'folky', awarding GU10 the trophy. The Pop Song class closed the Friday night with what Peter Hewitt described as a collection of performances that each had 'something special'. A hotly contested class (it always is, every year), and for the first time in a long time two performers performing the same song: myself and Julie Tostevin both performed 'Songbird' by Fleetwood Mac (one after the other thanks to the class deletions!). In the end, it was Julie who won the trophy (with me in 2nd). The marks for this class reflected the standard, with everyone within the Highly Commended or Distinction bracket.

As we closed out the penultimate night of the 2016 Eisteddfod, there is a sense of winding down now - maybe it was all the lovely pop ballads, or maybe it's just that end of the festival feeling, but the end is nigh, and I'm very excited to see how it all closes out.

Confuzzlefied!!

.... and I'm sure you are reading that title! It was a comment that came about in the opening class of today's Eisteddfod, when Peter Hewitt was talking about quaver passages to the Orchestral Woodwind Duet/Trio/Quartet Junior class - sometimes, when you're nervous, and going at speed, "quavers can become confuzzlefied...." - well, I know what he meant at least.... I think.... haha!

The opening afternoon session was a delightful one, beginning with some lovely groups from Melrose in the Orchestral Woodwind Duet/Trio/Quartet Junior Class, and continuing with the Under 16 and Under 18 Violin Classes. These two classes showed some brilliant violin playing at a very high level. In particular, Kirsty Dempster and Charlie Brewin showed excellent command of their instrument, both with very different styles, tones and nuances, but both to a high quality - so much so, the adjudicator couldn't separate them, and awarded them both the trophy. Following the violins was the Voice & Instrument Open class, in which myself and my student Harry Giubelio performed a song for voice and ukulele, "Sleeping By Myself" by Eddie Vedder. From a personal point of view, I'm really enjoying working with Harry, both as a teacher and as a fellow musician, and we've really enjoyed working on this song. Very pleased we came away with a Distinction mark of 87 as well - but how sad there was no trophy (*hint hint*). Next was the Novelty Song Under 18. A new category of class for this year (there's also and Over 18 class, yet to come on Saturday Night....), this class was essentially 'invented' for people who have a song they would like to perform, but the song in question doesn't actually fit into any other category. Over the years people (myself included!) have managed to squeeze said songs into other classes, so this class was created to allow these brilliant songs to be performed. Sad to see only Elizabeth Beacom in the Under 18 class, although I suspect it's because there's not too many Under 18's who are willing to put themselves out on a limb and do something a bit mad/off-the-wall/unknown etc etc. Elizabeth performed fantastically in her song, with a brilliant rendition of Tim Minchin's "F Sharp", performed self-accompanied on piano with expert comedic timing as well, and suitably 'off key' F sharps! Brilliant!

Another class with only one entry was the Male Voice Choirs Under 14, where the Grammar School Boys Vocal Group came onto stage to perform "See you Again", a lovely powerfully lilting number (with great rhythmic accompaniment), and a somewhat 'straight' rendition of "Johnny B Goode." My praise goes to the lad with the maraca - again, I can't tell you his name, but I couldn't take my eyes off him for how happy he seemed to be when singing, and even more so once he had a maraca to shake! And I'm also incredibly jealous of the lad with the beautiful hollow-top guitar, because now I want one! This young vocal group showed great promise in their performance, and I hope they all continue to sing in the future. Rounding out the afternoon were the Orchestral Woodwind Ensemble for Secondary School Age, the Chamber Music Ensemble for Secondary School Age, Orchestra/Band/Ensemble Open, and the Secondary School Choirs (years 7-11 only). A great way to end the afternoon, seeing more young musicians working together in ensembles and choirs. In particular I was pleased to see The Grammar School Lower School Girls Choir receive a Distinction for their performance in the last class of the afternoon. This young choir make a great sound, and it's clear they've worked very, very hard for this Eisteddfod. Well done girls, keep up the great work.

My mother and I opened up the evening session with our yearly tradition of the Two Pianos Open. Some of you may remember that we've just finished (last year) our seven year saga of playing Holst's "Planet Suite" for two pianos, so we needed to find something new to perform! Happy to say, we've chosen Richard Rodney Bennett's "Four-piece Suite", starting with movement four (naturally!). I loved learning and performing this piece, it's a complete contrast to the fabulous classical music of Holst, and is much more rooted in Jazz/Rock (which suits me down to the ground!). The main downside of performing in the two pianos is that there aren't two pianos that match - the main piano is a Boudoir Grand (not quite a full grand), and the only other available is the upright from the dressing room.... not ideal, as they really don't compare! One day... ONE DAY, I hope the Eisteddfod will have two beautiful Steinways for us ALL to play (**again, HINT HINT HINT!!**). That being said, the two pianos is amazing fun, and I'm very pleased we got a Distinction mark of 88 for our first piece of this new set. 1 year down, 3 to go! Before the interval we had two classes, the Orchestral Woodwind Duet/Trio/Quartet Open, and the Country and Western Over 18s class. Small classes again, but with a nice selection of music from all competitors. I particularly enjoyed Andrew Hyde's performance in the Country and Western class - I feel this genre really suits him (of all the genre's I've heard him perform in this year), and I hope he explores this style more.

Winner of the O18 Songs from the Shows, Stephen Glencross

After the interval, we were treated to the Over 18 Songs from the Shows - quite literally, treated! It was a fantastic night with a glorious cross-section of Musical Theatre Songs. It was unfortunate though that so many performers needed to drop out of this class - I do hope more people in the future really consider whether they can commit to performing (particularly for classes like this, as they are scheduled on nights that people book tickets for!) None-the-less, this was still a great class. Even Deputy John Gollop got up to perform tonight, which was great to see - anyone and everyone can (and should!) have a go, and support the local Eisteddfod. It would be lovely to see a few more of our Deputies coming up to support this wonderful festival, even if only from the auditorium!
- My personal highlights of the evening included Lucy Cave's rendition of "Unusual Way" from Nine, and my friend Scott Michel performing in his first ever Eisteddfod performance, "I need to Know" from Jekyll and Hyde - well done Scott, safe to say, you earned your pint! The show-stopping number of the night was most certainly class winner Stephen Glencross with "I only want to Say (Gethsemane)" from Jesus Christ Superstar. I've had the great joy go getting to know Stephen these last few months, as he and I are working on Les Miserables together, and he asked me to coach him through this song. It's been wonderful to see someone who's always had a pretty great voice develop as an actor, and quite literally knock it out the park in his performance, earning himself the trophy and an absolutely well deserved Outstanding mark of 90. Well done Stephen! Hope to see you again next year!

A shorter day, but jam-packed full of great music and show-stopping performances. Only two days left of the Eisteddfod, we're in the home stretch for 2016. Last chance for music!

"Never louder than Lovely"

My title for this post comes from what seemed to be the theme of the day, a phrase that adjudicator Peter Hewitt used several times when talking about volume when singing - essentially, the concept is that when you sing loudly you must be sure not to distort the tone of your voice (unless it says so in the score!) - It's a great statement to consider, and yes, there are times when 'lovely' singing is not actually appropriate (I've done a few death scenes in Musical Theatre shows in my time - trust me, in order to be convincing, you can't sing those prettily!) I did also, however, consider the phrase 'Anti-penultimate' as a title. He used this when talking to a piano student this morning, meaning 'the bit before the bit before the end! I thought that was rather apt given that we're now on day 7 of this 10 day music festival!

