The Cambridge Clarinet Ensemble Day (Intermediate to Advanced)
With James Rae
10th April 2011 | 10.00-6.30 | Sawston Village College
A complementary course to our Clarinet & Saxophone Day, this event gave clarinetists of intermediate to advanced ability a further opportunity to sharpen their skills with James Rae. With smaller groups there was strict attention to technique and the repertoire will be that little bit more challenging!
Course Review by Stephanie Reeve
ACE (the Association of Cultural Exchange) Cultural Tours has been offering arts courses and lecture holidays since 1958 and more recently the ACE Foundation has set up a series of one day music courses. Clarinet and saxophonist Trevor Barlow is their music course director and has worked tirelessly over the past two years organising and promoting various workshop and single day courses. While excellent venues around Cambridge are currently being used, the ACE Foundation has purchased Bury Farm, a site near Stapleford on the south of the city, and will be running courses there at some point in the future.
A review of last year's single reed day with James Rae was included in the Summer 2010 Clarinet & Saxophone and this event was repeated this February followed by an advanced clarinet ensemble day in April.
The Single Reed Day was again led by James Rae and after the huge success of last year’s event there wasn’t a great deal that could have been changed to improve it. Just under 100 clarinet and saxophone players along with 8 local tutors and course director Trevor Barlow made their way to Sawston Village College on Sunday 13 February. The participants were welcomed with a short recital to introduce Jim and fellow tutors and set the tone for the day. The large ensemble featured arrangements by Jim and Jon Halton. Clarinets and saxophones were again divided into junior and senior ensembles and worked with tutors on shorter repertoire. The balance of playing and listening was again well considered. Jim gave a demonstration to clarinets in the morning and saxophones in the afternoon about sight-reading and gave some handy hints on looking ahead and keeping going. He demonstrated examples from his Sight and Sound book which has duets for teacher and pupil sight-reading practise. The event was supported by Wood Wind & Reed who had instruments, music and accessories for sale. Thomas Dryers-Beers gave a talk to both instrument groups on mouthpiece and reed set up. Several of my own pupils were inspired to try different reeds and mouthpieces. and Simply Reeds quartet performed a short recital during the lunch break. Once again there were videos and displays to view.
The single reed days are popular and the Foundation now aims to run at least 6 similar days per year. Some courses attract fewer numbers but to maximise venue space and minimise costs two events can be run together. On 10 April while 44 bassoonists were being put through their paces the rest of Sawston Village College was home to just over 30 advanced clarinettists for a Clarinet Ensemble Day again led by Jim Rae. This was designed for players of grade 5 and above to work on clarinet choir repertoire and the main sessions were spent working on Sammy Nestico’s Study in Contrasts, Paul Harvey’s El Torneo, Jim’s own Southern Sketches and It Had To Be You arranged by Jon Halton. Breaks from playing were filled with a masterclass featuring three players and Thomas Dryers-Beers gave an excellent talk on applying harmonic knowledge to your clarinet playing which explained how understanding overtones on all sizes of clarinet can help with producing the right pitch. Some younger members of the audience found this a little advanced as it was designed to follow on from the previous course’s demonstration but if it begins to make them aware of the acoustics of their instrument they can explore this themselves. Thomas summed up with the suggestion that with time and patience all players should be able to manage all members of the clarinet family and this was inspiring for pupils and teachers alike. The final concert was shared with the bassoons who produced a wonderful sound. The clarinets performed one or two movement from each of the pieces rehearsed earlier in the day. This day had a more sophisticated feel to it and was enjoyed by those who attended. As well as Eb and Bb soprano clarinets the ensemble featured four alto clarinets, six basses and two contrabasses. It was certainly an impressive line up.
The next two courses of interest to single reed players will be a Jazz day with Alan Barnes on 17 July and an Orchestral Day with Russell Keable for grade 6 and above players on 9 October. There will be more clarinet and saxophone days next year. ACE are also offering courses in creative writing with Joe Wroe and playwriting with Fraser Grace at the Cambridge Central Library.
James Rae Biography
James Rae is one of Europe’s most prolific composers of educational wind music, having at present over 200 publications to his credit.
As a clarinetist and saxophonist, James Rae has worked professionally in nearly every possible musical environment from West End musicals to recording sessions with Sir Simon Rattle.
Course
• Meet and play with top performer, teacher and composer, James Rae.
• Play in a full clarinet choir.
• Masterclass/demonstration concert.
• Wood, Wind & Reed clinic.
• Wood, Wind & Reed trade stand, including instruments, sheet music and accessories.
• Creative & dynamic environment.
• Be part of an advanced level clarinet choir.
• Enjoy jazz arrangements by Jon Halton.
• Play Southern Sketches by James Rae, works by Gordon Jacob, Sammy Nestico and Paul Harvey.
• Focus on advanced clarinet technique.
• In consultation with James Rae, we will select some players for the masterclass. We will email those selected before the event so you have time to prepare. An accompanist will be provided.
• End of day concert for friends and family at 4.30pm.
Timetable
09.30 Registration
10.00 Ensemble
11.00 Refreshments
11.30 Demonstration/masterclass
12.15 Ensemble
13.30 Lunch
14.15 Clinic
15.00 Ensemble
16.00 Refreshments
16.30 Concert
Event Details
Who
• Any clarinetist of grade 5 or above is invited. We welcome all players from school age to retirement.
• Free entry for teachers with 3 or more students in attendance.
• Please bring more unusual range instruments if possible.
Cost
£45.00 per person
Venue
Sawston Village College, New Road, Sawston, CB22 3BP. Provides ample free parking and excellent rehearsal and performance spaces within their new performing arts centre.
Time & Date
10.00-5.30 | Concert 4.30 | Sunday 10th April 2011
Refreshments
Please bring a packed lunch. Light refreshments will be provided.
Transport
Number 7 or 32 bus from main Cambridge bus station.
There is a cycle route from Cambridge to Sawston too!
Tutors
Course Director: Trevor Barlow | Senior Tutor: James Rae | Accompanist: Maurice Hodges | Music Arrangement: James Rae & Jon Halton
Bookings
Bookings can be made online from the top of this page.
OR by downloading the following PDF form and sending to the following address with a cheque made payable to the The ACE Foundation.
"The Cambridge Clarinet Ensemble Day Booking Form.pdf" (File Size: 99kb)ACE Foundation
Babraham
Cambridge
CB22 3AP
You may also book by phone on: 01223 499 707
The closing date for applications is Friday 1st April 2011.
Regrettably no refunds can be made.
A 2% surcharge applies to amount paid by credit card. To avoid this charge please pay by cheque or debit card.
If you are attending this course and have friends and family wishing to attend the post-course concert please try and bring a maximum of two people. Thank you.