Morpeth Music Society blog

MMS returns with a PIANO recital by Iyad Sughayer on Thursday 17th March!

Mon, 14 Mar 2022 21:04:20 GMT

Thursday 17th March 2022 at 7.30pm

St James the Great Church, Morpeth

The Society is delighted to welcome pianist Iyad Sughayer for our first concert since 2020. This concert will take place at St James the Great Church in Morpeth in order to allow the use of a larger piano for this special recital.

Iyad is pursuing a promising solo career and has also been selected by the prestitigous, and highly competitive, Young Classical Artists Trust programme.

Born in Amman in Jordan, Iyad studied at Chetham's School of Music, the Royal Northern College of Music and Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance where he won the College’s prestigious Gold Medal.

B ook your ticket here now!

'He captures the music’s essence with such a close sense of recreative identity that it feels on occasion as though he could be composing it as he goes along. An outstanding debut'

BBC Music Magazine reviewing Iyad's first CD Khachaturian: Piano Works CD (BIS Records) / March 2020

Find out more about Iyad Sughayer and watch a video of his playing here .

Find out more about Iyad's programme for our concert:

Piano Sonata in F major Hob. XVI.23i Joseph Haydn 1732-1809

i. Allegro moderato; ii. Adagio; iii. Presto

composed in 1773

Haydn was Austrian and one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He wrote 107 symphonies, 83 string quartets, 45 piano trios, 62 piano sonatas, 14 masses and 26 operas, amongst much else. He was the son of a wheelwright and a local landowner's cook. Haydn spent much of his career as a court musician for the wealthy Esterházy family at their remote estate. This isolated him from other composers and trends in music, so he was, as he put it, ‘forced to become original’. In 1790 Haydn moved to Vienna and accepted an invitation from the great German violinist, Salomon, to visit London, where he was adored.

This sonata is a witty piece that exemplifies the charm that so many love about Haydn’s work. It opens with a three-note dotted motive, which is then repeated twice, jokingly, to form the first theme. Haydn then iterates on this theme, before moving to the second theme. The second movement in F minor is elegant, yet melancholic. The darkness of a minor key for a whole movement would have been a surprise to contemporary audiences. The final movement is a comical conclusion, needed after the darkness of the second movement. The humour comes from the unexpected changes in harmony and touch, and despite the movement’s sparseness on the surface, it is not easy to play.

Six Impromptus Jean Sibelius 1865-1957

composed in 1893

Sibelius was a Finnish composer of the late Romantic and early-modern periods. He is widely recognized as his country's greatest composer, and his music is often credited with having helped Finland develop a national identity during its struggle for independence from Russia and Sweden. He considered himself an adventurous, modern composer but always composed using conventional keys and harmonies. This was appreciated in Finland but hurt his reputation on the continent. In 1892 he married Aino and they had six daughters. He tended to work in Helsinki, away from his wife and family, and indulged in heavy drinking and smoking. In 1909 he was successfully treated for throat cancer. However, ten years later he started to drink again. In his later years he lived in the Finnish countryside with his wife, finally dying of a brain haemorrhage.

No. 1 in G Minor This is short; the atmosphere is funereal, with no let-up in the sorrow.
No. 2 in G Minor The music starts with a slow introduction, then turns into a lively folk dance. A good example of how the character of a key can change, as the first two impromptus are in the same key, yet their effects are quite different.
No. 3 in A Minor Sibelius’ instructions are to play this piece as a march.
No. 4 in E Minor This is a slow piece, with an underlying minor key solemnity and melancholy.
No. 5 in B Minor This impromptu glitters and shimmers with music that sounds almost Debussian as it goes up and down the keyboard with alternating hands.
No. 6 in E Major The entire piece is to be repeated, a test of a pianist's musicianship. If the repeat is played as the first time through, this piece could become boring.

Harmonies Poétique et Religieuses: No. 7 Funerailles Franz Liszt 1811-1886

composed 1845-1852

Liszt was Hungarian and the most technically advanced and virtuosic pianist of his age. He was also an important composer, piano teacher and conductor; and a friend of many other important composers, including Smetana.

One of his most famous religiously inspired keyboard works is this set of ten pieces based on poems by Alphonse de Lamartine. Liszt wrote this in response to the 1848 Hungarian Revolution, which was brutally crushed, and it is easy to see the imagery reflected in the three themes: the first a plodding trudge on a battlefield, the second forlorn, and the last a triumphant march.

The Canadian pianist Philip Thomson said of Funerailles: ‘Dark, poignant, defiant, and tragic, just as the events were that inspired it. More powerful or heartfelt funeral music than this has not been penned.’

++++++ Interval of 20 minutes (no refreshments) ++++++

Sonata No. 17 in D minor, 'The Tempest' Ludwig van Beethoven 1770-1827

composed around 1801-1802

Born in Bonn, he lived there for 22 years. Befriending Haydn, he moved in 1792 to Vienna where he studied with Haydn. In about 1800 Beethoven’s hearing began to deteriorate, and by the last decade of his life he was almost totally deaf. Beethoven was unwell for the last few years of his life, possibly due to heavy metal poisoning from drugs used to treat him or due to adulterated alcohol; the final cause of death was liver failure.

The first movement is built on its two opening ideas: the first, four slow-paced ascending notes of a broken chord; the second, an agitated motif consisting of more than a dozen pairs of close-lying notes. Half way through, the four ascending notes return and the action then arrests when two short melodic passages appear. The middle movement has a wide-spaced opening theme. It forms a serene bridge between the sonata’s outer movements. The final movement moves in perpetual-motion, gathering intensity from its repeated opening motif and finally dissolving in tranquil, resignation.

Masquerade Suite Aram Khatchaturian 1903-1978

composed 1941

Khachaturian was born in Tbilisi, Georgia. In a complex geo-political environment, Khachaturian is regarded, with Shostakovich and Prokofiev, as one of the titans of Soviet music; and also an important Armenian composer and musical ambassador of Armenian culture. He said ‘I grew up in an atmosphere rich in folk music: popular festivities, rites, joyous and sad events, always accompanied by music.’

Masquerade was written as incidental music for a production of the play of the same name by Russian poet and playwright Mikhail Lermontov, considered the supreme poet of Russian literature alongside Pushkin. The play deals with the aristocracy of Czarist Russia, and in order to get the flavour of that period in Russian music, Khachaturian immersed himself in romances and waltzes from Lermontov’s time. The story of Masquerade is about unchecked jealousy, egos and unfolding tragedy. The title of each section well describes the mood of each section.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

An all Beethoven programme from Trio Shaham Erez Wallfisch on Thursday 19th March!

Mon, 09 Mar 2020 19:39:31 GMT

Thursday 19th March 2020 at 7.30pm

Trio Shaham Erez Wallfisch, founded in 2009, comprises three fine international instrumentalists. The trio is made up of Hagai Shaham on violin and Arnon Erez, one of Israel’s leading pianists, with cellist Raphael Wallfisch.

As a soloist, Shaham has performed with the world’s leading orchestras. In 1990, Shaham and Erez won the first prize at the International Music competition in Munich.

Raphael Wallfisch was born in London into a family of distinguished musicians. At the age of twenty-four he won the Gaspar Cassadó International Cello Competition in Florence. Since then he has enjoyed a worldwide career.

B ook your ticket here now!

'This fine trio plays with purpose and clarity...' BBC Music Magazine

Find out more about Trio Shaham Erez Wallfisch and watch a video of their playing here .

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

This year is the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth. His music bridged the classical and romantic musical periods. He was a virtuoso pianist and one of the most influential of all composers. His best-known compositions include 9 symphonies, 5 piano concertos, 32 piano sonatas, and 16 string quartets.

His hearing began to fail but recent scholarship suggests that he was not totally deaf, except perhaps in his very last years. He never married but there were many women in his life to whom he became passionately attached. It was difficult for him that he was a ‘commoner’ but many of his loves, whom he had met through teaching or patronage, were ‘aristocrats’.

Born in Bonn, Beethoven lived there for 22 years. He then moved to Vienna where he studied with Haydn. Beethoven was unwell in his later years, possibly due to heavy metal poisoning from drugs used to treat him or from adulterated alcohol; the final cause of his death was liver failure.

In 1817, the English piano manufacturer John Broadwood built a grand piano, chosen to be the finest of the time, as a present for Beethoven. This instrument is known as the ‘Beethoven Broadwood’. The piano features the English grand action, and has a 6 octave keyboard. Broadwood pianos were much stronger than Viennese instruments and consequently allowed a much greater string tension. This gave them the distinct, more powerful sound demanded by pianists of the time. Beethoven wrote to thank Broadwood, ‘I have never felt a greater pleasure than your honour’s intimation of the arrival of this piano. I shall look upon it as an altar upon which I shall place the most beautiful offerings of my spirit to the divine Apollo.’

All works by Ludvig van Beethoven 1770-1827

Piano Trio in C minor, Op.1 No 3

i. Allegro con brio; ii. Andante cantabile, con variazioni; iii. Menuetto; iv. Prestissimo

published in 1795

Beethoven's three Opus 1 trios are dedicated to Prince von Lichnowsky who had been generous to Beethoven after his arrival in Vienna. The Trios are rich in ideas and in Beethoven’s hands the trio form moves beyond the traditional three-movement design of Haydn and Mozart; he adds a movement, and gives the strings, in particular the cello, a more independent role.

