Striving for Excellence...

One of the best things about this festival is how active the youngsters of the Island are, either through their own want or gentle encouragement from their teachers. The opening class of Friday morning really showcased this, with the Infant Music Making Class, featuring 'Recycled Rhythms' performed by Acorn House. An impressive and colourful array of musical instruments they had made from recycled materials around their school: Boxes filled with bits and bobs to make shakers, up-turned saucepans, a wall of home-made tam-tams and even makeshift tubular bells made out of plastic guttering! I must say I particularly liked the rainbow coloured tuned glass bottles: a home-made 'Crystallophone', to use the correct word! Hats off to the incredibly energetic tam-tam player, whom our adjudicator Adrian Goss also mentioned for his wonderfully 'bonkers' playing. What made this performance special was the excellent team-work. This group of youngsters really showed their respect for each other, waiting patiently for their turn, listening to their fellow musicians, and playing beautifully well together. Superb work Acorn House!

Continuing the morning, we were delighted by some young pianists in the Piano Under 8, and Under 9 classes respectfully. Some promising work from these young players who are in the very early days of their musical education, with each of the performers showing their musical understanding and musicality. Adrian made a good point about pianists (and all instrumentalist in fact) singing along internally with the melody of a piece, as it really helps to cement the importance of the melody, and gives the performer another physical connecting to the piece. I'd like to make special mention to the winner of the Under 9 class, Heather Jones, who I felt had a great sense of placement with her playing, and a lovely sensitivity to the harmonic language in her piece. Her final 'tierce de picardie' (a major resolution to a minor piece for those of you unfamiliar with the phrase) was placed wonderfully, and showed a great sense of style developing. Well done Heather.

Following on from the pianists we had a super group of young Cellists in the Under 11 class. Every year I am always impressed with the cellists on this island - it's a real testament to the excellent tuition they are receiving. In particular, Archie Purdue's performance of the Bourrees 1 & 2, from Bach's Cello Suite No. 3 was excellently performed. I have fond memories of playing these pieces myself: although, I might add, I was much older than Archie, and I don't think I ever played it as well as he did! A promising talent developing here! We continued with another super group, this time of young singers in the Vocal Girls Under 10. Once again, what is clear amongst this group, is the superb teaching there are receiving. Beautifully performed songs by each and every singer in this group, but it was Eleanor Hopkins who scooped the trophy with her delightful rendition of Seagull by Lin Marsh.

The next set of classes were the Special Needs Choirs: Junior School Age Class, featuring students from Le Rondin School, followed by the Secondary School Class featuring students from Le Murier School. There is some wonderful work being done with these two choirs, and I have to say, conductor Juanita Byrne never ceases to amaze me year in and year out. Not only does she conduct the young singers, but she does it from the piano.... whilst singing.... and signing.... and as if that wasn't enough, this year she decided to involve the audience and direct them as well! The highlight of the Junior choir for me was the wonderful solo performer (sadly I did not catch their name) - a promising voice there, delivered clearly and effectively, Bravo!

L-R: Aindre Reece-Sheerin, Freya Mitchell
and Kim Reece-Sheerin with the new trophy
for Pop Song Under 12

The final class of the morning was a class new to the festival: The Pop Song Under 12, complete with a new trophy to be presented by Kim and Aindre Reece-Sheerin. Again, it is clear that there is some wonderful work being done with the young singers, highlighted by the well chosen songs, both in their appropriateness for the age group, and correct use of range (nothing too high or too low!). In my own opinion, I think that with this style of music, it is worth young singers learning to sing the melodies in a more basic way first, before attempting to develop the style with pop-tricks/riffs. It's far too easy to try and imitate the original singer who will be much older and with many more years of vocal training behind them. Something to consider for any young budding pop-stars out there. That said, the girls in this class all performed excellently. My personal highlights were Isabelle Lees for her beautifully emotive singing and expression, and Rebecca Philp for her wonderful sense of style. On this occasion however, it was Freya Mitchell who won this new class for her strong rendition of 'Make you Feel my Love' by Bob Dylan. Well done girls, a super way to round off the morning.

The afternoon session kicked off with a suitable amount of pizzazz as we were treated to four excellent concerto performances in the Open Concerto Class. This is the type of class that would usually separate the men from the boys, but in actual fact, the wasn't much between them! Some truly remarkable playing coming from the younger entrants in the class, in particular Jack Tostevin-Hall on the Oboe. It never ceases to amaze me how much warmth of tone Jack achieves with this instrument, and he is still in GCSE year! The potential to excel for him is amazing. On this occasion, it was James Hatton on trumpet who won the class, and quite deservedly. Again, the beautiful tone he achieves with his instrument is magic, and he quite rightly earned himself the first Oustanding Mark of the Festival, 90 Marks.