Thursday morning started with two beautiful classes, the Under 8 and Under 10 Girls Vocal Solos. This really did show off some great potential in these young ladies, all showing their good grasp of story telling and pitch control, earning themselves all Highly Commended marks. Ruby-Jane Gill won the Under 8 class, and in a tough one to call, it was Lauren Varley's rendition of "The Frog" which won her the trophy in the Under 10s. Well done girls, great work! Following the vocal solos we were treated to two similar classes: the Chamber Music Duo/Trios/Quartets, and Chamber Music Ensemble, both for Junior School Age. This was some brilliant music making by these young musicians, another testament to the great teaching they are receiving. I don't think I've ever seen so many cellos and violins in one room (and one viola.... there's always one!) A particular highlight for me was where two cellists actually spun their cello's mid song - fabulously theatrical. I'd like to mention the Purdue brothers, Ollie and Archie, who not only show great promise on their respective instruments (Violin and Cello), but a good sense of how to lead an ensemble/section - an important skill to have, and not just in music, I think you'll agree! Well done to all in these classes.

Joe Mansell - happy to win the Under 10 Piano

- The first half of the morning was rounded off with some great young skill in the Piano Under 10. It was lovely to see this age group of performers allowed to get onto the stage before the class to have a sit at the piano, so as to get a feel for it. If you've never played that piano before, well.... there's a reason it's nicknamed "The Beast" - It's clunky in places, hard to get varied dynamics, and because it's a grand piano, the music stand is much higher than these performers are used to playing (many teachers will have an upright piano, where the music stand is much lower). This also gave these pianists a chance to figure out where, and how high the stool should be (although, not all of them got this right - but this is a learning process!). A brilliant class all round, and I was very pleased for my student Joe Mansell, who won the trophy in his very first Eisteddfod. Even though Joe had a small fluster mid-piece (and recovered brilliantly, I might add), the adjudicator praised him for his musicality and feel for the music. It was great to see Joe's look of absolute shock, followed by his beaming smile. Well done Joe, keep up the good work!

For the rest of the morning we were treated to the Under 14 Violin class, and the Junior Choirs Part Singing. The Under 14 Violins showed us their musicianship, with lots of great technique being developed alongside the tackling of much harder repertoire. Two performances stood out for me in this class: Jacob Wright's "Syncopation" showed us his lovely warmth of tone in his violin playing, as well as his great command of his fingers (fine playing indeed!), and Louise Madden, for her skilful interpretation of Vivaldi's Concerto in A Minor. They have different styles of playing, but it's clear they are starting to understand what music speaks to them, and what they are best at playing (remember, not all composers suit all players! I adore listening to Lizst but I can't play him to save my life!). Great work guys, I look forward to seeing more of you in the future.
- We finished off with the Junior Choirs. It was a lovely end to a great morning, with both the Guernsey Music Centre Junior Choir and the Beechwood Friday Choir performing confidently. Beechwood's final number "Life's a Happy Song" certainly left the audience in good spirit! A high standard of singing in this class, with Beechwood earning a Distinction, and Music Centre an Outstanding. "I have had a good morning!" Peter Hewitt exclaimed in his adjudication. Yes Peter, haven't we all!

L-R: Hamis Glass, Charlie Brewin, Benjamin Fletcher, Jack Colley
& Jack Tostevin-Hall

After lunch, I must confess, I was excited to see the next classes: Piano Under 18, Versatility Under 18, and Cello Under 18. A quick read of the programme, and you already knew you were in for a treat. Starting us off for the afternoon were five young lads in the Piano Under 18, performing some incredible show pieces of music. It's clear these lads are not afraid to tackle the 'big boys' so to speak, as we were given, essentially, a wonderful concert of Chopin, Grieg, Liszt and Rachmaninov. What stood out for me in this class was how these lads really are in full control, not only of the music, but also of the piano! All of them had stunning moments in their playing, but I just want to point out my particular highlights. Jack Colley's beautifully delicate flowing right hand in Lizst's "Weldesrauchen" - honestly, I don't quite know how he managed to get that sound out of that piano (and I said to my mum, the last person I saw achieve that was Seb Grand - so that's fine praise indeed!). Jack Tostevin-Hall, a fair few years younger than his competitors really stood up against the rest of them, playing Chopin's "Raindrop Prelude" admirably, with some lovely colours. I think what Jack needs now is just a little more sense of 'breathing' with his music, and he'll be well on the way to phenomenal playing. And finally, Charlie Brewin's "Nocturne in Eb Major" (again by Chopin). There were moments in this where the notes were so well placed that I think I got a little tear in my eye! Just magical playing in my view! A tough class to call, the trophy went to Hamish Glass for his decisive and impressive performance of Rachmaninov's "Prelude in C#minor" (Bells of Moscow). Hamish made this piano sing, and it was all the more impressive from memory. Well done boys, truly promising work for the future!
- Continuing from this we had the Versatility Under 18, followed by the Cello Under 18. Particularly in the Versatility we saw incredible skill in performing, and an amazing variety in, not only instruments, but genre and musical style as well: Harp, Xylophone, Piano, Voice, Modern, Classical, Pop, Contemporary - It was quite literally all there, and with only two performers! My respect absolutely goes to Hannah Beacom, who accompanied her daughter Elizabeth for her Xylophone piece "Concertino" by Toshiro Mayuzumi, in what is not only an insane Xylophone solo, it is an insane accompaniment. Bravo indeed! (And thanks for asking me to page-turn... that wasn't in the least bit terrifying....)

Continuing on with the Brass Duo/Trio/Quartet Under 18 and Recorder Groups Open, St Sampson High School were back to showcase more of their work. It's great to see how well this school (and their music department) are doing this year, and I really hope that we see, not just more of them, but more of all music students from all schools. In my opinion, it's not a talent issue, as I know the talent exists across the island, rather a resources issue that needs to be addressed. But anyway, these two groups showed us a great selection of work. I do wonder if perhaps the Brass Quartet could have conducted themselves (I actually think you're meant to in this class?....). They certainly have the skill to be able to do it. Another suggestion for these performers is perhaps they should consider making a program of music which includes more than one composer, as I've noticed a few times that in one class they have performed pieces either written or arranged by the same composer. This is absolutely not a criticism of their playing, which is very good indeed, but rather a consideration for next year. Even when you play contrasting pieces in tempo, key and mood, if it's all by the same guy who wrote it, it can still 'sound the same' as each composer has their own voice/language. I think these performers will excel even more if they explore and program a wider variety of work in the same group. We then moved onto the Instrumental Bach Class, 16 and Over. In contrast to what I have just said, this class IS about one composer, J S Bach. There is this general consensus of 'if you can play Bach, you can play anything', and in many respects that is true. Particularly for this class we were treated to, not only Bach at it's purest (Jack Colley performing on the Piano), but Bach 're-imagined, with Benjamin Fletcher playing the infamous "Prelude in C" on the Bass Guitar.  It really is interesting to hear Bach on the Bass Guitar, and I think with some even further re-imagination of how to create better pedal notes, Benjamin will really excel at this. A wonderful class all-round. Closing out the afternoon we were treated to an array of more excellent choral work in three choir classes: Secondary Age, Male Voice Under 18, Secondary Age Madrigal. A treat for the eyes and ears, there was even seem choral choreography from Guernsey Girls Choir (a little reminiscent of 'Les Chansonelles' back in the day), if not entirely successful. There is definitely a sense (for me anyway), that, if you're going to do choreography, you need to ALL be 100% committed to it, and not at all embarrassed by it, as I felt was the case with some of these girls. However, it's understandable - you turn up to choir to sing and you're told you're going to dance?! That said, Guernsey Girls performed incredibly well. Elizabeth College's Close Harmony Group showed us some great promise in their more Barbershop Style. In particular I could hear great potential in their tenor (who, I'm afraid, I don't know his name, but he wears brown shoes!). I do think these boys could take a little more care in either picking, or arranging music to suit their voices, and not stretch themselves too far at this stage. As a vocal coach, I know that this is a delicate time for boys/young men's voices, and in fact they need some limitations in order to develop their voices safely and correctly. Finishing off the afternoon was the Madrigal class, with both Rhapsodie and the Guernsey Music Centre Youth Choir showing great command of this style of singing, earning themselves a Distinction and an Outstanding respectively.

