This year's Music Service Christmas Concert included performances given by three of the District's top youth ensembles. The members of the groups played to a full house and responded to the support by producing a varied and superbly performed concert. Opening the evening, Wakefield Youth Symphonic Wind Band played four pieces, including two which were composed by the band's director, Stephen D Wood. The variety continued with Wakefield Youth Brass Band playing items ranging from arrangements of 'Yesterday' and 'Out of Africa' to more traditional brass band fare such as the march 'Vermont'.
The second half of the evening was provided by Wakefield Youth Symphony Orchestra, opening with the contemporary piece 'The Sea' by Alasdair Reid. Directed by Nick Meredith and ably lead by Chaanah Grace, the orchestra also played Mussorgsky's 'Night on a Bare Mountain', a symphonic suite from the film 'Harry Potter' and the Quantz Flute Concerto in G, featuring WYSO's own Helen Channer as the soloist.
Teachers and students with Wakefield Music Services had some very pleasing news awaiting them when they returned to school this September. The long wait for the results over the Summer holidays was rewarded with the news that WMS had achieved a 100% pass rate in the exam session with a high proportion of pupils gaining merits and distinctions.
A total of 91 pupils took exams in the last session, ranging from grades 1 through to 8, with 51% of all candidates achieving a merit or distinction. Wakefield Music Services would like to extend their congratulations to all students taking part in the exams, and to thank them for all their hard work and dedication.
This July the annual week-long course for the Wakefield Youth Symphony Orchestra saw the group tackle one of their most challenging programmes yet. The finest of Wakefield's young musicians spent a week under the tutelage of WYSO's conductor, Nick Meredith and performed in a joint concert with Wakefield Youth Choir at Wakefield Cathedral on Friday 9th July.
The programme played by the orchestra included Walton's incidental music to the film 'Henry V', Malcolm Arnold's 'Scottish Dances', John Rutter's 'Distant Lands' and most adventurously, Philip Wilby's 'Concerto for Percussion' performed by the international soloist, Simone Rebello. Philip Wilby is Yorkshire's finest composer in recent years and his percussion concerto, written in 1993 for the English Northern Philharmonia is a testing piece for any orchestra to attempt.
While Central Area concert band were entertaining the crowds at Pugneys for the Sandal Castle 10k race, a further event organised by Wakefield Music Services was taking place at Cathedral School. This day of workshops for young string players was run by Wakefield's team of string teachers, headed by Paul Wood, Head of Strings.
The event was attended by string players from all parts of the district with the age of players ranging from 8 to 13. The musicians were split into 2 sections for much of the day, one for those players of Grade 1 to 2 and another for more advanced musicians of Grade 2 and above. However, the highlight of the day for many will have been the combination of the 2 groups to form a "massed band" of students playing together. The pieces performed on the day ranged from well written modern pieces for young string orchestras to well known classics such as Mozart's 'A Musical Joke'.
On May 16th, Central Area Concert Band were proud to be entertaining the onlookers and runners at the 2004 Sandal Castle 10K race event. Conducted by Lee Benstead, Head of Central Area Music Centre, the band played a varied programme of music over the morning.
This years event at Pugneys Country Park was split into the main 10 kilometre race and a 2.5 kilometre fun run and saw a record number of 1.349 runners taking part in the 2 races. Families and friends of the runners seemed to be appreciative of the quality of performance offered by the band and combined with the warm sunny weather, the day was thoroughly enjoyable for all those taking part.
Young jazz musicians in Wakefield were privileged to be involved in a day of Big Band Workshops run by the founder of the highly esteemed Doncaster Youth Jazz Association, John Ellis MBE. Over 30 young musicians from across the district took part in the event organised by Wakefield Music Services, which culminated in a short concert at the end of the course.
Eight pieces of music were studied on the day, ranging from jazz standards such as 'Take the A Train' to modern pieces written for Youth Jazz Orchestra such as 'Easin' Along' by Sammy Nestico. The Head of Woodwind for Wakefield Music Services, Roger Scorah, comments "A fantastic day was had by both students and teachers. It was a pleasure to work with John Ellis - his enthusiasm is infectious!"