The C minor trio is the most powerful of the three. A sinister mood is set at the start in the pause-filled first few bars, which then contrasts with a more hopeful staccato figure and with an optimistic second theme. After the turbulence of the first movement, the Andante cantabile variations are gentler. The Menuetto includes rapid rising arpeggios in the piano and the Trio has cascading piano scales. Then we are back to the stormy emotions of the first movement in the headlong Finale opening with more arpeggios but in a somewhat frantic mood. Relief comes with a sunny theme related to the opening two bars of the first movement; then the opening theme evaporates with ascending scales.

Kakadu Variations (Kakadu is German for cockatoo)

composed around 1803, but probably adjusted before publication twenty hears later

The work begins with a solemn adagio introduction in G minor that lasts for around a third of the work's total duration. The theme itself, when it finally appears, is almost comically anticlimactic—a simple, even trivial tune taken from Müller's opera Die Schwestern von Prag (The Sisters from Prague), popular during Beethoven's lifetime. This theme is followed by 10 variations, the first eight of which are conventional in style—a sequence of increasingly ornate decorations on Müller's theme as it passes back and forth between the instruments.

In the ninth variation, the music returns to the minor key and slow tempo of the introduction, while the final variation is a longer movement with several episodes of contrasting mood and tempo. Like the introduction, this final variation shows a chromatic and contrapuntal complexity that goes beyond what Beethoven achieved in his early works, and probably reflects revisions made during his period of greatest maturity.

++++++ Interval of 20 minutes ++++++

Piano Trio in B flat major, Op.97 (The Archduke)

i. Allegro moderato; ii. Scherzo Allegro; iii. Andante cantabile ma però con moto. Poco piu adagio; iv. Allegro moderato – Presto

composed in 1811

This Trio was dedicated to Archduke Rudolph of Austria. He was an amateur pianist, and a patron, friend, and student of Beethoven. The first public performance, in a charity concert in a Viennese hotel, was the last time that Beethoven, who was by now severely deaf, played the piano in public. Spohr, a composer in the audience, wrote: ‘In forte passages the poor deaf man pounded on the keys until the strings jangled, and in piano he played so softly that whole groups of notes were omitted.’

The music in this Trio has a relaxed mood. It may feel like a free-flowing lyric invention, yet already in the second half of the first phrase Beethoven continues the line by varying figures already heard in the first two bars. As the lengthy movement unfolds, Beethoven creates rich textures and visits new keys in ways that always sound fresh and surprising. The second movement is a large-scale Scherzo alternating with a contrasting Trio. The Scherzo theme itself is simple - a major scale heard at first alone in the cello.

The dark minor Trio is a contrast, snaking its way chromatically up and down in a fugue-like manner, then exploding in a Viennese waltz figure that alternates through surprising key changes with the fugue. The slow movement is in a bright D major for a set of variations on a theme presented with a hymn like scoring in the piano. The statement is followed by four progressively elaborate variations. A transition leads directly from the slow movement to the finale. This recalls the opening of the first movement in the way both themes open with phrases that move from the home key (B-flat) to the subdominant chord (E-flat). There is a lively Presto conclusion, for a galloping close to Beethoven’s final contribution to the repertory of the piano trio.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Enjoy music from the international Metamorphoses trio on 13th February

Thu, 13 Feb 2020 10:40:58 GMT

Thursday 13th February 2020 at 7.30pm

Metamorphoses is made up of British-American clarinettist, Jean Johnson who lives in Edinburgh, Dutch-born violist, Roeland Jagers living in the Netherlands, and pianist Elena Fisher-Dieskau. These players have quickly made a big impact on the international stage since the formation of the group in 2015. Their debut CD ‘Metamorphoses’ was reviewed rapturously by Gramophone.

' Metamorphoses are fantastic, incredibly clever, tight and very polished. Beautiful phrasing…' BBC Radio 3 Record Review

Find out more about Metamorphoses and watch a video here .

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Trio in E flat major KV 498, ‘Kegelstatt’ Wolfgang Mozart 1756-1791

i. Andante; ii Menuetto; iii Rondeaux: Allegretto
composed in 1786

Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from age 5. At age 17, he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg, but grew restless. In 1781 he moved to Vienna where he achieved fame but little financial security. During his final years in Vienna, he composed many of his best-known works. The circumstances of his early death have been much debated and were dramatised in the film ‘Amadeus’.

In 1786, faced with dwindling performance opportunities, Mozart turned to writing chamber music, which enjoyed enormous popularity in Vienna. The ‘Kegelstatt’ was composed in this year. Mozart’s enthusiasm for the clarinet dated back to 1764, when he first heard the instrument in London. Mozart composed the piano part for Franziska von Jacquin, one of his best piano pupils; the clarinet part for Anton Stadler, for whom he also wrote his Clarinet Concerto; and the viola part for himself. ‘Kegelstatt’ means a skittles or bowling alley. Mozart loved to play skittles but there is nothing on his manuscript to suggest skittles.

The lovely first movement flows at a gentle pace. It allows Mozart to revel in the mid-range sonorities of two of his favourite instruments. Striking, is his display of chromaticism (notes out with the main key of the piece) in the form of rising semitones at the ends of many of his phrases. The Menuetto is intimate and serious. The outer sections feature emphatic contrasts between loud and soft. Chromaticism takes on a yearning quality toward the end of the second section. In the trio section, Mozart focuses on a four-note motive that circles in on itself in semitones, alternating this idea with spates of running triplets—a truly novel idea. The finale, with its sunny refrain, unfolds as a seven-section rondo. The mood darkens for the middle episode with the viola’s stormy outburst in the minor mode. This movement features some brilliant passages for all the instruments - the piano in particular, which would have shown off Franziska von Jacquin’s fleet fingers to great advantage.

Trio for Clarinet, Viola and Piano in E flat major Julius Röntgen 1855-1932

i. Andante; ii. Allegro deciso; iii. Sostenuto - Allegro comodo

composed in 1921

Julius Röntgen was born in Leipzig to a family of musicians. He was taught music by his parents and grandparents, and other subjects by private tutors. In Leipzig, he and his parents were part of a musical circle, and it was at one of its soirees that he first met Brahms, who remained a lifelong friend. At age 18 he became a professional pianist. In 1877, he moved to Amsterdam to become a piano teacher in the music school. Brahms frequently visited him in Amsterdam, and in 1887 Röntgen performed Brahms' second piano concerto, conducted by the composer. Röntgen became a renowned accompanist, working with the violinist Carl Flesch and the cellist Pablo Casals. Sometimes he performed as a piano accompanist in silent screen productions in the Tuschinski cinema theatre in Amsterdam. He also made many recordings of piano music for the pianola.

The first movement of this Trio is expansive and graceful, equal importance being assigned to all instruments. The second movement is darker, with a ‘rumble’ alternating with lighter ripples in the upper register. In the third movement, a yearning introduction is followed by a light, flowing allegro.

++++++ Interval of 20 minutes ++++++

Three from Eight Pieces for Clarinet, Viola and Piano, Op. 83 Max Bruch 1838-1920

composed in 1909

Max Bruch was a German Romantic composer, teacher, and conductor who wrote over 200 works, including three violin concertos, the first of which has become a staple of the violin repertoire. He was born in Cologne to Wilhelmine, a singer, and August, a lawyer. At age 9, he wrote his first composition, a song for his mother's birthday. From then on music was his passion, and his studies were enthusiastically supported by his parents. He had a long career, moving among musical posts in different German towns. At the height of his career he spent three seasons as conductor of the Liverpool Philharmonic Society (1880–83), living for those years in Liverpool with his family.

Bruch wrote the Eight Pieces for his son, a clarinetist. Bruch intended that the Pieces be regarded as a set of independent miniatures of various styles, rather than as an integrated cycle. Like the late works of Brahms for clarinet, the Pieces favour rich, mellow instrumental hues in the alto range of the instrument and an autumnal maturity of expression. The clarinet and viola are evenly matched, singing together in duet or conversing in dialogue, while the piano is an accompanying partner. The Pieces range from three to six minutes in length.

The first of the six are straightforward in structure: in either a binary structure (A–B) or a ternary structure (A–B–A). The last two Pieces are in sonata form, and with the exception of the seventh miniature, all in thoughtful, minor keys. Though Bruch was fond of incorporating folk music into his works, only the fifth Piece, incorporates a folk tune.

Trio for Clarinet, Viola and Piano Jean Françaix 1912-1997

i. Preludio; ii. Allegrissimo; iii. Scherzando; iv. Largo; v. Presto - Alla burlesca

Composed in 1990

Françaix was a French neoclassical composer, pianist, and orchestrator, known for his prolific output and vibrant style. His natural gifts were encouraged from an early age by his family. His father was a musicologist, composer, and pianist, and his mother was a teacher of singing. Françaix studied at the Conservatoire of Le Mans and then at the Paris Conservatory, and was only aged 6 when he took up composing, with a style heavily influenced by Ravel. Later, he studied with Nadia Boulanger, the teacher of generations of composers, including Bernstein and Copland. Françaix was an accomplished pianist from an early age, touring Europe and the U.S. Notably, he performed with the composer Poulenc’s Two-Piano Concerto in several engagements. Being a virtuoso pianist, many of his works feature the piano. He was a skilled orchestrator, and overall Françaix's style is marked by lightness and wit (a stated goal of his was to ‘give pleasure’).

His trio was written in 1990 to celebrate the 300th anniversary of the invention of the clarinet. Its five movements are lyrical and tonal, the three instruments working together in inventive fashion.

