orchestra of the age of enlightenment

Reported by Grace Turner, Year 11, Ivybridge Community College

In December, Eddie Moore, Imogen Ireland, Alice Johns and myself participated in workshops with members from the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment at Dartington Hall. The OAE are a baroque ensemble that uses authentic instruments to perform period music in top venues around the world.

Our first meeting was a rehearsal at KEVICC, led by Fiona McLean, a professional violinist from London. The rehearsal gave us a chance to familiarize ourselves with the music as a whole, so when the OAE came we had a better understanding of what we were supposed to be doing!

That evening we attended the OAE’s open rehearsal, this was really inspiring as it gave us the chance to see how a professional orchestra rehearsed, and how different it was with a director rather then a conductor. I liked the way when something was suggested it was tried out and then agreed whether or not they would continue with that technique etc. In particular, I loved listening to the rehearsal of “Winter” by Vivaldi...I have only ever heard it on Cd by Vanessa Mae... and in my opinion, I preferred it in the baroque style played by Elizabeth Wallfisch!

We were then privileged to attend the OAE reception event, where we had the chance to talk to members of the orchestra, it also proved very successful in the establishment of a Piano quartet with other members of our group...an extremely important evening! Oh... and the food was good too!

On Monday we got the chance to actually play along side the OAE, rehearsing Handel’s Concerto Grosso op3 no2. I think the session excelled everybody’s expectations. I never knew that a fairly simple-to-play (technically) piece of music could sound so amazing, and be so fun to play! Quite often when I rehearse with my other orchestra it becomes tedious but the OAE were all really friendly and whilst having fun, I also learnt a lot about the interpretation of baroque style music. I also enjoyed having a go with the baroque bow...it made playing in the correct style so much easier!!

I think the most important aspect for me was just being able to work alongside such talented musicians who all had a really passion for what they do and wanted to share that with us. It was really helpful when members of the OAE played us snippets of the piece which we could then try and copy in the correct style...it really made me think about what I was playing and therefore had a strong emphasis on musicality and interpretationÉwe can play the notesÉnow do something with them!!

However I think the most exciting aspect of the week was the chance to participate in a master class with Elizabeth Wallfisch, an amazing violinist and director. The main emphasis was on the way we hold our bows, and with the help of several elastic bands and blue tac to stick our fingers in the right places, we all attempted to correct it! However hearing other musicians play and really analyzing the music in order to improve it was also extremely helpful. I enjoyed it because, unlike a normal lesson, you can listen to other people and really hear the difference as the suggestions are made.

The value of educational work with a professional orchestra was phenomenal; it gave me the inspiration to really push my playing to the limits because I think we all tried to play to the OAE standards. There was so much to learn from working with the professional orchestra, from what baroque instruments were like to the interpretation of the music, to discovering how a small orchestra performs and rehearses.

The only regret I have is that I wasn’t able to attend the concert due to participating in another one...I strongly recommend that next time the OAE are around...you book a ticket!