Abingdon News No.55

16 July 2020 Abingdon Music and Drama The year started with the still vivid memories of our Far East Tour to Japan and Hong Kong - a remarkable experience for the 75 boys - homestays with Japanese families, joint concerts in Tokyo and Nagoya, new-found and lasting friendships forged with the pupils of the Toho High School marching band. Highlights of the Michaelmas Term included the House Singing Competition, a memorable joint Evensong with the choir of Merton College, Oxford and a Chapel Choir trip to sing at Mercers’ Hall. We had masterclasses for pianists and cellists, a JCS concert - Norwegian composer, Gjello’s, Sunrise Mass - and the Christmas Concerts, featuring the beautiful playing of Alex Glover in the Bruch Violin Concerto . The Lent Term will be remembered in particular for the outstanding Singers’ Opera Masterclass and Workshop, a Jazz alumni event with musicians, past and present, and the concert of the Martin Speake International Jazz Quartet. The lockdown came the day after our cancelled Spring Concert, though we were still able to rehearse, film and broadcast the Elgar Cello Concerto (Joe Bradley) and the Chopin Second Piano Concerto (David Bicarregui). In the summer we shifted gear to maintain the momentum of the majority of lessons and ensembles online, sometimes sharing performances with the Abingdon community. Simon Currie’s “remote band project” ensemble performance gave us cheering news over Easter, showing the jazz musicians on mobile phone recordings, edited and mixed. Academic teaching required new teaching and learning skills, bringing often unexpected and inspiring results. Whilst we regret the loss of those end of year musical rites of passage – the final concerts and concertos, the Leavers’ Service, the planned musical riverboat cruise, it has been heart-warming to see the cheerful resourcefulness and resilience of our teachers and their pupils as they have continued their work online. We are looking forward to resuming our activities when we return to a new but different normal when we can once more share the joy of making music together. Looking back on Musical Activities in 2019-20 The Remote Lower School Gala Concert was an Abingdon first with the lower school students demonstrating their artistic vibrancy and many of them putting together fantastic performances. The recitals included a kazoo quartet, playing glasses, self-made music videos, classical performances, self-made rock bands and the ever popular House Singing Competition 2019 winning performance. It has been really heartening to see so many of the Lower School continue to use music as an artistic outlet. It is testament to their dedication and enthusiasm for musical performances that they took it upon themselves to practise, record and submit these performances, and for that they should be applauded. Watch the video . Lower School Gala Concert - with a difference…