After a slow Preludio serving as an atmospheric musical introduction, the players take off for a ‘jocular dialogue’; then the third movement sparkles with playful textures and catchy rhythms, frequently passing the spotlight back and forth among the instruments. There follows a spell-binding Largo - slow music that builds melody from the haunting low register of the clarinet in dialogue with the richly expressive viola of the opening bars. It sets the stage for the crisp, elegant rhythms and good spirits of the Presto finale.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Gitarrissima will play for our Christmas concert!

Sun, 01 Dec 2019 00:00:00 GMT

Thursday 12th December 2019 at 7.30pm

The guitarists from Bulgaria, Hungary, Russia, Japan and Austria have been enchanting international audiences with their sensitive musical interplay and virtuoso performances. In 2014, they were prize winners at the international competition for chamber music with guitars in Aschaffenburg, Germany. They had excited the professional jury and the audience.

The quintet consists of an octave guitar (Dimitrova), three concert guitars (Mihalovics, Ovchinnikova and Kaisho) and an acoustic bass guitar (Smejkal). They create an original sound, giving a new dimension to popular classical works and less well known compositions.

'Gitarrissima, an all-female guitar quintet from Vienna, who played well-known and some lesser-known works arranged for guitar ... with great brio, virtuosity and individuality' The Cross-Eyed Pianist

Find out more about Gitarrissima and watch a video here .

Gitarrissima plays on Hannabach strings.

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

The Barber of Seville: Overture Gioachino Rossini 1792-1868

composed in 1816

Bon viveur, gourmet, dancer, composer, the ‘Italian Mozart’ and pianist – his photograph says it all! Rossini wrote sacred music, songs, chamber music, piano pieces and of course his 39 operas, such as ‘The Barber of Seville’ and ‘The Italian Girl in Algiers’. He earned the nickname ‘Signor Crescendo’ for his use of an exciting build-up of orchestral sound over a repeated phrase. According to the Oxford History of Music ‘Rossini's fame surpassed that of any previous composer, and so, for a long time, did the popularity of his works. Audiences took to his music as if to an intoxicating drug - or to champagne, with which Rossini's bubbly music was often compared.’

If the music of The Barber of Seville seems to have a peculiar amount of ‘swashbuckling’ surge and vigour for a comic opera prelude, it may be because it had originally been composed for an earlier opera, Aureliano in Palmira, an historical work whose subject was the Crusades.

Owing to its transposed origins, the overture contains no material from the opera. It is, however, most successful in its function, that of providing a feeling of deliciously nervous anticipation for the action to follow. Its wealth of vivacious and varied themes and its feeling of impetuous momentum render it one of the best opera overtures ever penned.

Four movements from 'Carmen' Georges Bizet 1838-1875

composed in 1875

Bizet was a French composer of the Romantic era, whose career was cut short by early death. Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, Carmen, which has become one of the most popular and frequently performed works in the opera repertoire. During a brilliant student career at the Conservatoire de Paris, Bizet won many prizes, including the prestigious Prix de Rome. Returning to Paris after three years in Italy, he found that the Parisian opera theatres preferred the established classical repertoire to the works of newcomers. In 1875 Bizet fell ill. Hoping to recuperate at his holiday home at Bougival, he had a heart attack and two days later suffered a further fatal attack. Gounod gave the eulogy at Bizet’s burial, saying Bizet had been struck down just as he was becoming recognised as a true artist. After a special performance of Carmen that night, the press, which had condemned the piece three months earlier, now declared Bizet a master.

Production of Carmen was delayed because of fears that its themes of betrayal and murder would offend audiences. The opera is set in southern Spain and tells the story of the downfall of Don José, a naïve soldier who is seduced by the wiles of the fiery gypsy, Carmen. José abandons his childhood sweetheart and deserts from his military duties, yet loses Carmen's love to the glamorous torero, Escamillo. Don José then kills Carmen in a jealous rage. The depictions of proletarian life, immorality, and lawlessness, and the tragic death of the main character on stage, broke new ground in French opera and were highly controversial.

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Porgy and Bess: Medley George Gershwin 1898-1937

composed in 1935

Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. His compositions spanned popular and classical genres. Among his best-known works are the orchestral compositions ‘Rhapsody in Blue’ and ‘An American in Paris’, and the opera ‘Porgy and Bess’. Porgy and Bess is an adaptation of DuBose Heyward's 1925 novel of the same name. It was first performed in Boston, before it moved to Broadway. It featured a cast of classically trained African-American singers—a daring artistic choice for the time. After suffering from an unpopular public reception, a 1976 Houston Grand Opera production gained it new popularity, and it is now one of the best-known and most frequently performed operas. The opera tells the story of Porgy, a disabled black street-beggar living in the slums of Charleston. It deals with his attempts to rescue Bess from the clutches of Crown, her violent and possessive lover, and Sportin' Life, her drug dealer.

Bantu Andrew York 1958-

Andrew York is one of today’s best loved composers for classical guitar and a performer of international stature. His compositions blend the styles of ancient eras with modern musical directions, creating music that is at once vital, multi-levelled and accessible. York was born in Atlanta, Georgia and grew up in Virginia. He received degrees from James Madison University in Virginia and the University of Southern California. York is the only alumnus in USC's history to have received their Distinguished Alumni Award twice, in 1997 as a member of the Los Angeles Guitar Quartet and again in 2003 for his solo music career. He studied in Spain, where he met classical guitarist John Williams . York's compositions and arrangements for guitar have been performed by the world’s leading guitarists, such as John Williams. York’s authenticity has inspired a worldwide following, with his touring schedule spanning more than thirty countries.

Bantu is best described as a cross between African drumming rhythms and Dave Brubeck.

Hoe Down from 'Rodeo' Aaron Copland 1900-1990

Arranged in 1943

Aaron Copland was born in New York. He became one of the most important composers of 20th century American music. Copland incorporated popular music forms such as jazz and folk into his compositions. By the age of 20, he had written and sold his first composition. In addition to composing, Copland was a Harvard scholar and worked as a conductor and teacher.

Ballet Russe invited Copland to write the musical score to the ballet, ‘Rodeo’. The ballet presented views of American country life and incorporated folk traditions. In 1943, the score for ‘Rodeo’ was arranged as an orchestral suite with the title ‘Four Dance Episodes from Rodeo: Buckaroo Holiday, Corral Nocturne, Saturday Night Waltz and Hoe Down’. The suite incorporates American folk songs and Square Dance tunes, and traditional Irish music. The suite tells the story of a cowgirl, Buckaroo Holiday, who arrives at Burnt Ranch looking for love. She tries to woo the head rancher, but he fails to notice her. Buckaroo Holiday tries to impress the rancher by riding a bucking bronco, but she is thrown off and mocked by the other more popular girls. In Corral Nocturne, the cowgirl runs through the empty space feeling lonely and despondent. In Saturday Night Waltz, she dances with the champion roper and at last, catches the jealous rancher’s attention. Finally in Hoe Down, the cowgirl and rancher fall in love. A hoe down is a dance competition, often noisy and riotous.

All works are arranged by Krisztina Groß-Dobo except for the original work by Andrew York and where otherwise stated.
Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Sacconi Quartet playing Haydn, Grime, Rachmaninov & Beethoven

Wed, 20 Nov 2019 21:52:14 GMT

Thursday 21st November 2019 at 7.30pm

The Sacconi Quartet has now been playing in its original line up for nearly two decades! The quartet is named after a twentieth century violin maker and restorer, Simone Fernando Sacconi and three of the musicians play original Sacconi instruments. The Sacconi Festival in Folkestone is now in its twelfth year and the ensemble is Quartet in Association at the Royal College of Music.

'...their fine balance and near flawless ensemble' The Guardian

Find out more about the Sacconi Quartet and watch a video here .

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Quartet No. 53 in D major Op. 64, No. 5 ‘The Lark’ Josef Haydn 1732-1809

i. Allegro moderato; ii. Adagio cantabile; iii. Menuetto; iv Finale (composed 1790)

Haydn was Austrian and one of the most prolific and prominent composers of the Classical period. He wrote 107 symphonies, 83 string quartets, 45 piano trios, 62 piano sonatas, 14 masses and 26 operas, amongst much else. He was the son of a wheelwright and a local landowner's cook. Haydn spent much of his career as a court musician for the wealthy Esterhazy family at their remote estate. This isolated him from other composers and trends in music, so he was, as he put it, ‘forced to become original’. In 1790 Haydn moved to Vienna and accepted an invitation from the great German violinist, Salomon, to visit London, where he was adored. Haydn spent several years there composing his “London” symphonies.

The nickname, “The Lark” comes from the first movement, as the trills and soaring melody of the violin’s first theme have been likened to the sound and motion of the bird. The first movement begins with the “Lark” melody over a simple accompaniment in the three lower instruments. The development includes a striking run in octaves in the minor mode, foreshadowing the final movement’s perpetual motion. The sweet Adagio cantabile is operatic, an emotive aria over a simple accompaniment, while the light hearted Minuet contrasts with a contrapuntal trio in a more serious style. The dancelike energy of the Finale’s melodies moves ceaselessly between the instruments and from the top of their ranges to the bottom.