This evening, do forgive me, I'm not going to talk about these classes in order, I'll talk about them in sort of, genre clumping! Starting the evening were Fourtissimo performing in the Vocal Trio/Quartet Over 18, with a cracking piece called "Name That Tune", a delightful piece that gave the audience a chance to try and guess all the tunes they were performing, performed humorously, and intricately, earning them a Distinction mark of 89.  The Instrumental Jazz Open class, although only contesting two performers was a stunning class showcasing some wonderful Jazz talent in Pippa Cordall and Benjamin Fletcher. I particularly enjoyed Benjamin's performance of Victor Wooten's "Amazing Grace" on Bass Guitar (a piece I have heard my brother perform before), and Benjamin's command of his left hand in finding all those harmonics was fantastic. Pippa won this class with her suitably gypsy-jazz violin solo, and a Distinction.

My next selection of the evening includes the Operatic Solo Over 18, the Lieder Over 18, and the French Song Over 18, all more classical in nature. This really has been a great Eisteddfod for Soprano singer Deborah Bideau, who received two more Oustanding Marks (and two more trophies to boot) with her Operatic, and French Song performances. However, Tina James and Marilyn Pugh narrowly defeated Deborah and her Lieder Partner James Henderson, just denying Deborah an Eisteddfod hat-trick. It's worth explaining a little bit about the concept of a Lieder, I feel. It is meant to be, as the Voice and Piano classes are, a duet for voice and piano... but all in German! Both partnerships in this class showed great connection and understanding, which was really lovely to see. Next up, we had the Mixed Voice Choirs Over 18, featuring The Accidentals and GYT Choir. A great class all round, I think what really struck me, certainly from a performing point of view, was the camaraderie between these choirs. The Accidentals performed first, and as we left the stage, GYT applauded us from the dressing rooms as we made our way to the theatre, and likewise The Accidentals applauded GYT as they came off the stage. It's wonderful to see (and hear) such friendship in music making on the island. Peter Hewitt has stated several times how impressed he is with the choral work here in Guernsey, stating that it is "alive and well, and long may it remain so!". It is certainly alive an well in these two choirs, each showcasing their unique skills as choirs. Full of praise for both choirs (and happily for me, my choral writing for my piece "April"), there were Outstandings all around, with GYT earning a 90, and The Accidentals a 91 and the trophy.

Jazz Winners, 4 years running

Closing out the night in a suitably smooth and laid back way was the Jazz Voice Over 18. With only three of us competing, like the folk song class this is another one that seems to have fizzled out a bit this year, which is a real shame. There used to be dozens of us in this class, and I hope there's bit of a jazz-comeback in the future! That said, it was another 'small but perfectly formed' class, with three performers performing three classics: "He's a Tramp", "Autumn Leaves" and "St James Infirmary Blues". Peter Hewitt was full of praise for the performers understanding of the genre, and I'm pleased to say that I won the trophy with a Distinction mark of 89. Thank you Chris Taylor for accompanying me (again!) - That's one of the really nice things in the Eisteddfod, being able to showcase a great working partnership, year in, year out.

All in all, another successful (and long) day at the Guernsey Music Eisteddfod. We're reaching the home-stretch of the music now, but there's no sense of winding down, that's for sure. There's still some excellent music to come!

With People, and For People....

I thought I'd start this post today with a couple of definitions for you all! Our adjudicator this year is not without use of technical musical terms, which is fine for those of us who are musicians and know what they mean, but I know it goes over many un-musical peoples' heads, and many times now I've had to answer the question of 'just what the hell is a melisma?!' - so:

"Melisma" - the singing of a single syllable of a word, but across many notes in succession
"Sotto Voce" - in a very quiet voice
"Recitative" - the singer is allowed/expected to adopt a more speech like pattern of singing (as though reciting the text, rather than singing)
"Portamento" - a fancy word for a 'vocal slide' between notes (and if over used, what myself and my friend Laura Simpson like to call 'vocal trombonery!'

We started the Tuesday morning session with a fantastic class, the Junior School Choirs Unison Singing. We (the audience) were treated to six brilliant school choirs, each excelling in their unison sound, and enjoyable performances. There was a really lovely selection of music choices here, across all schools, some of my particular favourites being "Johnny One Note" sung by Melrose, and "Motorway Cones" sung by Blanchelande - "Motorway Cones" in particular was commented on by the adjudicator as to how delightfully amusing it was, especially as, "there are no motorways on Guernsey!". A really high standard of class this, with every choir achieving either a Highly Commended or a Distinction. It was great to see the imagination of the children captured as well, with most choirs including actions for one of their songs, and in some cases, 'dance moves'. Peter Hewitt commented on how these moves were brilliant at enhancing the performance, even if not quite successful all the time with footwork ("careful of your future dance partners!" he did warn, jokingly!) It was Beechwood Choir who came away with the trophy, and I must say I was rather impressed with them too. They began their performance with an un-conducted piece, which is hard enough at an adult level, let alone under 12s! I really loved how the sound built up from two voices, to the first line of voices, and then the full choir, ending with a beautiful solo by Emily Northmore. Congratulations Beechwood, and indeed all the other choirs in this class.
- Even further congratulations really do need to go to the team who organise this class, and in particular Trish Grover, who has the art of organising who sits where and when (or 'junior choir Tetris as I like to call it!) down to a tee. It's really important at this age that young musicians get to hear other musicians perform, so as to learn from them, and Trish's system meant that every choir got to hear at least half the class perform (and for a lucky few, more than half). Well done Trish (and your team of helpers) for pulling it off so seamlessly!

