Elm Singers

John Webber and his Elm Singers shared the platform at St Mary’s Shortlands with Stone Road Single Reeds on Saturday 17 May for a Summer Concert in aid of Everyone Matters. Reverend Morag Finch welcomed us all to her spacious modern church that on this gorgeous summer evening was flooded with both sound and light. Bromley Arts Society mounted an exhibition and the evening’s music juxtaposed Palestrina with Pinafore, Schubert with Shearing. The performers ranged from youngsters in their teens to seniors in their mid-80s, a real advertisement for the power of music to bring the generations together in a shared pleasure. Four young professional clarinet players from the Band of the Grenadier Guards gave their time to support the wind ensemble, and were especially featured in Mozart’s glorious Adagio for 2 clarinets and 3 basset horns K.411. Schubert’s Shepherd on the Rock was sung by Margaret Cadney with Margaret Archibald on clarinet obbligato and John at the keyboard. There was an excellent turnout in support of the event, including one friend newly returned from a trip to Vietnam, and another whose house is almost within sight of the church. Barbara’s interval refreshments, the collection plate at the end, and subsequent postal donations have between them raised nearly £400 for Everyone Matters. The funds will help towards several projects requested for June including a new interactive workshop programme for young people with severe learning difficulties and on the autistic spectrum that is being devised at the invitation of Priory School;

 A post-16 student launches into a spontaneous Cossack move during  an Everyone Matters dance workshop at Priory School in South Norwood.

to be called “Changing Times”, it is to be a musical exploration of changing moods, styles, rhythms and tempi, and will celebrate the school’s move this term to a brand new building.

Jazz Sunday

Ten players crammed into the music room at my house in Bromley on Sunday afternoon 27 April. Peter Nichols was making a welcome return after his jazz improvisation workshop last year, and many of the players had returned for another session when Peter would show them that they really could simply make it up.

The room became even more of a “jam” in every sense of the word as friends and family crowded in at 6p.m. to hear the results of our afternoon’s music making.

Many thanks to everyone who played, who listened, who stayed for the party afterwards, and who contributed to the funds of Everyone Matters to help towards the costs of our forthcoming intergenerational project on 20 June at Bishop Justus School and Coloma Court Nursing Home when we will celebrate National Care Homes Day.