Quartet Helen Grime 1981-

(composed in 2014)

Helen Grime is a Scottish composer. Though she was born in York, her parents returned to Scotland when she was a baby. Her grandparents and mother were music teachers. Grime studied the oboe, from age 9 at the Edinburgh Music School. She played the oboe in the Scottish National Youth Orchestra. Starting to compose from age 12, Grime became in 2008 Bernstein Fellow at the Tanglewood, USA, Legal and General Fellow at the Royal College of Music, 2007-09, and lecturer in composition at the Department of Music at Royal Holloway, London, in 2010.

Find out more about this piece here from Helen herself.

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Cello Sonata in D minor Sergei Rachmaninov 1873-1943

i. Romance, andante espressivo; ii. Scherzo, allegro (composed in 1889)

Rachmaninov was a Russian composer, pianist and conductor. Like Mozart, he could write out or play immediately a long piece of music he had heard just once. He had exceptionally large hands and many of his compositions require the performer to spread chords which Rachmaninov could cover in one stretch. His large size has led to speculation that he had a medical condition such as Marfan’s syndrome or acromegaly.

Rachmaninov is well-known for several important piano concertos as well as other works for orchestra. Few, however, know that he wrote chamber music, all written early in his career. These include two string quartets, neither of which is complete. Both have only two movements. Over the years, there has been much speculation as to whether the parts to the other movements were lost or whether Rachmaninov simply never got around to completing either work.

The two extant movements of Quartet No. 1 show his characteristic use of chromaticism. In the atmospheric and lovely Romance the strings are muted throughout creating a quiet, calm musicscape. The Scherzo which follows is light and bright and provides a fine contrast.

Quartet Op. 95, No. 11 in F minor ‘Serioso’ Ludvig van Beethoven 1770-1827

i. Allegro con brio; ii. Allegretto ma non troppo; iii. Allegro assai vivace ma serioso ; iv Larghetto espressivo (composed in 1810)

Beethoven was a German composer and virtuoso pianist. A crucial figure in the transition between the Classical and Romantic eras in Western music, he remains one of the most famous and influential of all composers. His best-known compositions include 9 symphonies, 5 piano concertos, 32 piano sonatas, and 16 string quartets. Born in Bonn, he lived there for 22 years. Befriending Haydn, he moved in 1792 to Vienna where he studied with Haydn. In about 1800 Beethoven’s hearing began to deteriorate, and by the last decade of his life he was almost totally deaf. Beethoven was unwell for the last few years of his life, possibly due to heavy metal poisoning from drugs used to treat him and adulterated alcohol; the final cause of death was liver failure.

The Quartet is known as the "Serioso" the only quartet Beethoven gave his own descriptive title to. It stems from the designation for the third movement. In a letter to George Smart, Beethoven wrote that "The Quartet is written for a small circle of connoisseurs and is never to be performed in public." Even to modern ears, the Quartet is disorienting. When Beethoven started on the quartet, a group of noblemen had just granted him a 4,000 florin annual salary, with no conditions on what he had to compose. Then, looking for a wife, he proposed to 19-year-old Therese, a cousin of his doctor, but she declined to marry him.

The first movement is typically Beethovian with outbursts, followed by pauses, followed by reactions. As the music continues, it fills with crescendos, sudden retreats, and surprising returns. The end is quiet. The second movement gives the four instruments their independence—they seem to wander in and out of the picture of their own accord. At first, the cello offers a hesitant bassline, and later the four instruments collaborate on a fugue. There is a sudden cut to the third movement, which begins without pause. Another outburst, a reaction, and then the instruments interweave again. A second, gentler theme offers some reprieve. The fourth movement is more expansive. It picks up a lilt, which finally breaks out into an ecstatic, coda, scampering to a dazzling end.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Pianist Peter Donohoe booked to play for Morpeth Music Society!

Thu, 15 Aug 2019 16:51:30 GMT

Come and hear pianist Peter Donohoe in Morpeth! Save 30% on single ticket prices by buying a season ticket!

The society presents an annual season of six professional concerts in our warm and comfortable venue - Morpeth Methodist Church . The modern, accessible, church has great acoustics and and fantastic views from all around no matter where you choose to sit. There is plenty of local parking and the church is within easy walking distance of the bus and train stations. But don't just take our word for it!

David Whetstone, (then culture editor of the Journal), wrote in 2017: 'Morpeth Methodist Church is a nice venue – more intimate, naturally, than the Sage and with a surprisingly clear acoustic. It was packed for this gig, even up in the gallery where the view was perfect.’

Peter Donohoe Morpeth Music Society will celebrate its 75th season in 2019 by opening with a piano recital by Peter Donohoe (10th October 2019) . Peter’s most recent triumph in the North East was when, in 2016, he stepped in to substitute for an unwell Lars Vogt (on the day of the concert) to play a magnificent performance of Beethoven’s Emperor concerto at the Sage Gateshead.

Bring a friend! The season continues with a concert by the Sacconi String Quartet (21st November 2019) featuring Haydn, Beethoven, Rachmaninov and a contemporary work by Scottish composer, Helen Grime. Season ticket holders are warmly invited to bring a friend to this concert.

Christmas cheer Vienna based Gitarrissima will play for our Christmas concert (12th December 2019). A first for Morpeth Music Society, this all female guitar ensemble will perform arrangements of well-known melodies such as Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess and Bizet’s Carmen. This concert will be our special Christmas event with complimentary seasonal refreshments of mince pies and non-alcoholic mulled wine during the interval.

The second half of our season follows in the New Year with Metamorphoses , a viola, clarinet and piano trio (13th February 2020) playing a programme including Mozart’s Kegelstatt trio.

Trio Shaham Erez Wallfisch , piano trio, visits Morpeth next (19th March 2020) with an all-Beethoven programme to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Beethoven’s birth.

Our final concert of the 2019-20 season will be a welcome return visit from Ukrainian pianist and ‘YouTube sensation’ Anna Fedorova (30th April 2020).

Amazing value! Save 30% by buying a season ticket!

A season’s membership for all six concerts costs only £69 (saving £29 compared to buying separate adult tickets). Season ticket holders are encouraged to bring a friend to the Sacconi Quartet concert for free.

Apply for your season ticket NOW via the JOIN page on the website.

Individual concert tickets will cost £18 (Peter Donohoe) and £16 (rest of the season) for adults. Students aged 18 years and under are warmly invited to attend FREE.

Individual concert tickets will be available from 1st September 2019 onwards from Morpeth Methodist Church, the society secretary – telephone 01670 512075 or Morpeth Tourist Information Centre as well as online from the website .

All of the concerts take place at Morpeth Methodist Church (fully accessible with a lift and a hearing loop) at 7.30 pm.

Jamal Aliyev & Jâms Coleman - cello & piano recital

Tue, 09 Apr 2019 16:24:51 GMT

Thursday 11th April 2019 at 7.30pm

Jamal Aliyev, from Azerbaijan, now studies at the Royal College of Music. In 2017 he made his debut at the BBC Proms. He plays on a Giovanni Battista Gabrielli cello (1756) on loan from the Beares International Violin Society. Jâms Coleman is a soloist, accompanist and repetiteur, with recitals at the Wigmore Hall and on Radio 3.

Book your tickets online now! - click here to book online.

Find out more about Jamal and watch a video of his playing here .

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Sonata No 2 in G minor, Op. 5 Ludwig van Beethoven 1770-1827

i. Adagio sostenuto ed espressivo; ii. Allegro molto più tosto presto; iii. Rondo. Allegro (composed 1796)

Beethoven was a German composer and virtuoso pianist. A crucial figure in the transition betweenthe Classical and Romantic eras in Western music, he remains one of the most famous and influential of all composers. His best-known compositions include 9 symphonies, 5 piano concertos, 32 piano sonatas, and 16 string quartets. Born in Bonn, he lived there for 22 years. Befriending Haydn, he moved in 1792 to Vienna where he studied with Haydn. In about 1800 Beethoven’s hearing began to deteriorate, and by the last decade of his life he was almost totally deaf. The five Beethoven Cello Sonatas span all three periods of Beethoven’s life. I think they are the most beautiful examples in all music of conversations between two performing musicians.

In 1796, twenty-five year old Ludwig embarked on a five-month concert tour performing as a pianist. The tour included performances in Berlin at the court of King Friedrich II of Prussia, who was a music lover and an amateur cellist. Beethoven met two brilliant cellists there, the Duport brothers, Jean-Pierre and Jean-Louis. They owned a 1711 Stradivarius cello. None other than Napoleon insisted on trying the cello asking, ‘How the devil do you hold this thing, Monsieur Duport?’ To Duport’s horror, Napoleon made a small dent in the ribs of the cello, which still can be seen on the instrument today - most recently, Mstislav Rostropovich owned the instrument. Beethoven was so impressed by the music making of the Duport brothers that he wrote two cello sonatas for them in F and G minor, which were performed in Berlin in 1796, with Beethoven at the piano. There is debate as to whether Jean-Louis or Jean-Pierre performed the cello part.

The sonata has a slow introduction, which is expansive, amounting to an expressive and often dramatic fantasia. The first Allegro is an example of Beethoven’s predilection for including a wide range of diverse material within one movement. The restrained opening theme is soon interrupted by pounding quaver triplets which only end with the lead-in to the more song-like second subject. The finale is again a rondo, this time in 2/4 time and in G major, with a variety of lively rhythmic patterning and much rapid figuration in demi-semiquavers, culminating in a hectic coda.

