The programme reflected the depth and diversity of our society’s talent:

• Cari and Thorben performed 5 short South American pieces arranged by Yvon Rivoall, and Carolan’s Concert by Turlough Carolan (Arr. Gerald Garcia).
• Tim and Tony L gave a lively set: Scherzo Sobre la Sonrise de un Niño (Arr. Barbosa/Rojas), Fantasia for 2 Lutes (Thomas Robinson), and Tango No.2/Suite España (Albeniz).
• Katherine D played Canarios by Gaspar Sanz
• Paul H brought us Ernest Shand’s Il Pensieroso.
• Andy W closed the first half with Philippe Drogoz’s Prélude à la Mise à Mort – a hugely entertaining and theatrical percussion piece that, remarkably, calls for the use of 12 knitting needles!
• Lewis T played Antonio Lauro’s El Niño
• Vince and Tony M delivered Milan Tesar’s Suita Karrusel.
• Steve W presented Recitativo from Mompou’s Suite Compostelana.
• Tony E played his own evocative composition, Bu Farw Cathod.
• The BCGS Ensemble, under the direction of Francisco, delighted the audience with Valenciana (Arr. Helen James) and Ostinato from St Paul’s Suite by Gustav Holst (arr. Alan Rinehart).

Here are some photos from the night:

Here’s the programme and quiz from the night:

Each performance brought its own character, from Renaissance lute duets to contemporary compositions, from vibrant ensemble playing to intimate solo pieces. The range of styles – classical, romantic, folk-inspired, and modern – showcased just how much richness there is within the guitar repertoire.

A special thank you goes to Francisco for directing the ensemble with such energy and skill, and to all our members who contributed their music to the evening. The concert was not only a celebration of classical guitar but also of community – proof again of how much joy shared music-making can bring.

We wish everyone a wonderful summer, and we look forward to seeing you all again at our autumn meetings and events.

NOTE: Our next meeting will be September.

Anthony Mulholland
Meditation from Thais – J Massenet (arr. B Mermikides)

Steve Moran
Suite Antigua – B. Cataluyud

Robert Gough
The Frog Galliard – John Dowland

WAGO
Hiking Boot Blues – Ivan Andrews

Francisco Correa
Pasillo Uno – Daniel Saboya

Tony Lewis and Tim Rigley
Après Un Reve – G. Fauré (arr. Steve Erquiaga)
Bajo La Palmera – Isaac Albeniz
Shenandoah – Trad. (arr. Duo Canella Dubes)

INTERVAL

Kurt Tipler
The Fair-Haired Boy – Trad. (arr. David Russell)
Three Little Drummers – Trad. (arr. David Russell)

The Bonnie Banks of Loch Lomond – Murray Neil (arr. David Russell)

Alan Montague
Manzanares del Real – Torroba

Paul Bradshaw
Julia Florida – A. Barrios Mangore

Thorben Louw
Prelude and Gavotte en Rondeau from the Lute Suite in E Major BWV 1006a – J.S. Bach

BCGS Ensemble
The Earl of Essex, His Galliard – J. Dowland (arr. H. James)
Adagio from Folguedo – Celso Machado
Cancion – Manuel de Falla (arr. Julian Masters)

It was wonderful to be able to stage this year’s Winter Concert after missing the 2020 edition due to the Covid restrictions, and even more so to do so in a room packed with friends, family and brand new acquaintances to share the evening and a full programme of great music.

What a programme: modern, ancient, ensemble, solo and everything in between. Tim, ever fearless, began the concert with the beautiful seasonal bell-like harmonics of Laura Snowden’s modern arrangement of Silent Night, with Cari adding a Russian folk piece with a lovely wintry tremolo and Peter and Vince completing the Christmas picture with a German carol (the only one originally composed for guitar) and the song What Child Is This, set to the melody of the very English Greensleeves. A delightful seasonal set and delightfully played.

Ciaran moved the evening onto a non-exclusively Christmas footing with a jaunty Alemain in Renaissance tuning (3rd string in F#) before Luke, now in his 2nd year at the Ryal Welsh College of Music and Dance, took the stage to give us the moody, powerful Mertz and then the four intriguing, polytonal, high-performance Brouwer pieces with his duet partner Eòsaph.