After the interval (and the little bit of post-choir-chaos!) we were back to the music with instrumental classes: Under 12 Piano Jazz, Under 18 Orchestral Duet/Trio/Quartet, and Under 9 Violin - an impressive display of both young technical skills, and a variety of genres. Both the young lads in the Under 12 Jazz performed admirably, showcasing a great sense of understanding of the Jazz genre and all it's nuances, particularly the sense of swing and ease required for it. In the Under 18 Orchestral Duet/Trio/Quarter we were treated to a beautiful Oboe duet of "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba", in which Annabelle Pizzey and Jack Tostevin-Hall displayed their warmth of tone on this difficult instrument, matching each other brilliantly. And finally, a lovely display of very young talent, the Under 9 Violin class showed us the very beginnings of music making. As I said earlier in the week, theres some excellent string tuition going on here, as evident again this morning by just how many of these violinist received Highly Commendeds, and how many ended up sharing 3rd place! A really lovely morning of music - varied in genre, but consistent in quality!

An army of cellos, waiting patiently to be played....

Beginning the afternoon session was one of my favourite classes, Under 14 Cello. Being a cellist myself, I know a lot of the repertoire, and I really enjoy hearing young up-and-coming musicians tackling this material and interpreting it their own way. It's also great to see how consistent the cello teaching is here, as every year more and more cellists just seem to be at a higher and higher standard of playing (and at a younger age too!). At this age of playing, intonation tends to be the biggest issue, mainly because you are tackling harder material, extended positions, and trying to develop a fuller more romantic sound with better vibrato - getting it all to come together is the challenge here, and it's good to see that these students are starting to tackle it well. This class was won by Evie Hart, with a great performance of the cello repertoire war-horse, "Allegro Appassionato" by Saint-Saens. Following the cellos were two smaller classes, the Under 18 Voice and Piano, and the Under 18 Recorder Groups. The theme for both these classes seemed to be the importance of teamwork and partnership, and creating an even balance of all parts/voices. Kirsty Dempster and Jack Colley achieved this very well indeed with their voice and piano class, earning themselves a Distinction.

Finishing off the afternoon we had two Secondary School classes: Music Making, and Choir. Both these classes really showcased the excellent work that's going on musically in all the schools across the island. The discipline all these students are learning alongside their respective instrument is a vital life skill, and it's clear all music departments are instilling this very successfully. What made these classes hard to judge was actually how different the groups were within the classes. In the Music Making Class we had a training band (Grammar), a big band (St Sampson's), and a GCSE chamber ensemble (Ladies College), and it can be really hard to compare bands that clearly have, not only different genres and instrumentation, but different age groups and abilities as well. I do think Peter Hewitt was good at considering this, and critiquing each group on their own potential, rather than a direct comparison - much fairer in my view! St Sampson's High certainly deserved the win with their big band combo, particularly for their last number "Bandstand Boogie" - pretty sure I heard a bit of audience clap-along to boot! In the choirs class, again, we had a huge difference between the groups in terms of genre and type: Guernsey Girls Choir are a full SSAA choir, whereas Grammar's 'Rhapsodie' are much more of a female vocal consort, and Elizabeth College's close harmony group has much more of a vibe of male barbershop about it! This class was a close one to call, with the Guernsey Girls just pipping the others to the top spot. Personally, my favourite performance was Rhapsodie's performance of 'The Voice'. I very much enjoyed the blend and atmosphere this choir got with this number, and the fiddle solo really added to the folk style (and I was still singing it on the way home!).

The Tuesday evening has become somewhat of a tension point for the Music Eisteddfod, as it has now traditionally become the night that we have all the large orchestral ensemble classes. And boy, this year it was on hyper-drive! Four competitors in the Under 18 class, and five in the Open! You really couldn't get a fuller concert program for cheaper tonight, that's for sure! We quite literally had everything, from full orchestral sounds, to big-bands/swing-bands, to wind bands and concert brass. Again what struck me most was the incredible discipline that these large ensembles have, and a great sense of teamwork across the board. St Sampson's High School Orchestra won the Under 18 class, and the Guernsey Youth String Chamber Orchestra won the Open class, both with impressive Outstanding scores of 91 marks. For me, the star performance of the night was the Youth Chamber String Orchestra. Their warmth of tone and was superb, and the intense sound they managed to create in places just had a real wow factor. Huge congratulations need to go out to, not just to the winners of these classes, but all the competitors and teachers who have worked so hard to achieve this high standard of ensemble playing, and to the parents who have actively encouraged their children to learn music and participate in this wonderful festival.

I think what was particularly wonderful to see throughout today was the camaraderie of all the children, congratulating their fellow competitors from other schools/ensembles, or themselves performing in several different groups. This, for me, is what the Eisteddfod is about - friendly competition in where you get to celebrate your own success, and perhaps learn from others successes.
To reiterate what was said to us by Peter Hewitt earlier in the week:

"Music is about making music with other people, and for other people"

Monday, Monday.....

After a busy weekend of music making it's no surprise that we had the 'morning off' for the music section of the eisteddfod today, as the sessions didn't begin until 2pm. Starting the afternoon was Elizabeth Beacom performing on snare drum in the Under 18 Instrumental Quick Study class. I used to do the Piano Quick Study class when I was Elizabeth's age, and let me tell you, it's not for the faint-hearted! The competitor is given the piece on the first Saturday of the Music Eisteddfod (in this, case Saturday 5th) and has until Monday to prepare the piece for performance. Elizabeth performed admirably well in this class, even if by her own admission she thought the piece was 'impossible', and earned herself a Highly Commended Mark. Continuing the session we had two joint-winning Highly Commended Under 15 Pop Duets/Trios, and some great piano-playing in the Under 16 class, and the Under 15 6-hands at one Piano class. Particularly in the U16, there was a fantastic array of repertoire being explored by these young performers, with my particular favourites of the class being Jude Wegerer's "Nocturne, Op 9, No2" by Chopin, and Marie-Claire Benoist's "1st Arabesque" by Claude Debussy. Both these performers, in particular I felt showed clear understanding and expression in their music, as well as a real sense of knowing how to breathe with their playing. In the end it was Marie-Claire who won the trophy in this class.

Following the piano classes were vocal solo classes; Under 18 Folk Song, and Under 18 girls Vocal Solo, both featuring the same line-up of singers (as is often rather common when you get to the older ages of performing). In both classes Peter Hewitt praised all the singer's ability to tell the story, not only in their performance/acting, but in their abilities to change the tone and colour of their voices to suit the lyrics. This is often something singers forget about, that you can change how your voice is produced, and manipulate your voice to create characters, or moods for example. It's extra details like this that help the musician go 'beyond the music', as the adjudicator put it, and really excel in music making. A high standard of class, both classes were full of Highly Commended marks, but it was Kirsty Dempster's stunning rendition of Michael Head's "The Singer", sung completely a cappella which was the highlight of the afternoon, earning her a well-deserved Outstanding mark, the first for a soloist at this Eisteddfod.

- I'd like to take a moment here, unfortunately to make comment on something. It seems to me, that in  fact, the audience were a little disrespectful of the performers today. During Kirsty's delightful solo, there was talking (audible enough for me to make out actual sentences, though I won't repeat them....), rustling of sweet packets, and worst of all, a damn mobile phone went off. Similarly, later in the evening class, my mother had to stop and ask to start her piano sonata piece again because people were talking as she was playing. This is just simply not on I'm afraid. Both these musicians are seasoned performers, and still managed to produce excellent work without being too flustered, but what if this was a performer who had never performed on stage before, and didn't know how to recover themselves from being distracted? Audience members, I implore you: please, please, PLEASE turn off your phone, do not bring in sweet packets (or if you simply 'must' have something to eat during the sessions, empty the packet into a plastic cup like they make you do in the West End theatres), and save your talking until the house lights come back up. I'm really hoping this was a Monday anomaly, because every performer at this festival deserves the respect of the audience.

