Saturday 9 March
Brighton Dome Concert Hall
7.30pm, £10 / £15 / £18 / £23.50 / £27.50

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra rolls out the red carpet for a night of movie magic!

Celebrate the run-up to the Oscars with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra and flamboyant conductor Pete Harrison, as together they bring symphonic glitz and glamour to Brighton Dome Concert Hall.

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra is delighted to return to Brighton with a spectacular concert which features the full orchestra playing music from the last fifty years of cinema. With something for everyone, from film fanatics to families, this concert aims to roll out the red carpet in style and evoke the magic of Hollywood past and present.

The music includes the breathtaking soundtrack to the 2000 epic Gladiator; the blustering dance tunes of Pirates of the Caribbean; John William’s poignant and haunting melodies of Schindler’s List, plus the epic sweep of Lawrence of Arabia and Out of Africa… not forgetting the enchanting tunes from Pixar’s colourful animated feature – Up.

Star Trek fans will not be disappointed as audiences are taken on an inter-galactic adventure with Star Trek Nemesis. The deep space travel continue as we fast forward to 2154 where Horner vividly depicts the outbreak of war as the Na’vi come under attack from planet Earth in Avatar to conclude a sensational concert celebrating the cinema at its finest.

Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra is one of the UK’s leading orchestras, proudly serving communities throughout the South and South West as well as performing nationally and internationally. It is one of the most dynamic and innovative symphony orchestras in the world, a tradition that dates from its foundation in 1893.

Dedicated to providing world-class music, the orchestra performs over 120 concerts each year with some of the finest conductors and soloists in the world, enjoying rave reviews for both concerts and recordings.

Taking music beyond the concert hall lies at the heart of Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra’s commitment to engaging with new audiences. The musicians participate in an array of projects – from national curriculum based workshops in schools to tea dances for the elderly – through BSO Resonate, the Orchestra’s pioneering education and community department that reaches more than 125,000 children and adults each year.

 At last matters seem to be moving at St Mary in the Castle. After a speedy refurbishment of some essential matters, ten Trustees have been appointed, the auditorium is now in pristine condition for use by a wide spectrum of events. One such was the eagerly-awaited concert in honour of the late Alan Spackman, valued member of Opera South-East with all artists, professional, semi-professional and amateur giving their services in memory of someone who had been a pillar of almost every aspect of the organisation for over twenty years. At the time of writing it is understood that St Mary’s will be closed during February for further renovations.

Fortunately other venues are offering a feast of music and entertainment in our immediate area:  If your taste is for something light and nostalgic, Rye Wurlitzer Academy at Rye College on Friday February 8 at 7.30 p.m. is hosting An Evening of Olde Tyme Music Hall with a modern flavour – so the publicity states! All-round fun for everyone. 

Admission £7.

Open to all, Old Hastings House has its monthly Coffee Morning with tombola and table sale on Wed Feb 6 from 10 a.m.  A warm welcome, excellent freshly-brewed coffee and the opportunity to chat in the convivial atmosphere of the conservatory.  

The White Rock Theatre is the venue for the eagerly-awaited Hastings Musical Festival from early March attacting participants for the competitive classes for all ages from the youngest to adults. The scope of the classes increases year by year and assuredly the Festival Director Molly Townson,  with President Petula Clark  Vice-President Sarah Kowitz and the team will include something new and exciting.

The all-important finals of the Hastings Piano Concerto Competition take place at the end of the second week.  The choice of subject is purposely wide so that any student specialising in music of a certain era may select accordingly. Works by classical composers intermingle with contemporary concerti.  The Piano Concerto Competition is held in such high regard in musical circles that previous winners have since been heard through the USA, Europe and the Far East.

Anyone therefore who comes to the concerto competition finale can be assured that he or she is hearing young performers whom one day will be gracing concert platforms worldwide. MW

Alan was very involved in the early days of preserving SMIC, and built several sets there over the years. All the singers, including some special guests, are offering their services in Alan’s memory, as he was a great opera lover and a passionate supporter of Hastings’ own opera company Opera South East.

St Mary in the Castle, 3 pm, Sunday January 20th.
Tickets £10.00/£8.00 (concs.) Under 18s free.
Tickets available on the door or from Hastings Information Centre –
01424 451111 or Imagen Gallery, 20 Claremont, Hastings

John D Robinson’s 7th book

Is now available and can be ordered online through Amazon or through any of the High street book stores.