Paul’s rendition of the evocative Albéniz dance brought us back to the beauty of the traditional Spanish guitar that the great pianist himself sought to conjure up. Our first trio of the evening, Rob Barry and Vince performed on three of a set of four new guitars commissioned by Vince from luthier Rik Middleton: a large bass, tuned an octave below standard; a requinto, tuned a 4th above, and a small quint, tuned a fifth above. The ensemble worked very well in reflecting the depth and warmth of a string quartet in a specially commissioned arrangement of the Bach Partita by Steve Gordon. Toby brought the first half to a close with another exotic Spanish piece with the flavour of the Canarios and the charming modern arrangement by Scott Tenant of the lovely Scottish air.

Another traditional air, this time Irish, began the second half, and Tony and Tim followed it with more traditional music, the melancholy Argentine milonga dance by Jorge Cardozo and the refreshingly modern arrangement of Mozart. The WAGO guitar orchestra is the new recent project of Vince Smith. The bass, requinto and quint again worked to excellent effect providing the breadth of strings, flutes and choral voicings of the Grieg suite not available to quartets or larger guitar-only groups.

And so to the BCGS Ensemble under Francisco Correa. The short Tango got us off to a spirited start. This was followed by Coste’s measured Serenade, requiring a lot of coordination and sensitivity to render the rich, graceful textures. The final piece by the Ensemble, and of the evening, was the Concertino, featuring soloist Thorben Louw. It opens with a lilting Allegretto, the theme slightly medieval-sounding among the very modern orchestration. The Minuetto is a delightful, light air and the final Allegro brings the piece to a rousing finale. For the ensemble, each member practises the part they prefer to play and Francisco’s skilled hand guides the whole group.

A big thank you and congratulations to the players and the audience for making it a very special musical occasion. It is worth remembering that music is, in principle, an experience shared in person. It was an uplifting return to sharing music for the BCGS and, we hope, an enjoyable evening of music for the audience.

The BCGS was as always delighted to welcome a large audience of friends and family for our annual winter concert, to demonstrate our progress over the year, and to put ourselves to the test on the concert stage.

As an Ensemble we need not worry of course, having been patiently and expertly nurtured over the twelve months by Helen James, surely the most exacting-but-encouraging director we could wish for. Sadly, Helen was unable to be present this evening, as family circumstances called her away. Our very best wishes to her. Vince Smith stood in to conduct the ensemble sections of the programme.

The Ensemble opened with two of Helen’s wonderful arrangements, beginning, as a way into the programme for both players and audience, with the gentle and beautiful Duo, followed by Mário Álvares da Conceição’s upbeat waltz, Adelina.

Martin bravely went first as a soloist, playing an anonymous study and then, even more bravely, an evocative composition of his own presenting the theme and development of a broader work that we hope to hear at a regular meeting soon. Barry and Lynette followed with an intriguing piece by the relatively little-known Czech composer Milan Tesař, played with coordination and control. The style is stately and classical, and the players’ experience and skill made for a lovely rendering. Next on stage was Ciarán, with, for the second year running, an impressive composition of his own, this time a series of technically demanding and colourful variations on a well-known Irish air. Ciarán showed a sensitive use and thorough knowledge of the particular resources of the guitar.

Tony and Tim ended the first half (also for the second year in a row!) with a varied and skillfully played set of modern pieces: the melodic Canción from the duet Suite Melancólica by Venezuelan guitarist-composer Montes, which caused great admiration when it was published in the early 90s; Argentine Máximo Pujol’s lilting tango Palermo from the Suite Buenos Aires and, staying with descriptions of the neighbourhoods of great cities, the famous jazz theme Left Bank, originally a library piece, taken up by the BBC for the art programmes Vision On, Take Hart and SMart.

Cari opened the second part with another taste of South America, Mexicana by the renowned composer and teacher Peter Nuttall, played on a beautiful instrument made by our own Graham Harvey. She followed this with another very descriptive piece, the Scots-inspired Firth of Forth, and gave both pieces all the romance, and local flavor needed.