Anyway, rant over for now, back to the music - The Chamber Music Making Open, and Junior School Folk Song Choirs. In the Chamber Music Open, it was lovely to see Janine Mallet conducting the Guernsey Grammar School Senior Strings, her first ever conducting experience, which she managed commendably indeed. We often forget about the poor soul at the front waving their arms or a stick about, it's a forgotten art form! I thought the Senior Strings tackled the James Bond theme particularly well, with great tempo changes (another credit to the conductor). The afternoon was rounded off by the Music Centre Primary Choir - all 70 of them! A delightful army of children, all so engaged in their performance, and with fantastic choreography, earning themselves a Distinction.

My certificate and trophy - lovely!

Starting the evening session, we have, perhaps the most unusual classes for the Music Eisteddfod - Composition (Under 18, Under 18 'school entry', and Over 18). In these classes, the competitors have submitted their own music creation (scores, and a recording) to the adjudicator months before, and he/she studies them, grades them, and then talks about them to an auditorium of people! This year, I was really pleased to see a sizeable chunk of young composers in the 'school entry' class, as well as hearing about what is clearly a high standard of young composing, with all the entries being either Highly Commended or Distinction. I was delighted myself to win the Over 18 class, with a 92! This piece in particular, "Voul-ous enne P'tite Goute?" I wrote as a commission for the Charlotte New Music Festival I attended in the summer last year, and I'm so very pleased it was so well received by the adjudicator at this Eisteddfod. He also praised the performance of the players on my recording - they are members of The Great Noise Ensemble, and I have let know of this result, and they are also delighted!

The next set of classes for this Monday evening session saw the Classical Vocal Classes, starting with the Sopranos, and descending through the ranks to Bass, followed by the Senior Music Making Class. These classes saw another Outstanding awarded, for Deborah Bideau in the Soprano Class (91 marks), but I would also like to personally praise Lucy Cave for what I thought was a stunning piece with effortlessly soaring high notes, and Lindsey Veillard for her charming (as Peter Hewitt also thought) performance of "Christopher Robin is Saying his Prayers". The Piano Sonata Class, not to be taken lightly, showcased the complexity of concert piano music via three of the islands seasoned pianists. The adjudicator made an apt comment on how it is "extraordinary how three separate pianists can sound so different on the same instrument." After this dramatic concert of music, we were treated to a final performance in the Over 18 Voice and Piano Class, featuring Tina James (voice) and Marilyn Pugh (piano). This piece, "Crabbed Age and Youth" was very charming, and amusing, and very well performed by this pair, earning them a solid Highly Commended mark of 85.

All in all, perhaps a mixed day - musically, fantastic - but I think the audience might need to try a little harder - Come on Guernsey, we're usually so good at supporting live music, let's not get complacent, and put in a little more effort! (And don't forget to TURN YOUR PHONES OFF!!)

Hail Holy Queen(s and Kings) of Sacred Music!

Something quite special happened at today's sessions - something we've all been wondering whether it would actually happen this year....

After a delayed start due to a medical incident (in which I wish the person a speedy recovery), the U18 Sacred Solo brought us safely back to the realm of music, with a very high quality class. Some truly beautiful singing from all in this class, with excellent choices of music, very well suited to the stunning acoustic of St James. Peter Hewitt made comment on the hall, and "how lucky Guernsey is that it has been saved for this kind of thing", and he's bang on - we really are lucky to have St James (and it's a real shame Beau Sejour Theatre doesn't even compare....). Each singer in this class was able to really use the hall to their advantage, and explore greater dynamic range and colour in their voice, I felt. Peter Hewitt spoke to the singers about the importance of emphasising the right word in a song (to use his example, "the drinking place" and not "the drinking place") - a very important lesson for all singers! As evidence of the high standard, two Distinctions were awarded to Kirsty Dempster and Charlotte Hardwick, with the latter claiming the trophy. I must say, as Charlotte's teacher I am incredibly proud of how she sang in this class, and I think she gave us a fantastic glimmer of what she really is capable of as a singer. 

Charlotte Hardwick, U18 Sacred Solo Winner

Continuing the afternoon we had a wonderful array of sacred choral singing, featuring the Junior School Sacred Choirs, The Church/Chapel/Religious/Community Choirs, the U18 Gospel Choirs and the Secondary School Sacred Choirs, all in succession! It's fantastic to see so many singers on the St James stage, from all ages, different schools, and all pockets of community (and in one case, a neighbouring island!) - That's what music should be all about! It was lovely to see the Alderney Voices back on the stage again for their final class of their eisteddfod, performing really well. It's great to see how they have improved since last year, although they were narrowly defeated for the trophy by Churches Community Choir (Festiva). Elizabeth College's Close Harmony Group, consisting of 5 lads gave a really impressive performance in the Gospel class, particularly of their second number "Turn the Radio On", and I think it's also worth noting that it was un-conducted! Finishing off the 'choral' section of the afternoon we had the Secondary School's Sacred Choirs, another high quality choral class all round, which was won by St Sampsons High School Choir with a Distinction. This choir really do have a great unified sound, which is key to great choral singing. Perhaps a little simpler in their concert program, which is no bad thing (remember, sometimes it's better to perform slightly simpler music perfectly than harder music not so perfectly), I think off the back of their eisteddfod success they can use their solid cohesive singing and now challenge themselves with meatier material. Finishing up the afternoon we had two Oratorio classes, one for 'novice' oratorio singing (open only to those who have never won the class) and what I will call the 'advanced' oratorio singing (for those that have one the previous class). For those that don't know, oratorio's are essentially solos from sacred works, sung in a more operatic style (e.g. Handel's "Messiah"). Another high standard class, with excellent singing by every competitor, the class was won by Joan Le Flem in a very closely fought competition! I have to say, the most impressive moment of the class was most certainly Niall McCathie's stunningly clear (and loud!) opening top A! That's what St James' acoustics are for!

After a fantastic afternoon we were set up for more excellent sacred music making with Jack Colley performing in the U18 Church Organ class, and the O18 Sacred Singing Groups.  Jack in particular shows excellent command of keyboard instruments, and his organ playing really highlights this, earning him a Distinction. The next class was something just a little bit special, with two local choirs competing for the O18 Sacred Choirs class; Bel Canto and The Accidentals. Both choirs, although very different (Bel Canto are a large all female voice choir, whilst The Accidentals are a small SATB choir), showed excellent command of the choral sound, and indeed the performance space. Praising both choirs in their choice of repertoire, vocal colour and story-telling, there was an intense moment as he uttered the phrase, "this class was simply outstanding..." - it was then that he awarded The Accidentals 90 Marks, and the win to Bel Canto with 92 Marks! The first Outstanding marks of this years Eisteddfod, and they've both been in the same class! A truly wonderful moment! Following on was the O18 Sacred Solo, which is always a wonderful class, to both be in and to watch. What I love about this class is the variety of sacred music that gets shown in these solos, covering all genres from classical to gospel, and even pop/folk style sacred music. It was really lovely to see Lee-Ann Hawkes win this class with a Distinction - I know Lee-Ann has not been too confident with her singing in the last few years, and it was great to see her back on top-form for a really deserved win, and I hope this reassures her of her singing talent. Closing out the evening, a really fun class, the O18 Gospel Choirs, featuring The Accidentals. Performing two completely contrasting pieces, I think the choir captured the audience's hearts with a soothing rendition of Bob Chilcott's "All my Trials", followed by the wonderfully fun and upbeat "Hail Holy Queen" from Sister Act, complete with unexpected (but highly amusing) flying music folders! A great closing number for the evening, the choir earned themselves more high praise from the adjudicator, and a Distinction mark of 89.

