MUSIC
F or the first time in our history, the three Foundation Schools came together to perform one of the seminal works of the choral repertoire in the superb Royal Festival Hall on London’s South Bank. Giuseppe Verdi’s Requiem , his dramatic masterpiece, was performed by a chorus of over 400 singers, an orchestra of 110 players, and four internationally renowned soloists, and was conducted by Chris Dearmer, Peter Gritton and Richard Mayo – the Directors of Music at Alleyn’s, JAGS and Dulwich College respectively. The concert not only celebrated the music of the three schools but also marked the 400th year of Christ’s Chapel – the heart of the Dulwich Foundation and gift of our founder, Edward Alleyn. The concert was heard by a near- capacity audience of 2,500 people. The concert began with Verdi’s Pater Noster and, whilst it is perhaps curious to mark a celebration with a Requiem Mass, Verdi’s superbly cast music enabled the performance of six choirs, pupils, parents, former pupils friends of the school, and three sets of orchestral musicians to come together to perform a piece that contains music of the highest quality. The soloists were Jane Irwin, soprano; Louise Callinan, mezzo soprano; David Butt Philip, tenor; and Rodney Earl Clarke (OA), bass; and the orchestra was led in turn by Isabella Schofield (JAGS OG 2015), Chloë Meade (Alleyn’s OG 2014), and Robert Miller (OA 2015). Rehearsals for all six choirs began during the Michaelmas term and
became focused in the Lent term. The orchestra had been rehearsed in sections by tutors, all of whom were Heads of Instrumental Departments or Visiting Music Teachers from the three schools. The students in the orchestra worked with a purpose and coherence that was highly impressive. With such very large forces, it was the College’s Great Hall that hosted the two full rehearsals, which were held on consecutive Sundays in the lead-up to the day of the concert itself. The four soloists joined for the second of these two full rehearsals and their presence and musicianship undoubtedly generated a heightened sense of musical expectation and excitement. On the day itself, rehearsals took place in the morning and it was perhaps in these rehearsal moments that the scale and quality of achievement was first beginning to be recognised. Behind the musical scenes, a team of colleagues assembled from the three schools – all with expert skills in matters of marketing, communication and publicity and chaired by Jane Scott. The occasion would not have been the extraordinary success that it was without the work of this team The performance will undoubtedly be remembered, for many years to come, by all those who listened to the music and by those who were fortunate to have taken part. A true celebration by over 500 musicians from Dulwich and, crucially, the work of Mette Turner, the Concert Manager.
A TRULY REMARKABLE PERFORMANCE
Richard Mayo , Director of Music at Dulwich College,
reports on the making of one of the College’s largest and most ambitious musical events – the Joint Foundation Schools Concert held in the Royal Festival Hall on Wednesday 16th March 2016
Photographs: Daniel Shearing
to mark Edward Alleyn’s Chapel and extraordinary Gift of 1616.
The students in theorchestraworked withapurposeandcoherence thatwashighly impressive
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