Colin Twigg Catherine Schofield Michael Schofield Lucy Wilding
What better than to use one of the letters we received after the event to summarise what it was all about! To quote ...
I was present at an interesting and delightful musical experiment at Hounslow Civic Centre last week when the Bridge String Quartet, the Musicians In Residence for the Borough of Hounslow got together with musicians from the Raj Academy to present a programme of European and Sikh music.
This initiative took the form of a performance of a Haydn Quartet by the Bridge followed by a performance of a Rag by the Indian musicians. Performers from each group spoke briefly before they played, about their music and its cultural context. We heard how Haydn’s 70 quartets mostly follow an established form whilst the Sikh musicians explained that each Rag follows a set sequence of notes suggesting a mood within which players are free to elaborate. Any one rag might last several hours.
After the music we were treated to some delicious Indian snacks prepared by the Asian Womens' Group of Feltham who are friends of the Bridge Quartet following a previous event. We then took our places for a discussion led by Jane Sebba, a music education specialist, who developed a lively exchange between musicians and audience covering questions of interpretation as well as technical points about their instruments.
At the close there was a feeling of exhilaration and fellowship with the anticipation of future similar concerts.
Why has this not been done before? More please!