Friends of Florilegium President ~ Dame Emma Kirkby OBE Honorary Vice Presidents ~ David Hill and Sir David Lumsden June 2016 – culmination of Florilegium’s 25th anniversary Ashley Solomon writes: and we are delighted to be working with We repeat our Brandenburg Concertos him that month. David Hill, personally, in the lovely Kent setting of Stour Music, Florilegium’s first concert was given in has been working with Florilegium for 20 an annual festival run by Mark Deller London in July 1991, and plans have years, starting with his former choir, The (son of the late great countertenor been underway for some time for the Waynflete Singers in Winchester, with Alfred Deller) and are delighted to be 25th anniversary concert, which will be whom Florilegium still regularly perform, returning to this festival after a number of held in London’s Wigmore Hall on Friday and for the last 15 years Florilegium has years. 3 June 2016. This will be a performance provided an orchestra for The Bach of the complete Bach Brandenburg Choir’s annual St Matthew Passion at the The final two concerts in June will again Concertos, and will be followed by an Royal Festival Hall. be a return to a festival, working with a appropriate Reception. festival Director we have had a good Four days later sees our return to the relationship with over some years, the However, this is just the first of six National Trust property, Hatchlands Park. Scottish composer Alasdair Nicolson, at concerts that month and we are very Three members of Florilegium have St Magnus Festival, Orkney. The last time pleased to be working with some old performed there for the last few seasons, we were in St Magnus we took our and valued associates during this time though I take my students from the Bolivian choir, Arakaendar Bolivia Choir, – and we don’t just mean the players! Historical Performance faculty of the but this time the first of two concerts we Two days after the Wigmore Hall Royal College of Music there regularly. will perform there will be Purcell’s ‘Dido concert sees our return to the Royal and Aeneas’. I will again direct this Festival Hall, London, to provide an performance, as I did for Alasdair, when orchestra for The Bach Choir’s Ashley, he was Director of the Bath International performance of Bach’s Mass in B Minor. Terence Music Festival in 2013, but this time we The Choir’s conductor, David Hill, has and Reiko in will swap the steaming Roman Baths for rehearsal at been a long-time supporter of Hatchlands St Magnus Cathedral. Florilegium (he is an Honorary Vice- Park, June President of the Friends of Florilegium) 2015. Please support Florilegium; become a Friend! Ashley Solomon records on period flutes Florilegium is acclaimed worldwide for its As mentioned overleaf, in the evenings College of Music, and he agreed to performances and recordings. However following the Florilegium Telemann purchase it for the RCM’s Museum, once the group receives no public funding; its sessions, Ashley started recording Ashley had done this recording. finite resources comprise ticket revenue Telemann’s 12 Fantasies for solo flute, and the committed generosity of its loyal which were composed sometime About four weeks later Ashley had an supporters. between 1728-1733. On those evenings exciting visit to Marlborough House where he was able to record on a rare, period, he met the keeper of the Royal We are very grateful to our Friends and ivory flute and he recorded three of the Collection. He was shown a Meissen flute hope you will consider joining them. Fantasies on this instrument. Ashley first from 1760, which had been given to From £30 per annum – roughly the cost of a saw and played it in 2014 when it was George III probably by Frederick the concert ticket – you could become a owned by a private individual, who had Great, which George played when he Friend of Florilegium. found it in his was convalescing in Kew in 1789. They possession. kindly agreed to allow him to record Florilegium prides itself on a close relationship with its audiences, Ashley then some more of the solo fantasies on this FREE expressed through CD! had a instrument for this solo CD. In addition, Friends of Florilegium. Friends’ discussion they will in due course discuss the idea of benefits and privileges include: with Ashley recording a CD for their shop, Professor which may be followed by recital in • a free copy of Florilegium’s limited Colin Lawson, Director of the Royal Buckingham Palace. edition compilation CD • a regular Newsletter • priority booking for certain concerts Florilegium promoted by Florilegium Director ~ Ashley Solomon • complimentary or discounted CDs as 21 Village Road they are released London N3 1TL • social events providing opportunities to Tel : +44 (0) 20 8346 2896 meet the members of Florilegium Email : [email protected] Website : www.florilegium.org.uk Director’s Circle members Friends of Florilegium supports • receive free CDs on release The Florilegium Trust • are acknowledged in Florilegium’s Registered charity 1060443 concert programmes SPRING 2016 • are invited to attend rehearsals DATES FOR YOUR DIARY A busy period So, instead of launching into a recording Thur Holy Trinity Church, London SW7 session on the Tuesday (1 December), 28 Jan Handel, Vivaldi, Locatelli etc Florilegium work tends to be one-off, or the day commenced with the rehearsal, for Imperial College maybe pairs, of concerts but the end of postponed from the previous afternoon. November/early December was a very The rest of that day was rearranged, but Fri Royal College of Music, London busy ten days. by the end of that day the recording 29 Jan 18th century coaching session was back on track. The following two It started on the Monday (23 November) days consisted of two recording sessions Sun Kings Place, London with an afternoon rehearsal for the for Channel Classics, of the new 31 Jan Benda, CPE Bach, JS Bach, concert that Wednesday, followed in the Telemann CD, which the group are Quantz evening with a rehearsal for recording making as their 25th anniversary London Chamber Music Series sessions, and Tuesday repeated that recording. pattern. Wednesday was the concert Fri Royal College of Music, London day, one of just two concerts the group In case you think that that wasn’t busy 12 Feb 18th century coaching session gives each year at London’s Wigmore enough, Ashley recorded solo on each Hall, this one with the wonderful baritone of these three evenings, playing a rare Sun Kings Place, London Roderick Williams (who had had to cut original 18th century flute, which 14 Feb Leclair, Telemann, Rebel short his original rehearsal the day before couldn’t be played on for more than 1 (with Mary Colllins, baroque as he was needed for a concert at or 1½ hours, as any longer could dancer) Buckingham Palace!). Thursday and damage the fragile instrument. Friday were free, but on the Saturday BBC Radio 3 also played their part in this Fri Royal College of Music, London Florilegium provided an orchestra for the period, by broadcasting a lunchtime 19 Feb 18th century coaching session Wimbledon Choral Society’s concert the group gave at LSO St Luke’s performance of Bach’s Christmas in October, as well as Ashley’s recording Fri Assembly Rooms, Bath Oratorio (4 of the 6 parts), performed to of CPE Bach’s solo flute sonata, CPE 19 Feb Bach, Vivaldi, Telemann a sold-out Southwark Cathedral. Bach being their ‘Composer of the Bath Bachfest Week’. On the Monday there was another Thur Royal College of Music, London rehearsal for the recording scheduled, 3 Mar 18th century coaching session this time in the recording venue, St Michael’s Highgate, where Florilegium Fri Royal College of Music, London hasn’t been worked for a number of 4 Mar 18th century coaching session years. This was to include the mezzo Clare Wilkinson. However, her Eurostar Sat St Andrew's & St George's West, that morning was cancelled and after 12 Mar Edinburgh she spent a lot of time rearranging her ‘Towards the Enlightenment’ travel, as we did the schedule, she Georgian Concert Society eventually arrived in London late that evening. Rehearsing before the LSO St Luke’s concert, February 2015 Sun Royal Festival Hall, London 20 Mar Bach: St Matthew Passion A trip down memory lane… NEXT WIGMORE HALL CONCERT Fri St Mary’s Church, Beverley Fri Florilegium’s 25th anniversary 27 May JC Bach, CPE Bach, Leclair For those of you who have followed 3 June concert Beverley Early Music Festival Florilegium for a number of years, here’s at Bach: Brandenburg Concertos a photo that will bring back memories. 7.00pm (complete) Fri Wigmore Hall, London In April 2015 on a trip to Australia, Ashley 3 June Florilegium’s 25th anniversary performed in Sydney conservatory with TICKETS AVAILABLE FROM 5 FEB concert two of its professors, Neal Peres da wigmore-hall.org.uk Bach: Brandenburg Concertos Costa (harpsichord) and Daniel Yeadon (cello), two of the original members of Sun Royal Festival Hall, London Florilegium who left in 2001, to move to 5 June Bach: Mass in B Minor Australia. However, they have been here more recently – they were special Thur Hatchlands Park, nr Guildford guest performers with Florilegium in the 9 June Couperin, Bach, Abel etc 20th anniversary concert at Wigmore Hall in July 2011. Sun All Saints’, Boughton Aluph 19 June Bach: Brandenburg Concertos Stour Music Tue St Magnus Cathedral, Kirkwall 21 June Purcell: Dido and Aeneas Florilegium on Twitter St Magnus Festival You can follow Florilegium via Twitter.