'From Jewish Life' Ernest Bloch 1880-1959

1. Prayer: Andante moderato; 2. Supplication: Allegro non troppo; 3. Jewish Song: Moderato (composed 1924)

Bloch was born in Geneva to Jewish parents. He began playing the violin at age 9, and composing soon after. He studied music at the conservatory in Brussels. He then travelled around Europe, moving to Germany (where he studied composition), on to Paris in 1903 and back to Geneva before settling in the United States in 1916. In 1917, he became the first teacher of composition at Mannes School of Music. In December 1920 he was appointed the first Musical Director of the Cleveland Institute of Music, a post he held until 1925. In 1941, Bloch moved to the small coastal community of Agate Beach, Oregon and lived there the rest of his life. He taught and lectured at the University of California until 1951. He died in Portland, Oregon, of cancer at the age of 78.

‘From Jewish Life’ is a set of three short pieces, written for the cellist Hans Kindler. The first of these, Prayer, indeed has the flavour of a fervently sung prayer, or a hymn of petition, in a traditional Ashkenazi synagogue. The second piece, Supplication, exhibits a sense of urgency with its mild but fast-paced energy and rapid movement. It could be heard as representing either a passionate religious supplication in an hour of need or a pleading connected to some aspect of ordinary daily life. The plaintive, simple songlike character of the third movement, Jewish Song has a descending sequence which recalls the character of a typical eastern European Jewish folksong.

++++++ Interval of 25 minutes ++++++

Cello Sonata in D minor Frank Bridge 1879-1941

i. Allegro ben moderato; ii. Adagio ma non troppo (composed 1913-1917)

Bridge was born in Brighton and studied at the Royal College of Music in London under C V Stanford. He played the viola in a number of string quartets and conducted, sometimes deputising for Henry Wood, before devoting himself to composition. Bridge was a pacifist and was deeply disturbed by the First World War. Bridge privately tutored Benjamin Britten, who later paid homage to him in the Variations on a Theme of Frank Bridge (1937). Britten spoke highly of Bridge’s teaching, saying that he still felt he ‘hadn't come up to the technical standards’ that Bridge had set him. The sonata took Bridge four years to finish and two of his musician friends, the cellist Felix Salmond and pianist Harold Samuel, gave the first performance at London’s Wigmore Hall in 1917.

The opening movement, begun in 1913, starts with a soaring cello line and continues with periods of lyrical flights and accompaniment which add richness and tension. The contrasting second movement displays Bridge's great despair over the futility of war and the general state of the world. A recollection of the cellist Antonia Butler, who gave the French premiere in 1928, reveals the cause: ‘During the First World War, Bridge was in utter despair over the futility of war and the state of the world and would walk round Kensington in the early hours of the morning unable to get any rest or sleep, and the idea of the slow movement really came into being during that time’.

Sonata for Solo Cello György Ligeti 1923-2006

i. Dialogo; ii. Capriccio (composed 1948-1953)

Ligeti was a Hungarian-Austrian composer of contemporary classical music. He has been described as ‘one of the most important avant-garde composers in the latter half of the twentieth century’. Born in Romania, he lived first in Communist Hungary. He was restricted in his musical style by the authorities - this Sonata for Solo Cello was banned by the Composers’ Union for its modernity. Only when he reached Austria in 1956 could Ligeti fully realise his passion for avant-garde music and develop new compositional techniques. In 1973 he became professor of composition in Hamburg, where he worked until retiring in 1989. After experimenting with electronic music in Cologne, his breakthrough came with orchestral works such as Atmosphères, for which he used a technique he later dubbed micropolyphony. He is best known by the public through the use of his music in film soundtracks. Excerpts of his pieces were adapted for film use. The sound design of Stanley Kubrick's films, particularly the music of ‘2001: A Space Odyssey’, drew from his work.

The sonata has two contrasting movements, the first composed in 1948 and the second in 1953. Dialogo is written without fixed metre and depicts a conversation between a man and a woman - a conversation focused on a small range of topics, it would appear, given the amount of repetition of the opening phrases. The second movement, Capriccio, is a strictly metered moto perpetuo in 3/8 time that pays tribute to the virtuoso exuberance of Paganini’s famous Caprices for violin.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Pianist Leon McCawley will play for us in March!

Thu, 21 Feb 2019 13:59:08 GMT

Thursday 21st March 2019 at 7.30pm

Leon McCawley leapt to prominence when he won both First Prize in the International Beethoven Competition in Vienna and Second Prize in the Leeds International Piano Competition in 1993. Since then he has played with the great orchestras and conductors of the world, and played a number of times at the Proms. He is currently Professor of Piano at the Royal College of Music.

Book your tickets online now! - click here to book online.

Find out more about Leon and watch a video of his playing here .

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Sonata No 1 in C major, K279 Wolfgang Mozart 1756-1791

i. Allegro; ii. Andante; iii. Allegro (composed 1774)

Mozart showed prodigious ability from his earliest childhood. Already competent on keyboard and violin, he composed from the age of five and performed before European royalty. At 17, he was engaged as a court musician in Salzburg. During his final years living Vienna, he composed many of his best-known symphonies, concertos, and operas. The circumstances of his early death have been much debated, and dramatised in the film ‘Amadeus’.

The first movement opens with a turning figure for the left hand, which forms the basis for much of this movement. After a repeat of the opening two bars, an Alberti bass is introduced for the left hand, whilst the right hand plays the melody (an Alberti bass is a repeated broken chord accompaniment where the notes of the chord are presented in the order lowest, highest, middle, highest; it helps to create a smooth, sustained, sound on the piano). The Andante is full of expressive shading. The Allegro is in 2/4 time, and features an unusually active part for the left hand, another extended development section, and a surprising close with two firm chords.

Sonata No 32 in C minor, Op. 111 Ludwig van Beethoven 1770-1827

i. Maestoso: Allegro con brio ed appassionato; ii. Arietta: Adagio molto, semplice e cantabile (composed 1822)

The introduction, with its double-dotted chords, prepares the way for the energy and conflict of the main Allegro. The movement finally comes to rest, pianissimo, in the key C major. The opening of the Arietta has moved many to tears; Beethoven, completely deaf, knows this is the last he will write for his beloved pianoforte. The simplest of themes is subjected to ever more complex subdivisions of metre, until by the third variation the calm of the original is transformed into euphoric abandonment (with an uncanny foreshadowing of 20th-century boogie-woogie). In the final variation the theme moves into the upper register, intertwining itself around a continuous trill. The music becomes ever more ethereal, followed by a short ending in a mood of calm contentment.

++++++ Interval of 25 minutes ++++++

‘Abegg’ Variations in F major Op. 1 Robert Schumann 1810-1856

i. Thema (Animato); ii. 3 Variations; iii. Cantabile; iv. Finale alla Fantasia (Vivace) (composed 1829)

Schumann was born in Saxony, the fifth and last child of his parents. He began to compose before the age of seven, but his boyhood was spent in the cultivation of literature as much as music – undoubtedly influenced by his father who was a bookseller, publisher and novelist. He had intended a career as a virtuoso pianist until a hand injury (self-inflicted from a contraption designed to aid the strength and agility of his fingers) made this impossible. He became a composer and music critic. Schumann suffered from a mental disorder, first appearing in 1833. After a suicide attempt in 1854, Schumann was admitted to a mental asylum near Bonn, where he died two years later.

The dedication to the fictitious ‘Mademoiselle Pauline Comtesse d’Abegg’ is believed to conceal the identity of Meta Abegg, a dancing partner Schumann had met at a Mannheim ball. The theme, in waltz tempo, is straightforward, but the three delightful variations with their rapid passage work, syncopated rhythms, and rapid triplet figures, showcase Schumann the composer and the pianist.

Klavierstücke Op. 119 Johannes Brahms 1833-1897

1 Intermezzo, B minor; 2 Intermezzo, E minor; 3 Intermezzo, C major; 4 Rhapsody, E♭major (composed 1893)

Brahms was a German composer and pianist. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna.

The falling thirds of the first Intermezzo provide a resigned quality often associated with Brahms’ works. The second piece employs the variation form. The central ‘waltz’ section provides a contrast. The next quicksilver Intermezzo features the melody at the outset in the lower part of the right hand. The Rhapsody is notable for its “Hungarian” five-bar phrases. At the centre is a lyrical section. The recurrence of the main theme is cleverly presented in a hushed staccato variation, lending all the more force to its return in its original guise at the close.

Polonaise – Fantasie in A flat major Op. 61 Frédérik Chopin 1810-1849

composed 1846

Chopin was a Polish child prodigy, composer and virtuoso pianist. All his compositions include the piano, most for solo piano. He grew up in Warsaw and left Poland aged 20 to settle in Paris. After a failed engagement to a Polish girl, he maintained a troubled relationship with the French authoress George Sand from 1837-47. A brief and unhappy visit to Majorca with Sand was a most productive composing period. All his life, Chopin suffered from poor health and he died in Paris in 1849, probably of tuberculosis. Chopin's compositions, his status as a musical superstar, his love life and his early death have made him a symbol of the Romantic era.

The Polonaise-Fantasie was Chopin’s last extended work, written three years before his death. It is an exploratory, original work. Although the distinctive rhythm of the polonaise is present in the opening theme, elsewhere it is often absent, the ‘fantasy’ part of the title implying a feeling of rhapsodic improvisation. Through thematic recall and his innate sense of form, pacing and proportion, Chopin manages to achieve a cohesive whole.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Chiaroscuro Quartet - a 'trailblazer for the authentic performance of chamber music'

Sat, 29 Dec 2018 12:03:59 GMT

Thursday 31st January 2019 at 7.30pm

The Chiaroscuro quartet consists of Alina Ibragimova (violin), Pablo Benedi (violin), Emilie Hörnlund (viola) and Claire Thirion (cello). The quartet, formed in 2005, is a ‘trailblazer for the authentic performance of classical chamber music’; it plays on gut strings and with historical bows. Their music is celebrated across Europe and beyond.

