July News

Up North, with Northern Chamber Orchestra July was a very busy month - from 27/6 I had 43 calls to the end of July, at an average of over 8 per week. This includes 18 in 10 days at the start of the schedule. The UK bands work VERY hard indeed. NCO are fantastic - socially and musically. They are a tight knit bunch of amazing musicians, individually and collectively. And the home made cakes are a traditional going for years! Gigs - are coming in thick and fast now. The WNO trial looks like being the Autumn opera season from Sept-Dec 2011. A nice booking with Roger Norrington and Scottish Chamber Orchestra in August has just landed. Photo             - the final night of the La Boheme season in Melbourne. Christian Badea was fantastic, guiding the cast and orchestra towards a stunning performance. I was principal for this production, shown here sharing a desk with Dennis Vaughan.

Loren's new Tom Martin bass

This bass is a brand new Tom Martin concert 3/4, made for Loren Pugh in Melbourne. I was up in Banbury trying it out for Loren, on the way up to Buxton for a Maria di Rohan gig in the festival.

These basses are fantastic.

 

 

 

Stuart has a trial for principal bass with Welsh National Opera!!

The week around Wed 1st June was busy. The audition was, of course, the culmination of my practice both in Australia and back in the UK. If they havent been written already, the subject of auditions could fill many books. I am getting better at them - practice makes perfect. David Adams, Rosie Biss, Phillip Heyman, Mikeal Price, Mary Condliffe and the rest of the panel were charming. I could not have asked for a nicer group. And they spared me some of the "shockers"!! I am looking forward to the trial.

Gavin the bass playing gnome!

The photos - feature "Gavin", the Orchestra Victoria bass playing gnome at Albert Park, Melbourne.

While doing the Opera Australia Autumn (er Spring in the Northern Hemisphere) season I was called into a Pearlfishers rehearsal. Dennis went AWOL and Davin is still on leave in NYC, and as I was covering the show I was called in, er 10 mins before the call started. It is custom and practice to sit him on the stool of the player who is missing. Matthew Thorne, Leanda Smith and I could not pretend to have played a flawless rehearsal but Gavin didnt play one wrong note!

Davin Holt loaned me his beautiful Panormo bass - its a George or Joseph.

WNO principal audition - June 2011

Am busy working on the excerpts for the Welsh National Opera audition in early June. The excerpts are:-
Berg - Wozzeck - Act 3 solo, fig 55
Bach - Vn conc in E - 2nd movement tune in C# min
Britten - Peter Grimes - Fig 34, Molto Allegro, tricky passage
Britten - Peter Grimes - the nasty G flat maj passage with lots of string crossings
Britten - Albert Herring - solo at fig 37
Mozart - Magic Flute - Overture, all of it
Strauss - Adriadne auf Naxos - 104-107, and 129, the latter is tricky
Strauss - Der Rosenkavalier - reh 102 and 154
Verdi - Aida - the slow A maj bit that is often a tuning problem
Verdi - Falstaff - Act III, Parte I, Allegro Agitato, molto staccato passage
Verdi - Otello - Act 4 section solo
Verdi - Rigoletto- fig 3 solo with solo cello, F maj tune
Verdi - La Traviata - stretta del introduzione, the F min passage that goes up a semitone every 2 bars
Verdi - La Traviata - bar 114, off the string passagework
Verdi - La Traviata - bar 213, off the string passagework

The solo pieces are a first movement concerto, plus another. And there is the chance of sightreading!

Its a good list, all opera except for the Bach, and lots of Verdi. No surprise there!

Stuart is off to Melbourne - 23/3/11

I am off for some sunshine and to work with Orchestra Victoria and Opera Australia. Work includes seasons of La Boheme, Pearlfishers and Verdi's Macbeth, as well as chamber music concerts and cello/bass workshops at the VCA. Unfortunately I had to pull out of some work with the Tasmanian Symphony, as there was not enough time to get from Edinburgh on 21/3 to Hobart early on 24/3, not without killing myself.

Scottish Chamber Orchestra - 21/3/11

I did a casual audition on Monday 21/3 - everything about it was wonderful, the SCO people were great including the panel. Nikita and Adrian were very gentle. And I was lucky enough to get through and get on the casual list. Am thrilled.