 I Draw From You

(With Love for my wife, Carmelina)

I draw from you the infinity

 Of cremated roses

& the reign of marvelous lakes

That spiral across

The ridges of a green leaf

I draw from you a voice

Of such elegance that

The holiest of prayers

Become shy of exposure

I draw from you the

Simplistic wisdom of a

Thousand fairy-tales & the

Exuberant joy of a thousand

Simultaneous smiles of friendship

I draw from you a flowering of

Childhood and a sound

So subtle that only secrets can hear

I draw from you the soft-winged

Erosion of evil & the

Tender flames that lick the wounds of all

Who have suffered

I draw from you the message of comfort

&the hushed dressage of

Sleep that moves like a

Soft blue through rooms of loneliness

I draw from you the strength

to recognize each moment is perfection & to know that the earth revolves safely in your hands

I draw from you Life itself, Beginning to end,

Love itself

That’s what I draw from you.

When

Remember as we could

The cool touch of dew

Saturated apples

Dangling like green

Moons before us,

Swaying gently as

Chinese lanterns hanging

From a small vessel

Moving slowly up stream.

The Choir’s progamme for 2012-13 under their new Brazilian conductor, Marcio da Silva is as follows

Saturday 17 November   Haydn: The Creation   Christ Church, St Leonards

Saturday 15 December   Christmas Carol Concert

Saturday 6 April                Spring Concert

Saturday 22 June              Summer Concert

full details to follow and from www.hastingsphilchoir.org.uk

01424 431442 / 552119  publicity@hastingsphilchoir.org.uk

1066 Choir & Organ meet at the Electric Palace Cinema in Hastings this coming Monday 17 September at 7.30pm for a wide ranging collection of organ films.

The music of J S Bach will obviously feature but so will early baroque instruments with music by Frescobaldi, Couperin and Daquin. At the other end of the scale will be part of Jean Guillou’s epic La Revolte des Orgues for nine organs, recorded in St Eustache, Paris.

Introduced by Dr Brian Hick, new members are welcome and more details are available through the Lark email lark1066@aol.com

Wednesday 24 October 2012, Holy Trinity Church, Hastings 1.10pm

Peter Barker and Paul Guinery

Poulenc: Babar the Elephant

Walton: Excerpts from Facade

Free – retiring collection

Sandra@lambourne7.fsnet.co.uk 01424 443316

On 24th and 25th of August, beautiful St Mary’s in the Castle on Hastings seafront will be host to the very first International Composers Festival. Conceived as a celebration of accessible and soulful classical music, the festival will feature a varied programme of concerts and talks. This unique event aims to bring together local and international composers and musicians to offer the public a fresh experience of contemporary classical music .

The festival will launch on Friday 24th August with an evening concert by the London Gala. Orchestra directed by Stephen Ellery and performing new works by Nigel Hess, Simon Proctor, Patrick Hawes, Nobuya Monta, Kevin Riley and Polo Piatti.

The 25th August features talks, discussions, networking opportunities and open rehearsals. A highlight will be the keynote speech “on Being a Composer” by the festival’s patron, renowned British composer Nigel Hess followed by a Question and Answer session.

Visitors will get a unique insight into the craft of creating classical music and have the opportunity to observe and question composers and musicians at work. The festival’s creator and artistic director, Anglo-Argentine composer Polo Piatti, now resident in Hastings, explains: “We are aiming to make contemporary classical music fully accessible by giving the public access to the creative process and by showcasing music that speaks to emotion, beauty and soul as opposed to the mainstream trend in classical music which has been to intellectualise it. We are especially pleased to have such a wonderful mix of well known and upcoming artists and that we are able to give a platform local and international talent here in Hastings. With the fantastic venue of St Mary’s in the Castle, we think this will be a truly special event.” The festival is aimed at ardent classical music lovers as well as those who may have shied away from it in the past. By providing a chance to experience it in an open and interactive context, the organisers especially hope to encourage young people to discover what contemporary classical music has to offer.

On Saturday, the festival will close with an evening concert with a performance by Hastings Philharmonic Choir as well as selected guest musicians and singers conducted by Stephen Ellery. A farewell party to celebrate what promises to be an exciting new part of the Hastings and south coast cultural scene will follow.

Tickets and more information about the festival and participants are available now via the website: www.composersfestival.com. There are day passes or a full festival pass, concessions for seniors and students and children under the age of 12 go free.

About International Composers Festival

Contact

Diana Wallis, Festival Director c/o Grosvenor Artist Management 98 High Street, Hastings, East Sussex TN34 3ES

Email: diana@composersfestival.com Tel: 07939 111 606 Polo Piatti, Artistic Director

polo@composersfestival.com Tel: 07725 163 929 www.composersfestival.com

You can now email news items or comments direct to us at

lark1066@aol.com

Stephen Page will give the second of his short series of afternoon concerts on the historic Snetzler chamber organ at Hastings Unitarian Meeting Place, South Terrace on Saturday 11th August at 2.30pm.

The concert will showcase a range of music in a variety of styles with works by John Stanley, JS Bach, Sweelinck and more recent composers. It will also feature a set of variations on Rule Britannia.

Details from spage999@btinternet.com

Next concert Saturday 13 October