Book your tickets online now! - click here to book online.

Find out more about the Chiaroscuro Quartet and watch a video of its playing here .

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Quartet in A major Opus 18 No. 5 Ludwig van Beethoven 1770-1827

i. Allegro; ii. Menuetto and Trio; iii. Andante cantabile con variazioni; iv. Allegro (composed 1801)

Imagine the end of the 18thcentury; a time of war and social upheaval, when revolutions in France and America were forcing the Western world into a new way of thinking. Into Vienna there stepped a short 22-year-old young man, with curly coal-black hair; already a virtuoso pianist. The next five years saw him climb the career ladder. He became a private pupil of Haydn and Salieri. He was in great demand at the parties and soirees of the rich and arty. He pursued many women and made them feel faint at the intense passion of his piano improvisations. By age 31, when he composed this quartet, he enjoyed rock-star status. In this quartet, and others of the same year, he makes his first claim to be a serious composer; and poses musical questions he will seek to answer for the remainder of his titanic career; against the backdrop of having known for two years that he was going deaf and his performing career had little time to run.

The quartet is in part a homage to Mozart, bearing many similarities to his 'Drum' quartet in the same key. In their opening bars, both works highlight the same first three notes of the rising A major scale, A, B, C#, played staccato. Beethoven chooses the blandest of themes – little more than a descending scale followed by an ascending scale and then another descent. Towards the end of the variations, where Mozart introduces the 'drum' motif, Beethoven unleashes an exuberant outburst, shattering the calm of the preceding variation. The tenderest of episodes leads to a peaceful ending. The last movement dashes along, its counterpoint interrupted by a slow episode echoing a similar passage in the last movement of the Mozart quartet. In the last few bars the music evaporates.

Quartet in E flat major Opus 12 Felix Mendelssohn 1809-1847

i. Adagio; ii. Canzonetta; iii. Andante, espressivo; iv. Molto allegro e vivace (composed 1829, aged 20)

Pianist, composer and conductor, Mendelssohn was born in Hamburg. His parents were Jewish, but converted to Christianity before he and his siblings were born. Mendelssohn was quick to establish himself as a musical prodigy. Aged 9, he made his public debut in Berlin. Aged 11, he wrote a violin sonata, two piano sonatas, multiple songs, a cantata, a brief opera and a quartet. In 1826, aged 17, Mendelssohn produced one of his best known works, Overture to a Midsummer Night's Dream. In 1829 he conducted the London Philharmonic Society. Inspired by his visit to England and Scotland, Mendelssohn began composing his ‘Scottish Symphony’ and two string quartets.

The Adagio opens with a dramatic sighing gesture, a clear paraphrase of the opening to Beethoven’s 'Harp' Quartet. Beethoven had died only two years before, and one can hear in Mendelssohn’s music a farewell to him.

The body of the movement concentrates on a ‘Song without Words’- like theme in the major mode. This then generates a related theme in the minor as a counterbalance. The second movement is like a dance. Its quick-march outer sections frame a swift, virtuosic middle section in which upper strings fly over a slow drone in the cello. There is a hushed opening to the third movement. The second phrase is more florid and leads to greater agitation. This followed by a brief recitative that brings us back to the opening; and then the same cycle is played out on a larger, more intense scale. After a very short break, the calm is shattered by the two opening chords of the Finale. This continues the vocal qualities heard in the first movement.It opens not in the home key of E flat major, which would be customary, but rather in C minor. This foreign key extends through most of the movement, before relenting into to E flat major at last in the coda. About midway through the movement, old melodies from the first movement start to be heard. In the coda, they take over completely, so that we seem to have returned, nostalgically, to that earlier, gentler world.

In the words of musicologist John Horton, ‘The coda is one of Mendelssohn’s purest and most radiant passages of quartet writing, leaving the listener with a sense of contentment.’

++++++ Interval of 25 minutes ++++++

Quartet in D minor D 810 ‘Death and the Maiden’ Franz Schubert 1797-1828

i. Allegro; ii. Andante con moto; iii. Scherzo Allegro molto; iv. Presto (composed 1824)

Schubert was an Austrian composer. Appreciation of his music while he was alive was limited to a small circle of admirers in Vienna. Today, he is ranked among the greatest composers of the late Classical and early Romantic eras. Schubert attended the Vienna Imperial Court chapel choir. After leaving school, and while struggling to hold down a teaching post, he composed 145 lieder, the Second and Third Symphonies, two sonatas and a series of miniatures for piano, two mass settings and other shorter choral works, four stage works, and a string quartet. This period of intense creative activity remains one of the most inexplicable feats of productivity in musical history. He died, just before his 32ndbirthday, probably poisoned by the mercury used to treat his syphilis.

The Quartet is an intensely intellectual and emotional piece. It has been called ‘one of the pillars of the chamber music repertoire.’ Its uniformity of mood makes the work powerfully beautiful – if unbearable. It was composed after the composer suffered a serious illness and realized that he was dying. Some interpret it as Schubert's testament to death. All four movements are in minor keys - a surfeit of sombreness and melancholia that is not found in any work by Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven or Tchaikovsky. Only in Chopin’s ‘Funeral March’ Sonata can a parallel case be found.

‘Death and the Maiden’ was a song-setting by Schubert in 1817 to a poem by Claudius; it features in the first and second movements.

Maiden : Stay away! Oh, stay away!, Go, fierce Death! Thou grisly man of bone!, I am still young, please go!, And do not touch me.

Death : Give me your hand, you beautiful and tender vision!, I am a friend, and come not to hurt you. Be of good cheer! I am not cruel, You will sleep softly in my arms!

The opening is dark, harrowing and powerful, eventually giving way to a gentler, more resigned theme; perhaps this represents the grim apparition of Death confronting a tender maiden? The second movement uses the second half of ‘Death and the Maiden’ but now the song’s melodic idea becomes the starting point for a new song, then subject to five variations. The third movement is at first blustery, then delicate and warm, then blustery again. The final Presto is demonic, propelled onward by a breathless tarantella dance in 6/8 time. The episodes rapidly juxtapose the severe and the smooth in a swirling, deadly embrace. The tempo quickens to a manic pace and it ends abruptly.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

'Britain's favourite clarinettist' - Emma Johnson and pianist - John Lenehan are coming to Morpeth!

Sun, 18 Nov 2018 16:08:29 GMT

Thursday 6th December 2018 at 7.30pm

Emma Johnson was the winner of the BBC Young Musician of the Year competition in 1984. She combines the classical repertoire with jazz and other styles; and is strongly committed to workshops and performances with children across the UK. She received the MBE for services to music.

John Lenehan is a composer and arranger as well as an international soloist in his own right, playing in the concert halls of London, Amsterdam, Salzburg and New York, to name but a few.

Book your tickets online now! - click here to book online. We expect this concert to be very popular so do buy your tickets in advance in order to avoid disappointment.

Find out more about Emma Johnson and watch a video of her playing here . Find out more about John Lenehan here

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Introduction, Theme and Variations for clarinet Gioachino Rossini 1792-1868

i. Andante; ii. Allegretto iii. Five variations (composed 1810)

Bon viveur, gourmet, dancer, composer, the ‘Italian Mozart’ and pianist, Rossini wrote sacred music, songs, chamber music, piano pieces and of course his 39 operas, such as ‘The Barber of Seville’ and ‘The Italian Girl in Algiers’. He earned the nickname ‘Signor Crescendo’ for his use of an exciting build-up of orchestral sound over a repeated phrase. According to the Oxford History of Music ‘Rossini's fame surpassed that of any previous composer, and so, for a long time, did the popularity of his works. Audiences took to his music as if to an intoxicating drug - or to champagne, with which Rossini's bubbly music was often compared.’

The introduction (Andante) begins with a loud call from the piano to get the listener's attention. The volume recedes as the soloist enters, playing a sweet melody. A short crescendo from the piano is followed by more virtuosic music from the soloist. The theme (Allegretto) which follows is a perky tune. In Variation 1, the pace quickens as the clarinet embellishes the theme. A short interlude leads to Variation 2 in which demisemiquavers dominate the continuing fast pace. Another short piano interlude leads to Variation 3. Arpeggios, repeated notes and scales are played by the soloist. In Variation 4, the tempo slows as the clarinet plays a soulful version of the theme. Here Rossini showcases the clarinet's range of expression and volume. The tempo quickens leading up to Variation 5, which the soloist usually plays at break neck speed.

Sonata in F minor Opus 120 No. 1 Johannes Brahms 1833-1897

i. Allegro appassionato; ii. Andante un poco Adagio; iii Allegretto grazioso; iv. Vivace (composed 1894)

Brahms was a German composer and pianist. Born in Hamburg into a Lutheran family, he spent much of his professional life in Vienna. He is sometimes grouped with JS Bach and Beethoven as one of the ‘the great three Bs’. Brahms realised the capabilities of the clarinet near the end of his life after becoming friends with virtuoso clarinetist, Mühlfield. These capabilities included the clarinet’s three register range, and its opportunities for wide leaps and rapid arpeggios. Mühlfield gave the sonata’s first performance.

