Provided that there is no adverse change in the Covid-19 situation we are now returning to the planned Autumn concert series, starting with Angela Brownridge on solo piano. Seating will be limited so please book early.
About Angela Brownridge:
British pianist Angela Brownridge gave her first public performance aged six and at seven had several of her compositions for piano published. She gave her first concerto performance aged ten and at the same age won the Lorna Tetley Prize for pianists which led to her first broadcast. She appeared in the Wigmore Hall aged twelve. and throughout her teens was the soloist in concerto performances in many parts of the UK and on tour in Germany and Norway. She won a piano scholarship to Edinburgh University and a further scholarship for a two-year period of study with Guido Agosti in Rome. She continued her studies with Mario Curcio in London and gained first prize in the Arts Council International competition for pianists. She has gone on to appear with major orchestras and in major venues and festivals world-wide, and has recorded twenty-five CDs. of both of solo works and concertos.
Angela wrote to us when we were confirming this concert,
“I spent lockdown learning Beethoven’s sonata Op. 101 & the very challenging Barber sonata which was one of my first recordings, along with some pieces of Liszt which I had never tackled before. The change was amazing! Suddenly I was faced with no public appearances for months if not longer & the degree of relaxation this brought was extremely pleasant & I knew that nearly all concert performers were in the same boat. I practiced happily every day starting early in the morning, unable to produce virtual recitals on Zoom since my piano studio is too small. So this is my first journey out of London to play for you in strange circumstances but ones which I welcome because I want to play live & you want to hear live music. So we can make it a celebration of a new start & one which with time will get better. There have been a lot of casualties along the way with agencies going out of business, orchestras unable to play together, venues losing money & possibly not being able to put on concerts in the future. There is a way forward, however, which in my case will entail filmed live recitals in the Steiner Hall London with professional cameramen & sound engineers & these will go onto YouTube, Facebook, & anywhere which will allow them to be played. These will remain for some time, & they will be like [in Tincleton] in front of a small audience. This is the work of my new agent since Steiner Hall has been refurbished & he used to run a series of concerts there which he is starting again. There is something to look forward to. Music has sustained me throughout this catastrophic period as it always does whatever adversities appear. “
Programme
Ravel Sonatine: Modéré. Movement de Minuet. Animé.
Liszt Sposalizio. Petrarch Sonnet 104.
Liszt Liebestraum no. 3 in A flat
Interval
Chopin Fantasy in F minor Op. 49. Waltzes in C sharp minor & D flat major.
Scriabin Six studies from Op. 8. Nos. 1, 2, 3, 7, 8, 11, & 12.
Special terms : due to Covid-19 will apply, approximately as follows, though we reserve the right to update them:
– Pre booking and prepayment only. All guests must give contact etc details.
– Seating will be allocated by us in advance and is strictly limited due to social distancing. We will flex exact mix depending on demand and constraints, but we prefer 2s, 3s, and 4s to get maximum use of space available. Limited singleton (1s) seats. Ask quickly if you have a larger party from the same household. Basically we have room for 7-8 ‘clumps’ of guests provided that everyone in that clump is permitted to ‘bubble’ with each other.
– We will give refunds if we need to cancel the concert for whatever reason. We will not refund if you need to cancel as that would disadvantage the musician(s), unless we can resell your seat.
– You must respect our social distancing requirements, which will in turn comply with Government requirements. For the time being this means masks are mandatory for guests when indoors, except when eating or drinking.
– As usual drinks & nibbles will be served, but exactly how and where will depend on the weather.
Covid-19 precautions : We were possibly the first venue in Dorset to conduct indoor musical performances per the new Covid-19 guidelines. We tested our systems with the impromptu jazz concerts in August, and they seemed to work. Other venues are welcome to copy the approach we have used if it helps them.
We have carried out our Covid-19 risk assessment as a responsible venue, and because of this we need to bring some things to your attention in advance.
1. It is your responsibility to ensure that everyone in your group is in one household or meets the UK Gov guidelines for ‘bubbling’ with each other.
(I am sure you all do, but we just need to say this.)
2. Our doors will open at 19:30. Please do not enter earlier than this, and please all be seated by 20:00 when the performance starts.
3. Please park responsibly on the road and in the driveway, leaving room for emergency vehicles and regular traffic.
4. Please come in the main front door, not via the kitchen door.
5. Please respect social distancing when entering, i.e. maintain minimum 2-metres spacing between groups at all times.
6. Please ensure that by the time you reach the front door you are wearing your mask. Please keep masks on throughout the performance except when sipping wine & nibbles.
7. Please sanitise your hands on entry, using the hand sanitiser available (or use your own).
8. Seating is allocated to each group, and each group is spaced 2-metres to other groups. So please stay in your allocated group.
(For your info we have limited ourselves to a maximum of 23 guests seated in 8 groups: a mixture of 4s, 3s, 2s, and 1s).
9. If you have not already given us this info, then please write your name, address, telephone number, and email on a piece of paper along with the name of everybody in your group – and give this to Joan. She will also accost politely anybody who has yet to do this.
(Thank you for paying in advance by bank transfer)
10. If the weather is good then wine & nibbles will be served outside, if the weather is bad then we will serve you seated in your groups.
11. Please try to bring the minimum of coats/hats/handbags/whatever. There will be nowhere to hang them – they go on your lap or they stay in your car !
12. The downstairs toilet is our biggest ‘pinch-point’. So firstly please make sure you have emptied yourself before coming ? .
(The upstairs toilet is reserved for musicians and hosts).
13. If you need to use our downstairs toilet you are of course welcome but please observe the one-way system. Go in via the lounge where you should wait until it is your turn. In the toilet you will find hand sanitiser, paper towels, and a cleaning spray. After you have finished and washed your hands – then please give any surfaces you touch a quick wipedown with the cleaning spray and a paper towel and put the paper towel in the bin provided. Then exit via the kitchen into the main hallway, letting the next person know that the toilet is free.
14. After the performance you can exit either via the main front door, or via the schoolroom side door which will also be open.
15. If in subsequent days you fall ill with Covid-19 you must contact us as soon as this is confirmed, and we will of course support the authorities in alerting everybody who has potentially been affected.
Phew.
We really are looking forwards to seeing you all, and to listening to a good evening of music.