On Wednesday February 12th a full house of parents and siblings were treated to a most enjoyable evening – a concert given by the young musicians of Keswick with the support of the Keswick Music society. Pupils in an age range from Junior schools to Keswick School produced a really impressive programme of instrumental and vocal performances – the solo pieces for piano, violin, voice, saxophone, guitar, and combinations of these, were a pleasure to listen to and showed the dedicated practice and love of music which is being encouraged at all levels. There were larger instrumental groups: a String Quartet, Guitar Group, Guitar Ensemble, and a self motivated Boys’ Violin Sextet, all demonstrating impressive musicality, ensemble and accurate intonation, while the Keswick School String Ensembles both Senior and Junior, the Wind Band, and the Skiddaw Strings reached a higher level of performance than ever. The most unusual item was the St Herbert’s Hand Bell Ringers, whose young performers showed intense concentration and musicality: the sound of their unusual instruments was especially enjoyed by the audience in their arrangement of Over the Rainbow. The music staff and the peripatetic teachers of all schools involved are to be congratulated on the high standards and evident enthusiasm of all the young players and singers.
Review by Mary Cooke