The mood of the first movement is lyrical and wistful. The piano's introductory four-bar descending phrase and clarinet's opening theme set the mood and provide much of the material for the first movement. The slow movement is one of Brahms' most beautiful - a contented dream based on a descending theme. The third movement is an amiable waltz, with a descending motif contrasting with its rising inversion. The last movement starts with three loud chords from the piano, and the clarinet joins in with a skipping forward drive.

++++++ Interval of 25 minutes, including non-alcoholic mulled wine and mince pies++++++

Sonata for clarinet Francis Poulenc 1899-1963

i. Allegro tristamente (Allegretto-Très calme-Tempo allegretto); ii. Romanza; iii. Allegro con fuoco (composed 1962)

Musically self-educated, Poulenc met Erik Satie. Under his tutelage Poulenc became one of a group of young composers known as ‘Les Six’. Poulenc was an accomplished pianist and had celebrated partnerships with the singers Bernac and Duval, touring with them worldwide. He made recordings with each, being one of the first composers to see the importance of the gramophone.

After a brief fortissimo introduction consisting of angry spurts from the clarinet punctuated by piano chords, the piano quietens. The clarinet's lines are built of a series of arcs that leave a shape but not a tune in our ears. As the movement ends, the lingering memory is a fuzzy one of melancholy gestures and moods. The second movement is clearer in its melodic makeup. The clarinet melody is simple and sombre throughout, but is elaborately embroidered in a few places. The third movement combines various nimble, articulate, and rhapsodic themes, bookended by a clownish tune—a mixture of serious and silly that well represents Poulenc's oeuvre as a whole.

The clarinetist Benny Goodman commissioned the piece, intending to premiere it accompanied by the composer. However, Poulenc died suddenly of a heart attack and the premiere was performed at Carnegie Hall by Goodman and Bernstein – so linking nicely to the next pieces in the recital.

Sonata for clarinet and piano Leonard Bernstein 1918-1990

i. Grazioso - Un poco piu mosso; ii. Andantino - Vivace e leggiero (composed 1941)

Bernstein was an American composer, conductor, author, music lecturer, and pianist. He is famous for his long tenure as music director of the New York Philharmonic and for his compositions – most famously ‘West Side Story’. If you have seen the film ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ about the life of Freddie Mercury, Bernstein has some similarities to him. Both came to recognise their bisexuality, but remained to their deaths devoted to their first loves, the women they had married.

The sonata is ‘a haunting work whose sonorities remind one of religious incantation, the opening theme of Stravinsky’s Firebird and smoke-filled jazz clubs.’ The first movement opens with a wandering clarinet tune. As the pace picks up, the piano’s rhythmic repeated motif gives us the first clues that West Side Story is only a decade away. An austere lyricism marks the opening of the second movement, which achieves intimacy by means of its slow tempo, steady pace, and sparse scoring. The nimble pulse of Latino-inflected jazz soon makes its appearance. These two modes of musical appeal—the soulful and the syncopated—play alternately for the listener’s attention.

Tribute to Benny Goodman (Arranged by Johnson and Lenehan) George Gershwin 1898-1937

Benny Goodman (1909–1986) was a virtuoso jazz clarinettist and swing bandleader. In the mid-1930s, Goodman led one of the most popular musical groups in the United States. His concert at Carnegie Hall in New York on January 16, 1938 was described as ‘the single most important jazz or popular music concert in history’. The arrangements are of Gershwin’s ‘Lady Be Good’, ‘The Man I Love’ and ‘I Got Rhythm’.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Come and hear the Engegård String Quartet play Haydn, Grieg & Schumann!

Wed, 31 Oct 2018 20:32:01 GMT

Thursday 8th November 2018 at 7.30pm

Formed under the midnight sun in Lofoten in 2006, the Engegård has become one of Norway’s most sought after ensembles. Their recent CD, which included work by Grieg, was praised in Music Web International, as ‘what Grieg lovers have been waiting for’.

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Find out more about the Engegård Quartet and watch a video of their playing here

Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Just what is a quartet? The dictionary definition is merely a work written in four separate vocal or instrumental parts. However, the string quartet, using two violins, one viola and one cello, demands far more -perhaps Goethe said it best: ‘a stimulating conversation between four intelligent people’.

Quartet in D minor Opus 76, No. 2 (the Quinten) Josef Haydn 1732-1809

i. Allegro; ii. Andante o più tosto (rather like) allegretto; iii. Vivace assai ( composed 1797)

Haydn was a prominent and prolific Austrian composer of the Classical period. His compositions earned him the epithets ‘Father of the Symphony’ and ‘Father of the String Quartet’. He spent much of his career as a court musician for the wealthy Esterházy family at their remote estate. He was the son of a wheelwright and a cook. He had such a fine voice that at the age of five he entered a choir school in Vienna. The choirmaster suggested Haydn become a castrato, but his father objected and the operation never went ahead. At age 16, his voice having broken, Haydn left the choir in memorable fashion - snipping off the pigtail of one his fellow choirboys and then publicly caned.

Haydn composed the six quartets of his Opus 76 shortly after returning from his second trip to London. This quartet is known as the ‘Quinten’ (Fifths) for its distinctive opening motif of falling tonic and dominant intervals of fifths which generate the entire work; perhaps not coincidentally, they are the familiar sounds of Big Ben, whose pealing may have stuck in Haydn's ears in London.

The opening Allegro is a stern movement. The first violin’s first four notes twice outline the interval of the falling fifth, and all the movement’s thematic material derives from that drop of a fifth. The second movement brings relaxation and sunlight and belongs largely to the first violin, which soars easily over the other voices. The third movement brings back the rigour of the first. It is a minuet in strict canon: the violins (an octave apart) are followed at a one-bar interval by the viola and cello (also an octave apart).

In the finale the main theme is syncopated in a way suggesting folk origins, and some have heard the braying of a donkey in the first violin’s swooping descents in the second theme. In the closing moments Haydn eases gracefully into D major: the first violin makes this change pianissimo, gradually gathers energy, and then rushes the quartet to its radiant conclusion.

Quartet in G minor, Opus 27 Edvard Grieg 1843-1907

i. Un poco andante, Allegro molto ed agitato; ii. Romanze, Andantino; iii Intermezzo. Allegro molto marcato; iv. Finale, Lento. Presto al saltarello

(composed 1878)

Grieg is Norway’s most famous musical son. However, the Scots could lay claim to him being one of their own as his Scottish great-grandfather emigrated to Scandinavia after the Battle of Culloden. Following Grieg’s marriage to his cousin Nina in 1867 and the birth of their daughter, he composed his most enduring masterpiece, the A minor Piano Concerto, in a flurry of inspiration. Grieg received an honorary degree from Cambridge University in 1894. Straight after the ceremony he sent a telegram to a physician friend in Bergen, who shared his surname, signing it ‘Doctor Grieg’. In 1906 Grieg became ill and moved to the warmth of a hotel in Christiana. He was about to visit Britain when he suffered a massive heart attack, dying in hospital shortly after arrival.

Grieg composed only one complete string quartet. Like many composers, Grieg borrows from his own music for the main theme of the quartet: a portion of his sombre song ‘Spillamæd’ (Minstrels). The icy theme is announced in unison by the quartet at the beginning, followed by the slow introductory andante and the bristling allegro. The second movement begins with a gently swaying waltz that accelerates into an intoxicating whirl around the dance floor. This is but a tentative warm-up for the intricate motions of the third movement, a scherzo with the rustic spice of a festival dance under the midnight sun. The finale ultimately surpasses this energetic frolic with its saltarello, a leaping dance of Italian origin. Grieg's absorption of Nordic folk dances, such as the springdans, is evident here along with heavy syncopations and cross-rhythms in an unbridled, lyrical frenzy.

Quartet in A major, Opus 41, No. 3 Robert Schumann 1810-1856

i. Andante espressivo - Allegro molto moderato; ii. Assai agitato - Un poco adagio - Tempo risoluto; iii. Adagio molto; iv. Finale: Allegro molto vivace – Quasi Trio

(composed 1842)

Schumann was born in Saxony, the fifth and last child of his parents. He began to compose before the age of seven, but his boyhood was spent in the cultivation of literature as much as music – undoubtedly influenced by his father who was a bookseller, publisher and novelist. He had intended a career as a virtuoso pianist until a hand injury (self-inflicted from a contraption designed to aid the strength and agility of his fingers) made this impossible. He became a composer and influential music critic. Schumann suffered from a mental disorder, first appearing in 1833. After a suicide attempt in 1854, Schumann was admitted to a mental asylum near Bonn at his own request, where he died two years later.

1842 was Schumann's 'Chamber Music Year': three string quartets, a piano quartet and a piano quintet. Such creativity may have been due to Schumann at last winning, in July 1840, the protracted legal case in which his ex-teacher, Friedrich Wieck, attempted to forbid him from marrying Wieck's daughter, Clara. They were married in 1840, the day before Clara's 21st birthday.

Robert accompanied Clara at the start of her concert tour of North Germany, but he tired of being in her shadow, returned home in a state of melancholy, and comforted himself with beer and champagne. When Clara returned, he returned to work and wrote these three quartets of Opus 3, dedicating them to Mendelssohn; they were first performed on Clara's birthday.

