| THE CANFORD COMPOSERS | Workshop 2004 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| from The Composers' Workshop at The Canford Summer School of Music | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Concert Programme 2004 |
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"Canford Idyll"
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| 2004 detailed comments by David Atmosphere. Parking the car at random, to find my bearings on arrival, I accosted the only people in sight - a group of laid back, variously dressed students apparently enjoying an impromptu cocktail party on the lawns - with "Where do I find the Canford Composers". Somehow I knew the answer in advance: "That's us". Moments later a distinguished-looking member of the group held out his hand: "Hello. I'm Malcolm Singer". In its friendly informality, linked with serious aims (not always a cocktail party), that encounter epitomised the week to come. I immediately felt welcome. Participants. With differences in age of up to 59 years, the group included three broad categories: brilliant young students, a key element among the performing members of the workshop, by whom all compositions were played; regular attenders (the largest group), a mixture of professionals and amateurs, several of whom had been coming for many, even all, of the seventeen years Malcolm has run the workshop; and a few newcomers. Eighteen of us were British, four (widely dispersed) from overseas. I felt lucky to be amongst these people. United by our interest in the subject, and by Malcolm's expert guidance, we had entirely gelled by the end of two days. The diversity of our other interests made it fun when, occasionally, we had time to talk. Leadership. Malcolm Singer's no nonsense modesty belies an impressive cv. A successful composer with a great talent for teaching, he even supplied books and CDs with which to fill the gaps - non-existent for most of us - between our plenary sessions, composing, and hearing the twenty-two short compositions, based on given material, we had brought with us, followed by the further twenty-two produced on the spot. He also found time to shed real light on two interesting modern compositions, to let two skilled players describe the capabilities of their instruments, and to discuss general issues. Though, on principle, he never pronounced a piece good or bad, Malcolm's comments, as each was played, while everyone listened, high-lighted points from which all could learn. Musical Material. To avoid undue 'scatter', we were told what instruments or voices could be used in our two compositions, and asked to heed two constraints: a specified mood, and a set of notes to serve as starting point. Different notes were proposed for first and second pieces, but the mood, of a 'vanishing idyll', was to be the same for both. The incentive of the end-of-course concert, at which a contribution from each member was played, spurred us on. Chronicle of events. Having a building more or less to ourselves, we enjoyed a more intensive schedule than other courses, with an extra after-lunch session (as well as two in the morning and one after tea) each day and an evening session on the first day, and could also use the installed keyboards, or our computers, before breakfast or after supper! The sense of 'time's winged chariot' pressing upon us added exhilaration to all activities, namely, group or individual sessions with Malcolm; rehearsal and play-through of the forty-four pieces, preparation for the Saturday afternoon concert. Idyllic weather enhanced the feeling of euphoria. |
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