Archive for October, 2010
The Holly and the Ivy
Looking back to pre-Christian traditions, both Holly and Ivy held significance for Yultetide celebrations. Holly was regarded as masculine - reputed to bestow strength when taken into homes during the winter as a strong and protective plant. Ivy represented growth and development and was believed to bring good fortune - it was associated with a [...]
Trafalgar Day - Music for a military dinner
Last night we returned once again to play for a military dinner at a barracks in Bedfordshire. This time, the dinner was to commemorate Trafalgar Day and we had a list of specially requested pieces that were to be performed at the event. As with all military functions, we were required to play the National [...]
While Shepherds Watched Their Flocks By Night
The fourth carol on our new disc ‘I Saw Three Ships’ is another enduring favourite - ‘While Shepherds Watched’. This carol was originally called ‘Winchester Old’ and appears in Este’s Psalter of 1592 but the words weren’t added until Irish poet Nahum Tate (who was poet laureate) wrote them - first making an appearance in [...]
Ding Dong Merrily on High….
When English composer George Radcliffe Woodward wrote the words to a 16th century French secular dance, one of the most enduring and well loved Christmas carols was written - ‘Ding Dong Merrily on High’ - a carol which reflected Woodward’s interest in the ancient English tradition of Church Bell Ringing.
This carol is the third on [...]
We Three Kings of Orient Are….
The second carol on our disc is ‘We Three Kings of Orient Are’ - a Christmas carol which first appeared in a book called ‘Carols, Hymns and Songs’ of 1863 - written by Reverend John Henry Hopkins Jr. It seems likely that this carol was actually written earlier in 1857 and it has endured in [...]
I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing In
The idea behind recording and releasing our new disc of Christmas carols for String Quartet first occurred to us last November as we were preparing music for a forthcoming Christmas concert at our local Church in Cheddington. What I didn’t want to do was to select well known carols and simply harmonise them as I [...]
Wedding at Wasing Park, Berkshire.
Yesterday we played for a wedding at Wasing Park, near Aldermaston in Berkshire. Due to a shortage of space we played as a string duo before and during the ceremony, later being joined by two of our colleagues to play as a full quartet during the drinks reception.
Wasing Park has it’s own church within a [...]
Wedding at the Old Bridge Hotel, Huntingdon
Yesterday, Ali (cellist) and myself performed as a string duo for a wedding held at the Old Bridge Hotel in Huntingdon. The hotel is a distinctive, ivy clad building on the Huntingdon ring road and has a lovely ceremony room ideal for either a duo or a string quartet. We provided music as guests entered [...]
String duo for a Surprise Party
Occasionally we are booked for a ’surprise’ event where the client wishes to keep us a secret until moments before we are due to play and on Sunday we had a good example of this where we were engaged as a string duo (violin and viola) for a 50th wedding anniversary party held at Chesham [...]
The ‘Very’ Last Night of the Cheddington Proms
On Saturday evening, after playing for the wedding at Fanhams Hall, Adrian (Viola) and I came home to play for a fund raising concert in the village - in aid of the appeal to restore the Church Bells at St Giles. The evening was themed on the idea of the ‘Last Night of the Proms’ [...]
