Student musical compositions receive world class treatment
Posted on Friday 3 April 2009
Clive Williamson to play at Concert in College on Saturday 25 April
International Pianist to premiere college student compositions
Students of the Sixth Form College, Farnborough are to have their compositions premiered by international concert pianist Clive Williamson at a recital in the Prospect Theatre on Saturday 25 April.
Described by the Daily Telegraph as possessing “...astonishing virtuosity”, Williamson has worked with world class orchestras and is a frequent contributor to the BBC proms. He has had work written for him by some of the foremost names in British music and has received much critical acclaim for his performances of “One Minute Wonders”, solo pieces written by major figures and student composers at venues across the UK.
This year, Williamson will give Farnborough Music Society’s celebrity recital and he was keen to extend the One Minute Wonder project to the College’s A-level music students. Following an initial launch in which students were given the same brief as the professional composers, Clive returned to the College to work alongside students in developing their pieces. Calling upon his vast experience of working with some of the world’s greatest living composers, Clive challenged the students to articulate their intentions clearly and was uncompromising in his demand for accuracy in their notated scores. Following the workshop, students revised their work in light of Clive’s insights.
Second Year A-level composer Tom Dent, 17, of Fleet, said, “The workshop was a really nerve-wracking experience but it made me think hard about my own compositional style and how a performer might react to my musical score. It has been a fantastic project and I’m now revising some of my A level composition in light of the experience.”
College Director of Music, Paul Bambrough said, “I have been extremely impressed by the way in which the students have embarked upon this project and yet more impressed by their final pieces which are, in many cases, outstanding. To have worked alongside an artist of Clive Williamson’s calibre has been an inspiration for students and staff alike. I am very proud of all involved.”
Williamson will premiere the student works, alongside other previously published “Wonders”, in the first half of his recital at the College’s Prospect Theatre on Saturday 25 April at 7.30pm. The second half will include a rare performance of Ives’ First Piano Sonata, notable for the incredible demands it places upon the performer.
Some tickets are still available for this unique event from The Sixth Form College (01252 688219) priced at £10.