All in all, the Sunday sessions at St James have once again proved themselves to be some of the best music making in the island. Getting to perform in that space is an absolute privilege, and the confidence a quality performing space can give a performer is quite clear after hearing the outstanding (quite literally) music of the day.

A Big Fish and a very Consistent Corpse....

.... I know, that's a really weird title, but trust me, all will be revealed!

But before I do, I will start with the morning's music! Saturday morning's sessions set us up for another fantastic day of music, starting with Marie-Claire Benoist contesting both the U18 and Open Harp classes. Sad to see her the only competitor in these classes, although not that surprising given how unusual a choice of instrument the harp is for young musicians! Marie-Claire picked two very different pieces for her two classes, and I must say I think it was the first piece in the Under 18 that really captured everyone's imagination, showing just how interesting and varied the Harp's sound could be. Following these classes was the Under 11 Viola class, which sadly has no trophy at present. It's worth noting, if you flick through the programme that there are a fair few classes that don't have a trophy, and because trophies are all donated, it really is up to the public to help out and decide to give a trophy. Personally, I'd like to see, at the very least, every class for the Under 18's with a trophy to compete for - winning isn't everything at the Eisteddfod, but if you are fortunate enough to win, it's nice to have something to show everyone - right? Anyway, back to the violas! A really lovely class this, showcasing yet more good teaching for young string musicians in the island. It was class winner George Walker, performing Prelude from Bach's Suite I in G major (originally written for cello) that really showcased the viola's capabilities, and indeed the amazing skill set of this young musician - very promising playing from this young man, one to watch for the future!
- A morning made up of small, yet (as Peter Hewitt says) 'perfectly formed' classes, we were then treated to the Under 12 Folk Solo, Under 12 Piano Duet and the Under 14, Under 16 and Under 18 Brass Solo classes. Again, really promising work from all the musicians here. I particularly want to praise Hannah Smith in the vocal folk solo, for competing in her first eisteddfod and for being brave enough to do it completely on her own! There are some adult performers still too scared to do that, so very well done indeed!

After the morning's interval we began the music again, starting with the Under 12 Double Bass class. Another one of those instruments which most people wouldn't immediately think that they want to play, but as Peter Hewitt was keen to point out, is a tremendously vital and useful instrument to know how to play. Being the sister of an electric bass player, I know he's a very busy musician because there are an abundance of guitarists but few good (and indeed, even fewer very good) bass players available. I hope this is advice that these young players will remember, as if they continue to learn double bass they will be invaluable to classical, jazz, rock, and all manner of genres! Some very good commended work in this class, from both performers. The Vocal Girls 10 and Under 12 class was next, which showcased a lovely variety of the more classical sounding voices in the island. Very promising quality in all these young ladies' voices, and a good sense of narrative as well. Congratulations to Rachel Dawson for winning that class. Closing the morning we were treated to the wonderful atmospheric Piano Film music from 'Pirates of the Caribbean' in the Under 18 Piano Film class (and my praise to Hamish Glass for doing it all from memory!) and the always delightful Gateway Club performing as a choir for the Melody Press Printers Trophy. It's classes like this one that, more than any other, highlight the importance of music, and just how rewarding, healing, therapeutic and just jolly good fun it all is! Gateway Club really showcased how much fun music is, and should be, with a fantastic bit of audience participation to boot. A well deserved Highly Commended performance indeed!

We kicked off the afternoon session with a brand new class to the eisteddfod, the Under 18 Country & Western Song. Even with only two competitors, this was still a wonderful class, and managed to show the audience the variety that exists in this particular genre. Dora McGahy won the class with a lovely version of 'Who I am' by Jessica Andrews, but I really want to mention Olivia Younger's performance as well. I've seen Olivia develop as a performer over the years, and I've come to know her as a singer who is very good at a lot of styles of music: Pop, Jazz, Classical, Musical Theatre - but today I saw something, and heard something really magical in her performance, to the point where I had to say to her that I think she's 'found her genre'. Sometimes the music we are actually meant to be performing comes to us in the most accidental ways (I didn't really discover Jazz singing until I was doing my Masters Degree!), but it's a good lesson for all to learn - try ALL styles of music, and see what resonates with you.

Next came the 'big hitters' of the day, the Under 18 Musical Scene, and the Under 15 Songs from the Shows. It is in the former of these classes were we find the reason for my title of this post, as GATE provided us with two scenes in this class: "Big Fish" (originally a film by Tim Burton, which I highly recommend!) and "The Lucky Stiff", which gave us the delightful comment about a young actors ability to make a convincing corpse! A great showcase of young musical theatre talent, and, as always, a lovely snippet of shows that people might not ordinarily know about, but may now consider going to see. GATE (and indeed, other drama schools in the island) do have a great way of bringing to the public's attention these "under the radar" shows in events like the eisteddfod, which is really commendable. I did feel however, that these particular performances seemed ever so slightly under prepared - they just didn't have the usual extra polish I've come to expect from them, and I wonder if that's due to the Dance World Cup and it's unfortunate scheduling - I wonder if some of these young performers are stretching themselves a little thin, something I think we all (as parents, friends and teachers) might want to keep and eye on.
- Continuing on with the Under 15 Songs from the Shows class, this really highlighted a lot of amazing talent in the island, as evident by the insane number of competitors sharing 2nd places - 7, in fact were all awarded a distinction and shared the 2nd place spot, but it was delightfully hilarious rendition of "All Alone" from Spamalot, performed by Reece Kilminster and Drew Robilliard that pipped them all to top spot.

L-R: 'Lucelli", Harry Giubelio & Charlotte Hardwick

The evenings session had a strange vibe about it, starting off, as we were informed that, sadly, a lot of competitors had had to pull out for various reasons. However, I think all dismay was promptly washed away as we were treated to the Under 18 Vocal Pop Duo/Trio/Quartets, who paved the way for some real high class music making, with both competitors being awarded Distinctions (and the narrowest of decisions separating them). As Peter Hewitt commented, both participants were incredibly communicative and engaging, but for very different reasons. Indeed, later in the evening the Over 18's class, which was won by Fourtissimo with another Distinction, showcased this groups great command of the music, and the ability to draw the audience into the story of music they had chosen to perform.

