Over 140 young musicians from local Prep Schools, accompanied by their teachers, visited the College to take part in a day-long workshop, which culminated in a concert where they played together as a string orchestra.
After rehearsals in the morning, and lunch, the children were treated to a concert given by Epsom College pupils and following afternoon tea for parents and guests in Main Hall, the youngsters gave their own performance in Big School. For many, this was the first time they had played in public in such a large orchestra.
Schools participating in this year’s Strings Day were Aberdour, Banstead Prep, Feltonfleet, Hampton Prep, Holy Cross, Homefield, Micklefield, Newton Prep, Oakhyrst Grange, Rowan Prep, St Andrew’s Woking, Willington
The day was run by Sebastian Johns, with Nevada Summerley on piano and Visiting Music Teachers.
The repertoire was selected from:
- Spring from The Four Seasons – Vivaldi
- William Tell Overture – Rossini
- Habanera from Carmen – Bizet
- Finlandia – Sibelius
- New York, New York – Kander
Banstead Prep said: “We took 11 of our young musicians to take part in the rehearsals and final performance and every one without exception said how much they had enjoyed the day. The satisfaction of performing in an ensemble is undeniable but for children as young as Year 3 to be able to participate with such a large group of similar minded peers is a golden opportunity.
“There was a point during the afternoon when one side of the room was playing Vivaldi at a different speed to the other side, and there was possibly a time when many children in the room had not heard of the word dynamics but both these things were long forgotten by the end of the day. The concert, led by their enthusiastic conductor, was quite astounding. A cultural and social experience to be remembered by all and a musical education not to be forgotten.”
