Tues 7th Feb, 1pm, St David’s Hall
Royal Welsh College Symphony Orchestra
Conductor: Tianyi Lu
Presenter: Tom Redmond
Orchestradventure! has been specially devised to capture the imagination of children and teachers through the power of a live symphony orchestra.
Supported by Western Power Distribution the performance will combine music, singing and dancing as the Royal Welsh College Symphony Orchestra and presenter Tom Redmond vividly bring to life some of the greatest stories ever told. Along the way they will introduce the instruments and inner workings of an orchestra using interactive presentation, live musical demonstrations and performance from a full symphony orchestra.
“Discovery, participation and learning are at the heart of the project, which we are delighted to be supporting” explains Karen Welch from Western Power Distribution. “We hope that the concert will help the children to develop skills in listening, cultural awareness and social interaction, as well as inspiring both teachers and students to discover more about music and the performing arts”
“This concert is basically a whistle stop tour of what an orchestra is and what it can do; where it can take you,” says Tom Redmond. “We’re performing some of the real greats of the repertoire in bight-size chunks and there’ll also be dancing, movement, storytelling and the schools have learned a song called Life is a Wonderful Thing which is a brilliant, up-beat, life affirming kind of song. Especially when it’s sung by around 2000 children! Everyone will also join in with Tchaikovsky’s 1812 overture. No instruments required.
It’s also an amazing opportunity for the students who are performing. This kind of work is vital to any orchestra and to prepare and work on a project like this as a student will hopefully open hearts and minds to the idea of engaging young audiences again. Not many music colleges would do something like this, and yet it is vital.“
Editors notes
The concert will be conducted by Tianyi Lu, a charismatic young conductor from New Zealand who studied at the College and is currently RWCMD Junior Fellow in Conducting. Tianyi is a wonderful example of the power of music, which has drawn her from the other side of the globe. Tianyi’s professional work already includes a recent booking for September-November 2017 at the Dallas Opera as assistant conductor for a production of La Traviata.
Tom Redmond is a broadcaster, presenter, horn player and animateur. He regularly presents Radio 3 in Concert from venues and festivals across the UK and is a frequent host of pre-concert talks. As a horn player he has performed throughout Europe, Japan, Russia, South East Asia and the USA with orchestras including the City of Birmingham and London Symphony orchestras, Hong Kong Philharmonic and the Philharmonia.
The College is currently seeking funding to develop partnerships with 20 primary schools over the next two years, which will make possible workshops and other learning experiences for school children between the ages of 7 – 11 in the lead up to future concerts.
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