The next two classes had a familial trend, with Benjamin Childs performing in the Piano Jazz Under 12, followed shortly by performing in the Piano Duet Under 12 with his younger brother Harry. It is clear that these two young brothers have a budding love of Jazz, and a natural grasp of it's style. For his solo, I agree with the adjudicator that it was just a shade too fast to be 'Cool' (as suggested by the title of the piece). Learning to 'sit on it' as I always say, when it comes to Jazz is a hard skill, but it really is worth it in order to give yourself the space to create a little atmosphere. The duet on the other hand, was much more laid back and suitably charming. The brothers work very well together, and Adrian encouraged them to continue playing together. As pianists, he stated, it can get a little lonely, so it is truly beneficial to find ways to play with other musicians; be it accompanying, duets, or even 8-hands at two pianos! Another vocal class to follow, this time the Folk Song Under 18. Only two competitors in this class, but two lovely voices here, both showing a good command of their voice. One thing worth noting is 'modern interpretation' of more traditional styles. It's not to say you can't! Absolutely not! But it's worth considering what is most effective for the song at hand, and whether a subtler approach would fair better. That said, a lovely display of singing, with the class being won by Luella Taylor.
- Closing out the afternoon were three classes of chamber Music Making, as well as a solo instrumental class: the Orchestral Woodwind Duos, Trios and Quartets Under 14, and then for Under 18; the Chamber Duos, Trios and Quartets Secondary School Age; finally rounded off by the Cello Under 14. In reference to the chamber Music Making, the highlight of this section was a performance by Jacob Wright, Francois Cloete and Noah Purdue. Adrian Goss was understandably shocked to learn how young they were, given the high standard and professional quality of the pieces they were performing. A well-earned Distinction for these performers.

The evening session saw the first of my performances, as I took to the Two Pianos with my mother Marilyn. My mum and I have been playing two pianos together for 10 years, having made our way through the entire Planet Suite by Holst (which was originally written for two pianos, I'll have you know), we are now working through a Suite by Richard Rodney-Bennet, and, as per usual, not in order! Last year, Movement four, this year, Movement two! And I have to say, this year's choice seemed to be the most 'pleasant experience' for us - minimal 'heated discussions', and a lot less flapping about how complicated the piece is! Adrian was very complimentary about our musicality and abilities to produce colour from the piano, as well as our synchronicity. Our competitors, 'The Munchkins' showed us what fun 8-hands at two pianos can be, with a quirky arrangement of 'Over the Rainbow', followed by the 80s epic 'Don't Stop Believing' by Journey. Adrian commented on how delightful it would have been for the young brothers Benjamin and Harry Childs to see such a fun display of 'social piano.' On this occasion it was my mother and I who won the class with a Highly Commended 86.
- More piano to follow with another of the 'big-gun' classes, the Piano Classe Superieure. This class requires the pianist to perform two pieces: one written before 1900, and other written after 1900, in order to showcase a versatility in style and technique. Now.... this might just be me, but I would read that as perform two pieces. You can understand my confusion (and I'm sure some of the audiences as well) when performers come on stage to perform 5 pieces! I can understand the logic - say for example the piece you want to perform as the post-1900 piece is a little bit short, but is in fact part of a suite, you could (and my mother has done this) perform another movement just to enhance the first piece. But it does seem a little excessive to perform the whole suite! In many ways, this will only work against you in terms of time to prepare! I am most definitely a believer in 'less is more' in circumstances like this. None the less, a superb class of excellent pianistic skills, admirably won by Bob Perkins with 86 Marks.

To Finish off the instrumental portion of the evenings entertainment we had a Chamber Music Open class, contested only by Madison Devaney and Tim Feak, performing on the Alto Flute and Treble recorder respectfully. The recorder is an instrument most remember with dread from badly played squeaks in primary, but this was certainly not the case with Tim: his recorder playing is warm and vibrant, and he knows how to showcase the instrument's true potential as a serious instrument. Adrian was full of praise for this duo's balance, and he even made a point of thanking their accompanist, Dan Madden, for his sensitive and effective playing. Accompanying is much harder than it often gets credit for - it is all too easy for the pianist to lead the soloist rather than support, or drown them out with volume. Certainly not the case for this performance. A beautifully well-rounded performance, earning a well-deserved Distinction mark of 87.

Now onto more singing! Folk Song Groups class limits the number in the group to 11 performers. Tonight The Accidentals Choir (of which I am part of) performed in a reduced capacity to our usual chamber size. Adrian was incredibly impressed by this choir, beginning his adjudication with the phrase, "Well, obviously you're an auditioned choir, correct?" - to which all of us said, "No". Rather taken aback, he went on to say how he thought the sound was incredibly professional, even more so now he knew we're just a bunch of singers who like to sing together! A highlight for him was the very opening of our first piece, Loch Lomond, which he described as 'awesome', and he also highly praised our soloist Scott Dorritty. Just when we thought it couldn't get better, he awarded us an Outstanding mark of 91, which according to Adrian is a complete rarity for him. Amazing!

Happy Birthday lovely lady Lucy!
Many congrats on your well deserved win!

Rounding off the evening was the string of Classical Vocal Solo Classes, one for each individual voice type: Bass, Baritone, Tenor, Alto, Mezzo-Soprano, Soprano. Interestingly, in previous years these classes always ran from highest voice (Soprano) to lowest (Bass) - a little change of pace this year as we reversed the order, just to keep everyone on their toes! Some wonderful singing in these classes, showcasing some of the wonderful classical repertoire available to singers. We were also once again treated to some wonderful 'mini-master class' style feedback, which tonight was primarily focused on getting everyone to loosen their tongues! An excellent set of classes, but the highlight for me had to be Lucy Cave winning the Soprano Solo Class with her rendition of 'The Owl and the Pussycat'. Lucy's performance was charming, witty, and showcased her wonderful ability to portray characters. An added bonus for her as well, that it was in fact her birthday, and this is her first ever win at the Eisteddfod - what a way to celebrate!

The first full day of music-making, and it was certainly jam-packed, with content and skill. I'll leave you with the completion of the sentence that makes up the title of this post. Perfection is something that many people are constantly trying to achieve, and in truth, it's not attainable - excellence on the other hand is. This is a phrase which our adjudicator has brought up time and time again, and it is one that I hope everyone, regardless of whether they are musicians or not, takes heed of:

Strive for Excellence, not Perfection