A Musical Four Days at RGS Worcester

RGS Musicians were out in force last weekend and earlier this week for several musical events.

Last weekend, the musical classes of the Worcester Competitive Arts Festival took place both at RGS Worcester and at the Marrs Bar Club in Worcester. Four RGS ensembles won their classes last weekend:

• The Upper Voices Vocal Ensemble won the Under 19 Choir Category
• Theo Mason, Ivan Innocent and Lucas Reid’s Jazz Trio won the Under 16 Jazz Ensemble Category
• Our amazing Years Eight and Nine String Quartet won the Under 16 String Ensemble Category
• Our Year Eleven and Lower Sixth ‘Rock Band’. ‘Akt-II’ won the Originals Open Band Class at the Marrs Bar, beating other local bands.

There were also successes and high placings for several RGS soloists in the Festival, and we congratulate all who took part, as well as the Choir from RGS The Grange and the Hand Chime group from RGS Springfield who won their classes.

Two concerts followed in the early part of this week. On Monday evening in Perrins Hall, RGS pupils, staff, parents, friends, and members of the local community gathered for an exceptional Professional Chamber Concert given by the Dante String Quartet. The Dante, renowned for their imaginative programming and passionate playing, opened the concert with Beethoven’s Quartet in F Op.135 and closed with Worcester born Elgar’s intense String Quartet in E minor.

The middle of the concert saw the Dante String Quartet joined by tenor Brian Thorsett who sang four songs by Ivor Gurney and a song cycle by Ian Venables, a local composer and former teacher at RGS who attended the concert to hear his work performed once again. The standard of music was second-to-none and the concert experience for the generous audience was enhanced by them sitting so close to the musicians, providing intimate and exciting musical communication.

The next day, the RGS Wind Band visited RGS The Grange to perform in a Spring Concert. The Wind Band, Flute Group, String Group and Chamber Choir from The Grange began the concert before the RGS Worcester Wind Band performed three pieces of their own. The concert ended with a Joint Band, including ten pupils from The Grange, playing ‘The Bare Necessities’.

This annual event was a great chance for the Senior School musicians to work with younger pupils, who in turn we hope were inspired by hearing and seeing what they can aspire to in the future. It was a superb musical four days at RGS!

Mr Jonathan Soman, Director of Music