The Gilbert & Sullivan Open class is another that is not so widely contested, but I think actually shows great promise for the future. Thinking about the young Musical Theatre talent we've already seen so much of at this eisteddfod, many people are keen to forget that 'Musical Theatre' encompasses more than the modern rock/belt styles of musical, and indeed goes even further back than the likes of Roger's and Hammerstein in the 1940's - Gilbert and Sullivan, with their 'Operetta' style of music were the beginning of modern day musical theatre, stretching away from the heavy Opera genre, and more towards the 'light entertainment' category. I think these older styles of musicals are really important for young theatre performers to learn about, and to have a go at performing. It takes a different set of skills to do this music well vocally, but the same skills theatrically, and many may find a liking for a genre they never knew about! It was Matthew Fallaize who won this class with a fabulously 'two-faced' performance of 'A more Humane Mikado' from 'The Mikado', and a Distinction mark of 87.

Matthew Fallaize with the Gilbert and Sullivan Trophy

We then proceeded on to the Over 18 Male Voice Choir class, featuring the Guernsey Welsh Male Voice Choir. I've often thought in the past that this choir seemed like they've held back a little - I had the pleasure of hearing a European Male Voice Choir in Prague once, and the power of that male voice sound just hits you like a well intended freight train! It's a sound I've been longing to hear from the Guernsey Welsh Male Voice choir for a long time, and tonight I think they've started to really encompass it. Peter Hewitt remarked, "There's nothing better than 4-part male voice a cappella singing", and it's true - when done right it is so powerful and moving, and it was their final piece in Welsh, "Rachie" that really connected with the audience, and gave us a glimpse of what they can do. I really hope Paul Cosnett continues on this sound, and pushes this choir to open themselves up to an even bigger and better sound in the future.

Rounding out the evening was the Old Familiar Class, and the Over 18's Choirs Folk/Traditional class, featuring a lovely array of traditional music, and, in some cases, 'new' traditional music. It was lovely to see the Alderney Voices back on the island for another Eisteddfod this year, after their success in the Sacred section last year, this time additionally competing for the Folk class. A tentative start, I think they realised quickly that Beau Sejour Stage is anything but the gorgeous acoustics they remember from St James! That said, they performed really well, and the adjudicator remarked on how Bob Chilcott (composer of their second piece, "Buffalo Gals") would be really pleased with their performance - fine praise indeed. The final win of the night, was deservedly that of GYT Choir, who, I must say, performed the best I've heard them. I must again praise Elizabeth Beacom's fine solo singing (and indeed, command of the choir!) in their opening number, but it was the haunting atmosphere they created with their final piece 'The Hanging Tree' from the Hunger Games that really captured imaginations, earning them a deserved Distinction.

For someone who 'doesn't give out Distinctions lightly', Peter Hewitt gave one in almost every class today, which I think just shows he's really starting to see just how much skill, talent and commitment our local musicians have - and I think the best may still be yet to come....

'Alderney Voices' - back for more at the Guernsey Eisteddfod

"Happy Faces for a Happy Future!"

That was the sentiment adjudicator Peter Hewitt conveyed to the audience on Friday's Music Eisteddfod, a statement which certainly reflected the mood and atmosphere of the day's sessions.

Bright and early for the morning sessions we began with the beautifully bright sounds of the island's young cellists: the Under 9 class, followed by the Under 11s. From an audience perspective, there certainly is a lot of great foundation playing here from these young musicians, a point Peter Hewitt most certainly picked up on, stating that he was "so heartened by the instrumental work on the island". He gave some great feedback on the importance of taking time to set up (and be comfortable for performance), and further talk about the importance of acting as a musician, to better convey the music to the audience. For me, the transition from the Under 9 to the Under 11 class really highlighted the great leap in skill level and repertoire for these cellists, and emphasised how fantastic the cello teaching is in the island (well done Chris Holland and Mary Cordall). Congratulations to the class winners, Molly Robinson (Under 9) and Archie Purdue (Under 11) - I personally would also like to mention Benjamin Childs in the Under 11 class, whose tone on the cello has much promise, as well as his musicality. After the interval the morning session continued with the Under 9 Violin class, which showed even more promise in the island's young musicians. Again, there is some excellent teaching going on here, as we were presented with, essentially, an army of young violinists (21, in fact!). Peter Hewitt spent more time talking to these students on how to communicate through music, explaining that music is 'like a language'. Well done class winner Matthew Moody with your lovely "Cossack Dance" - very atmospheric!

The afternoon session continued with the light entertainment classes that we all know and love in this Eisteddfod, kicking off with the Under 12s for their Songs from the Shows. All round this was a superb class, with every variety of show number, full of entertainment, commitment, good story-telling and musicality - essentially everything the adjudicator was looking for! Peter Hewitt spoke to the children about the importance of the quality of voice, that it's important not to push or force the sound, to never be scared about performing quietly. I must say, as a vocal coach I am very, very pleased that he is fervently repeating himself with this insight, not as a negative criticism, but in a supportive and caring way. The class was won by Maisie Webster, Eve Walley, Imogen Giles, and Freya Mitchell with their delightful quartet "Museum Song" from the musical Barnum.

Joint U18 Vocal Pop winners Kirsty Dempster & Harry Giubelio

Concluding the afternoon was the Under 18 Vocal Pop Solo; a class which showed some great understanding of the pop genre, with some lovely song choices. Just a little insight from me - I'd like to see more of these young singers explore a wider range of the pop repertoire, by going a bit further back in time! There are some who did (Charlotte Hardwick performing a song by Joni Mitchell, for example), but there is a tendency for this age group to stick to what they know and choose songs that are either currently, or have recently been in the charts, and there's such a wealth of great songs from further 'back in the day', songs and styles that may actually suit some of these talented youngsters better than some of today's current music - just a suggestion! It's also worth taking some consideration of whether the song you want to perform translates well to a piano accompaniment. Nothing against any of the accompanists today, but there were a couple songs that I just thought a guitar backing may have enhanced the performance, or given the singer a sound more similar to the song they know from a recording. All that aside, the singing and presentations were lovely, with some very promising sounds. Again, Peter Hewitt was keen to encourage the singers not to force the vocal quality, especially considering that, at this age, the voices are newly transitioned and, as such, vulnerable. Truly a high standard of class, and unable to separate them, he awarded joint 1st to Harry Giubelio and Kirsty Dempster with Distinctions.

It's worth taking time to mention here how the adjudicator seems to be marking. There are many who have noted that he's a 'low marker', and whilst yes, in the past we have had flourishes of Outstanding Marks (90+), Peter Hewitt's marking appears to be much more conservative, yet glowing with praise, and he has noted several times that he rarely gives out Distinctions. I think we need to accept that, for this particular adjudicator, a Commended (81-83) is actually very good, and probably what another adjudicator would consider a Highly Commended - whether we will actually see a 90 this year remains a complete mystery! His marking is very consistent, however, and he always explains what he is looking for in each class, which is perhaps the more important thing.