The brief introductory Andante opens with a sighing, falling fifth. It sets the mood and both opens the main Allegro and recurs throughout it in various guises. Schumann's rhythmic trickery pops up in the second subject of the Allegro. After a brief silence, the upper strings start their off-beat accompaniment just before the cello enters with the theme; this is deceptive for the listener and is a notorious pitfall for the amateur player. Another rhythmic trick starts the second movement, where everyone enters on the last quaver of the bar, but the tune is tied over as if the first note were really the downbeat. There follows a set of variations culminating in one of relentless energy with the accent on the offbeat, dominated by leaps that rework the opening falling fifth. A calming coda prepares us for the beautiful Adagio molto, whose opening theme is based on a rising figure that again embraces an interval of a fifth. There are more rhythmic tricks in the Finale. The rustic theme starts with an accented up-beat which sounds like a down-beat as if the rustics are also tipsy.

Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Come and hear Vivaldi, Bach and more from the Kammerphilharmonie Europa orchestra!

Thu, 20 Sep 2018 20:42:25 GMT

Thursday 18th October 2018 at 7.30pm

The Kammerphilharmonie Europa (European Chamber Orchestra) was founded in 2006 and is based in Cologne. It draws on a pool of sixty musicians from all over Europe and tours widely, tailoring the scale of its performances to the demands of different audiences and venues. The repertoire of the Kammerphilharmonie ranges from baroque to modern. For our concert, the orchestra will be joined by trumpeter Cyril Gussaroff.

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Find out more about the programme for our concert:

Concerto in G minor F.X1 No 21 Antonio Vivaldi (1678-1741)

i. Allegro; ii. Largo; iii. Allegro (composed circa 1720)

Vivaldi was an Italian Baroque composer, virtuoso violinist, teacher, and cleric. He is one of the greatest Baroque composers, and his influence during his lifetime spread across Europe. Like many composers of the time, Vivaldi faced financial difficulties in his later years. Shortly after a move to Vienna, his patron Charles VI died. Vivaldi became impoverished, died, and was buried in a simple grave in ground owned by the public hospital.

At the beginning of the twentieth century Vivaldi was virtually unknown to everyone except a few scholars; only a fifth of his works had been published in his lifetime. So unknown was he that the great violinist Kreisler got away with composing a concerto and passing it off as Vivaldi’s. This changed just before the Second World War when crates of music were discovered containing hundreds of works autographed by Vivaldi. Neglected works such as this Concerto reveal the marvellous writing for strings of which Vivaldi was a master.

Trumpet Concerto Saint Marc in E flat major Tomaso Albinoni (1671-1751)

i. Grave; ii. Allegro; iii. Andante; iv. Allegro

Albinoni was an Italian Baroque composer. While famous in his day as an opera composer, he is known today for his instrumental music, especially his concertos. Albinoni never styled himself a professional composer, did not seek a musical post in church or court, and referred to himself as a violin-playing musician. He inherited a business that manufactured playing cards.

This ‘Concerto’ was published in Amsterdam in 1712 as Sonata No 11 Opus VI. The work is now popularly (and apparently irrevocably) known among trumpeters as Concerto, a title which might be considered odd for a work which began as a sonata.

Violin Concerto in E major BWV 1042 Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)

i. Allegro; ii. Adagio; iii. Allegro assai (composed in 1855)

Bach was born in Eisenach, Germany into a great musical family. His father was the director of the town musicians, and all of his uncles were professional musicians. Bach’s father and brother taught him to play the violin, harpsichord and clavichord. Bach held musical posts across Germany serving as Kapellmeister (director of music) to Leopold, Prince of Anhalt-Köthen; as music director at the main Lutheran churches in Leipzig; and as educator at the Thomasschule.

Forkel, Bach's original biographer, describes this concerto as being ‘full of an unconquerable joy of life, which sings in the triumph of the first and last movements.’ In the first movement, Bach takes the basic idea of ritornello form (in which the accompanying instruments (called the ripieno). play recurring passages whilst the soloist plays contrasting ones) and shapes it superbly with repeats (da capo-form); neither soloist nor ripieno dominates the other. The middle movement is a mournful instrumental aria, in which the violin's intricate musings are woven in and around a quiet ostinato (repeated rhythmic pattern) in the bass instruments. The finale is an exuberant dance-like movement. Each successive contrasting passage exploits the violin's capabilities, until at last the final refrain swoops in on the wings of wild demi-semi-quavers.

Serenade for Strings in E flat major Opus 6 Josef Suk (1874-1935)

i. Andante con moto; ii. Allegro ma non troppo e grazioso; iii. Adagio; iv. Allegro giocoso (composed in 1892)

Suk was a Czech composer and violinist. He was taught the violin by his father and was formally educated in music. Suk married Dvořák’s daughter, Otilie, and the happiest time of his life followed. Then tragedy struck when Dvorak and Otilie died around 1905 within fourteen months of each other. His music changed after this and he became associated with a group of composers expounding Czech Modernism.

This Serenade was composed while Suk was studying under Dvořák, who recommended Suk write some lighter and more cheerful music. Suk took that advice and created his best-known work, a sunny and uncomplicated Serenade. In mood and mastery it is worthy of comparison with other great nineteenth century string Serenades by Tchaikovsky, Grieg, and Dvorák himself.

Adagio in G minor Remo Giazotto (1910-1998) and perhaps Tomaso Albinoni

The Adagio in G minor is a neo-Baroque composition popularly attributed to Albinoni, but actually composed by 20th-century musicologist and Albinoni biographer Remo Giazotto, purportedly based on the discovery of a manuscript fragment by Albinoni. There is a continuing debate about whether the alleged fragment was real, or a musical hoax, but there is no doubt about Giazotto's authorship of the remainder of the work. According to Giazotto, he obtained the document shortly after the end of World War II from the State Library in Dresden. Giazotto concluded that the manuscript fragment was a portion of a church sonata composed by Albinoni. Giazotto never produced the manuscript fragment, and no record has been found of it in the collection of the State Library.

The piece is most commonly orchestrated for string ensemble but with its growing fame has been transcribed for other instruments. The composition has permeated popular culture, having been used as background music for many films, in television programmes, and in advertisements.

Little Suite for Strings Opus 1 Carl Nielsen 1865-1931

i. Prelude; ii. Intermezzo; iii. Finale (composed in 1887)

Nielsen was a Danish musician, conductor and violinist, widely recognized as his country's most prominent composer. He died in Copenhagen following a series of heart attacks, surrounded by his family. His last words to them were ‘You are standing here as if you were waiting for something’.

Nielsen composed the Suite when he was only 22. It was first performed at the Tivoli Hall in Copenhagen and was a great success. Nielsen played in the orchestra and the middle movement was played as an encore. The suite's rather short, elegiac first movement is reminiscent of Scandinavian Romanticism, as expressed by Grieg. The Intermezzo, a waltz, gives a hint of the composer's love of triple time. The expansive Finale opens solemnly with the elegy theme but soon breaks loose into an animated sonata form in which Nielsen reintroduces the opening theme.

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Programme notes compiled from various sources.

Morpeth Music Society new season 2018-19

Tue, 14 Aug 2018 12:41:15 GMT

International musicians on our doorstep in Morpeth – experience the best classical music LIVE!

David Whetstone, culture editor of the Journal, wrote in 2017: 'Morpeth Methodist Church is a nice venue – more intimate, naturally, than the Sage and with a surprisingly clear acoustic. It was packed for this gig, even up in the gallery where the view was perfect.’

Our season headliner this year will be ‘ Britain’s favourite clarinettist’ , Emma Johnson ( 6th December ). Emma, with the eminent pianist, John Lenehan , will play a carefully selected programme ranging from Rossini to Bernstein and Gershwin. This concert will be our special Christmas event with complimentary seasonal refreshments of mince pies and non-alcoholic mulled wine during the interval.

The opening concert this year (our 74th season!) will be from Kammerphilharmonie Europa ( 18th October) who first played for us in 2016 to an enthusiastic reception from the audience. This warm and lively chamber string ensemble will pair up with trumpeter Cyril Gussaroff to perform a programme of mainly baroque repertoire.

Norway based Engegård Quartet ( 8th November ) follows with Grieg’s only completed string quartet as well as Haydn and Schumann.

The season continues in the New Year after Emma & John’s concert with the Chiaroscuro String Quartet ( 31st January ). This young ensemble will perform Beethoven, Schumann and Schubert in their trademark style on gut strings with historical bows.

Pianist Leon McCawley ( 21st March ) follows with a mainly classical and romantic recital concluding with Chopin’s popular Polonaise–Fantasie Op. 61. Leon won the 1993 International Beethoven Piano Competition and now has a busy solo career performing all over the world in between working as professor of piano at the Royal College of Music.

Our final concert of the 2018-19 season will be by the cellist Jamal Aliyev , with the pianist Jâms Coleman ( 11th April ). Rising star Jamal has already made his solo debut at the BBC Proms in 2017 and is currently studying for his Master’s.

Amazing value!

A season’s membership for all six concerts costs only £63 (saving £27 compared to buying separate adult tickets). Season ticket holders are encouraged to bring a friend to the first concert in the season for free.

Apply for your season ticket now via the JOIN page on the website.

Individual concert tickets are also available at £15 per concert for adults. (Students aged 18 years and under are warmly invited to attend free.) Tickets are available from Morpeth Methodist Church, the society secretary – telephone 01670 513369 or Morpeth Tourist Information Centre as well as from the website .

All of the concerts take place at Morpeth Methodist Church (fully accessible with a lift and a hearing loop) at 7.30 pm.