news and gossip
The Marriage of Figaro cast
Pre-concert talks
Commission for Emily Howard
Profile of Rebecca Sammut
Alan Jones - Golden Jubilee
Pacific Road on line
New e-mail address? Moving home?
The LMO is indebted to to the wonderful cast from the Royal Northern College of Music who gave such a fabulous performance of The Marriage of Figaro at Pacific Road Arts Centre on Saturday 16th February and to Stefan Janski, Director of Opera Studies at the College. Played to yet another full house, they took over the venue using all the opportunities its interesting internal architecture provides to give the audience what must surely have been a unique opera experience.
This season sees the launch of a new initiative in which MD, Mark Heron, invites concert goers to join him for a 30-minute talk before some of the season's concerts. These will commence at 6.45pm on selected concert days and will be held on the first floor, above the bar, at Pacific Road. Mark will talk about aspects of the concert programme and may take the opportunity to interview soloists or other individuals associated with the work of the LMO. There will be no additional charge for attending these sessions and we hope very much you will come along, get yourself a pre-concert drink and listen to what he has to say.
Mark gave the first pre-concert talk on Saturday 3rd November 2007 prior to the first concert of the season, played to a capacity house. It appears to have been much appreciated by all who attended and another is planned for 14th June 2008.
The former LMO cellist, Emily Howard, recently won another commission from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic. Emily, who is the daughter of LMO's Chairman Vyvyan Howard, was been invited to compose the opening piece, entitled Magnetite, for a concert to celebrate Liverpool's forthcoming year as European Capital of Culture performed at the Liverpool Phil on Thursday 6th December under the baton of Vasily Petrenko. Her piece was very well received by a full house and we are pleased to offer Emily many congratulations from all her friends at the LMO. Among those with LMO connections in the audience to mark the occasion were MD, Mark Heron, and former MD Guy Woolfenden.
Born in Birkenhead, Rebecca started playing the violin at the age of 9 by which time she was living in Scotland and she recalls that some of her earliest pieces were of Scottish fiddle music, a style which she still loves. After her family moved south to Kent, Rebecca’s interest in the violin developed and she joined Kent Music School, a centre for young people with a specialist interest in music, eventually becoming leader of their orchestra. On leaving school she went to study the violin for a year at Birmingham Conservatoire until she realised that she would prefer to enjoy music as a hobby rather than as a profession and she left to pursue her other ambition, medicine. She returned to school for a year to repeat A-levels after which she was successful in gaining a place at Liverpool Medical School in 2001. Rebecca says she immediately felt at home in Liverpool and has lived there happily ever since, enjoying life, first as a student and now as a junior doctor. She joined the Liverpool Mozart Orchestra in 2001 and thoroughly enjoys playing with the band. Soon after joining, she was moved to the orchestra’s Principal 2nd seat and has been an active member of the Committee since 2003. The size of the orchestra, essentially a chamber group, and its repertoire, based in the classics but occasionally venturing into more ‘remote’ areas, suit her perfectly. For Rebecca, the combination of the enjoyment and fun of making music, tempered with a serious search for excellent standards is just right.
Alan Jones - Golden Jubilee
When LMO violinist Alan Jones plays at the orchestra’s concert in November it will mark the 50th anniversary of his joining the band, having given his first LMO performance on 28th November 1957. All his friends within the orchestra offer Alan their warm congratulations on this remarkable achievement. They took great pleasure in electing him to Life Membership of the LMO at the recent Annual General Meeting.
Born in Liverpool in 1935, Alan’s interest in and love of music began in early childhood and has never stopped. At the age of 15 he attended the inaugural concert of the LMO in May 1951 and was determined to join one day. Following a period in the Merseyside Youth Orchestra he joined the LMO when he was a chemistry undergraduate at Liverpool, after a period of National Service. His involvement with the orchestra has been virtually unbroken since then.
Alan takes a great interest and pride in all he does, especially when it comes to music, and he is always one of the first to volunteer when help of whatever kind is required, be it making tea or lifting timpani. This generosity of spirit was soon spotted by LMO founder, David Dutch, who recruited him to the office of Secretary in the late 1960s. Alan was the second to occupy that post, the duties of which he undertook with thoroughness and precision. In 1992 he rejoined the Committee and took on the publicity port folio. He established and chaired a Publicity Group from 1993-1998 and organised the orchestra’s first web site.
As a player, he was Principal Second in the 1966-67 season and occupied that seat for concerts in later years. His commitment to the orchestra’s rehearsals and concerts has been and remains model, it being a rare event for Alan to miss either. Indeed, the last concert in which he was unable to perform was in 1993, 14 years ago!
Having won prizes for composition while he was an undergraduate, in later life Alan undertook a Masters Degree in the subject. The LMO is looking forward to giving the premier performance of his short and tuneful Sinfonietta at the November concert. He also has a strong interest in the musical heritage of his native Merseyside, a topic he has studied and researched for many years. This has culminated in his construction and publication of a web site recording, with annotations, all those composers with Merseyside connections - www.merseysidecomposers.org.uk - well worth a look.
Alan’s musical interests and activities, while being centred on the LMO, extend far beyond. For many years he has been involved with the Liverpool-based Rodewald Concert Society and he is a loyal supporter of the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Society and the Hoylake Concert Society.
Alan’s love of music is matched only by his love of mountaineering and skiing. He has been a skiing instructor for many years and was Chairman of the North West Ski Federation, and served on national committees. He has achieved considerable success in competitive skiing, winning an impressive number of medals in national and international competitions. His mountaineering adventures have taken him to K2 in the Himalayas and Gunnbjornsfjeld, the highest peak in the Arctic Circle. However, despite his high-altitude activities, Alan is very down to earth and modest about his achievements – a truly amazing man. Here’s to the next 50 years, Alan!
Have you visited the Pacific Road web site? This new site gives all the information you need to know about events at the venue including, of course, all LMO concerts. It is also possible to book your seats on-line. So why not visit them and take a look for yourself.
For the more traditional approach to buying and reserving seats, you can always give them a call on 0151 647 0752.
New e-mail address? Moving home?
If you are one of our many supporters who receive concert promotions by e-mail and have changed your address – please let us know so that our e-mailing list can be updated. Each time an e-mail shot goes out, a couple of addresses are rejected and there is generally very little that can be done to remedy the situation. Likewise, if you are about to change your postal address, or if for any reason you would prefer not to receive postal mail shots from the LMO in future, do please let us know so that appropriate arrangements can be made.