Turina’s Fandanguillo is a challenging piece by any measure, and Paul performed it next with assurance and style, negotiating well the modern harmonic approach and very melodic and unmistakably Spanish character. A varied set of pieces from Rob, Barry and Vince concluded the solos and small groups section of the programme. Boccherini’s jaunty Minuet was well known to all, and was delivered with the requisite precision; Isaac Albéniz’s two piano works Tango and Capricho Catalán are less well known even to guitarists, but the group gave an engaging performance, finishing off with a dramatic and entrancing Libertango.

The BCGS Ensemble regrouped to take up the final set of music for the evening. The demands in terms of precision and time-keeping in the Vivaldi are testament to the level of coordination that Helen has achieved with the group in order for us to take on the challenge. Brejeiro is a favourite of ours and Helen’s, and could not go un-included here. The charming Farewell to Kentraugh made a fitting end to the evening. We are cautiously optimistic that Helen would have approved of our efforts, and thank her wholeheartedly for her work with us.

As usual there were drinks and mince pies, and plenty to talk about while both were enjoyed. A great musical evening and a great year of classical guitar music. Well done and thanks to those who organized, played and listened. A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to all!

Nick Regan, December 2019

The BCGS was delighted this evening to welcome an appreciative and good-sized audience of friends and family and to treat them to our annual winter concert, showcasing the work throughout the year of the Ensemble and smaller playing groups and individual members; regaling them with music that is both serious and enjoyable, and shedding some light for their nearest and dearest on what it is that they actually do on the second Thursday of every month.

Helen James and the Ensemble opened the evening with two folk tunes in her arrangements, with rich chords, lovely light and shade and the melodies singing over the four-part accompaniments.

Charlotte, Rob and Lynette’s Vivaldi and Hartog were a clever pairing, with the bluesy Hartog piece following the formal baroque variations. Both were played with coordination and style.

Next came Ciarán, with his own arrangement of the Pogues’ seasonal favourite Fairy tale of New York. His adaptation allows Ciarán no easy ride as player, drawing on a wide range of techniques from tremolo to melody in thirds and in the bass strings. A piece we hope to hear again at regular meetings.

Clive Garrett bade farewell tonight to the BCGS with Mason Williams’ 1968 hit Classical Gas, one of the classical guitar’s very few pop hits, in an energetic rendering that Clive clearly enjoyed as much as we did. We will miss Clive’s good humour and skilful playing, and wish him the very best for his future involvement with the Worcester CGS – our loss; their gain.

Tony and Tim rounded off the first half by adding even more variety, with sensitively executed and beautiful renaissance pieces by Dowland and Bach, and the cool jazz feel of Pujol’s 2005 piece Palermo, which they and many of us first heard and were charmed by last year in the hands of visiting artists the Griffin-Turner Duo.

Although Francisco Tárrega never played his Recuerdos de la Alhambra in concert, he almost always included Capricho Árabe in his programmes; he considered it among his most accomplished pieces. Tonight Paul played Tárrega’s original arrangement of a piece that has turned the head of many a guitarist to the classical genre over the decades.

As Tony Lewis, BCGS Chairman and MC pointed out, he has never singled out a performance for special praise at these concerts. However, on this occasion, Francesco’s Chaconne was rightly identified as the stand-out moment of the night. A classical guitar scholar now working as an engineer, Francesco showed us an impressive feat of technique, memory and sensitive musicianship. He received loud, warm applause.

In counter-balance, Rob returned to the stage with Barry and Vince to play a ‘light’ trio from among the little-known composer von Call’s oeuvre of some 150 didactic works. The performance was nuanced, and the players communicated well throughout to produce a very pleasant suite of salon-style music.

To bring the programme to its culmination, the BCGS Ensemble took the stage again. It is hard to overstate the progress that the group has made over the time the Helen has been arranging music for us and directing us. The playing is now careful and the parts tight, and the players’ reading of her conducting is responsive, producing lyrical, skilful and very enjoyable music that all of us can be proud of. Helen’s talent as an arranger shone again here, in the four Spanish folk tunes and Brazilian Nazareth’s Brejeiro.

Equally efficient, as always, was concerts secretary David Evans in the provision of wine and mince pies afterwards, and there were plenty of smiles and good conversation until late. A great end to a great evening and a great year of classical guitar music. Well done and thanks to all, and best wishes for a happy 2019.

Nick Regan, December 2018

Programme

      Mince pies and wine!