Opening the evening session with some style and class was the Under 18 Vocal Jazz class. This was my favourite class of the day (being a lover of jazz myself), and I must say I thought all the singers really did very well, giving us a delightful cross-section of the Jazz genre: from the more 'legit' sounding Gershwin classics, through sultry Latin to some modern rock/swing. It was Elliot Hearne's smooth rendition of "Sway" that ultimately won the trophy. After a 'swinging' start, the evening then took a classical turn as we were treated to more serious concert music featured in the Over 18 Piano Class Superieure, Over 18 Vocal Class Superieure, Over 18 Sight Reading, Over 18 Recorder Solo, and Over 18 Piano Solo Classes. The two Class Superieures', in particular were very closely contested, with the narrowest of marks between the winner and the runner-up. My favourite performance across these two classes was Niall McCathie in the Vocal Class Superieure. Although he didn't win, I really thought the warmth of his voice filled the theatre beautifully, and his choice of repertoire in particular was lovely to listen to. Given the nature of the material, which was very much technical in nature, no surprise that there was a lot of very technical talk about said material. If you yourself are a musician you would have appreciated these discussions, but it was perhaps a little heavy for people who maybe just wanted to listen to some lovely tunes! There was a lovely little bit of humour injected into the evening however, in the form of the Sight Reading Class, and pianist John Morris' comment of "well at least it's not as bad as last year!". Closing out the night was the Over 18 Folk Song Class, which gave us three lovely folk classics. In previous years this class has had much more participation, but this has seemed to have dwindled for whatever reason in the last couple of years. That said, it didn't diminish the charm that this class always delivers, and Simon Howitt's rendition of "Black Velvet Band", which I have most often heard as a raucous pub number, was presented with much more of a sense of emotion and story telling, which I really enjoyed.

Another superb day at the Guernsey Eisteddfod, it is clear to see that everyone has really prepared themselves to the best of their abilities, further securing that the music making in this island really is quite remarkable.

Eisteddfod 2016 - all systems go!

The 2016 Eisteddfod has started with great promise this year, with Guernsey's youth paving the way for some excellent music making!

Congratulations Elliot for the U15 Pop

Kicking off the afternoon was the U14 Piano class which showed a great array of promising young pianists, especially winner Francois Cloete. This was then followed by the U15 pop class. Pop for young voices is a tricky thing; the genre often demands a particular sound that young students aren't ready for, or the subject matter is often particularly adult - some of you may remember last year my frequent talk of how singing teachers, in particular, need to really think about whether the music the children are singing is appropriate. That being said, this class was fantastic, with a great selection of song choices and with every singer performing incredibly well. The adjudicator gave some very good feedback on how the singers need to act with these songs and tell the story, from beginning to end. It is true - songs have words, and you need to convey that you know what the words mean! He went on to be very complimentary about the young singers' understanding about the pop genre, and the stylistic qualities that go with it. In a high standard class, it was Elliot Hearne who won the trophy with a Distinction performance of "Ain't no Sunshine" by Bill Withers (and I'm told it's his birthday today, so that's a nice little surprise present for him!). I do want to mention, what I thought was a truly beautiful performance; Matilda Cole performing 'Hallelujah' by Leonard Cohen. At only 7 years old, Matilda's innocence and beautifully clear pure voice just gave this song a different spin which I really enjoyed. The afternoon continued with the Chamber Music Duo/Trio/Quartet (secondary school age), and the Secondary School Choir classes. What stood out in this class was how great it was to see young musicians performing together, as noticed by the adjudicator. He said, "Music is about making music WITH other people, and FOR other people", something which massively benefits, in particular, young musicians. He spoke to the chamber musicians about learning to 'breathe' with each other, so that you truly play as a complete sound. A fantastic idea he suggested, was trying, as a group, to begin the piece with your eyes closed, so as to truly master working as a team and feeling the music - a tip adult musicians could also learn from, FYI! Closing with the school choirs, it was lovely to hear such good choral singing from all three schools participating. And it was also great to have such variety from the different choirs, showing off the best of their unique abilities - good balance, varied programmes, classical choral sounds and a little bit of scat, it was all in there!

As an adjudicator, Peter Hewitt has demonstrated that he really understands singing, which is great to see. As a chorister and flautist, he has some fantastic knowledge into the mechanics of singing and performing, and breathing in particular - can't say I agree with his statement that the Beau Sejour Theatre is 'quite good, so you can project quietly quite well....' - hmmm, experience has taught me otherwise on that one! I think he needs to get up on stage and have a sing and see how dead the stage is! However, Peter is a very calm and very articulate adjudicator, and I like the way he explains to the audience exactly what he personally is looking for in each class, and is always positive in the first instance - I'm looking forward to hearing more of his insights.

Ruby Jane Gill as 'Woody', and myself as 'Andy' (+trophy!)

The evening session was set to be a fantastic night of entertainment, and boy, did it deliver! We started the night off with a fast and furious xylophone duet, followed by John Morris's technical wizardry in the Jazz Piano. We then succumbed to the magic that is the Songs from the Shows Class, both the Open (all ages) and the Under 18. It is unusual for any Songs from the Shows Classes to appear in the music section before the first weekend of the Eisteddfod is over - for those of you that were wondering, it's because this year the Dance World Cup has it's qualifiers in Jersey, starting from the 9th March, which has meant a massive headache for Fran Bourget in trying to organise the classes so that people can still compete (and sadly it does mean there may be a fair few more drop-outs than expected this year) - In a way though, it was really great to open this year's Eisteddfod with a bang! I myself got up on stage tonight with my student Ruby for the Songs for the Shows Open, and accompanied another student of mine Charlotte Hardwick, singing with Michael Sullivan in the same class. I think the Open Songs from the Shows is a fantastic class, and it's a shame there aren't more entries in it. I actively encourage teachers to suggest to students from different age groups, or siblings/parents, or like me, teachers and students to participate in this class. I'm very pleased to say that Ruby and I won our Class with a Distinction for our rendition of 'You've got a Friend in Me' (and yes, I let Ruby take the trophy home!)

Following the Open Class, we were on to the Under 18's Songs from the Shows Class, and as Peter Hewitt would go on to say later, 'It's remarkable how much these kids can do." And it really is! Every year it is so obvious that there is an exceptional amount of talent in this island. It was really lovely to hear him talk about the fantastic teaching as well as the great performances, as we rarely see how much hard work all the singing teachers do to get students to their full potential. Peter went on to talk seriously about how it's important not to push too hard when singing, which is a subject that's really been on my mind a lot recently, as a vocal coach. A lot of pop and musical theatre these days expect a belting sound, which actually, for young voices is not always safely possible. And, contrary to popular belief, belting is not shouting and shouldn't cause the singer any strain - maybe it's a technique that needs a bit more serious attention, to make sure that we really protect our stars of the future from vocal damage. Back to the class. The U18's showed us a fantastic cross-section of the musical theatre genre, with everything from beautiful ballads to comedic audience participation. Toby Giles won the Class with an 89 - unfortunately I didn't get to see him, but I'm assured by my audience sources that he was a very worthy winner! I'd would like to mention my two personal favourites: Harry Guibelio for his hilarious portrayal of Mr Wormwood in "Telly" from Matilda, and Elizabeth Beacom's heart-wretching rendition of "Still Hurting" from The Last Five Years. Elizabeth really shone for me, I have to say - I've known her since she was a very young girl, and to see her give such a mature performance and sing the best I've ever heard her sing was truly wonderful.

All in all, it's been a brilliant start to the Music Eisteddfod 2016 - we've already seen some of the best young talent Guernsey has to offer, and we've only just begun! (As Fran says, "1 down, 25 to go!)

L-R: Miriam Botzenhardt, Charlotte Hardwick, Kirsty Dempster and Jenna Tostevin, waiting backstage, ready to perform