GWYN WILLIAMS BURSARY CONCERT
St
Andrew’s Church Wilmcote (20.7.25)
Wilmcote’s St Andrew’s, a
beautiful jewel of a church, was packed to the rafters for a fascinating
concert on Sunday evening which included two-and-a-half world premieres (read
on).
The occasion was the latest fund-raising concert in aid of
the Gwyn Williams Bursary. Gwyn played in the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra,
where he was Sir Simon Rattle’s principal viola, for 30 years, and the Bursary
was founded by his widow, Stephannie <SIC> in order to assist young
string players. After a year making donations to the CBSO Youth Orchestra and
inaugurating two Gwyn Williams Viola Prizes at Royal Birmingham Conservatoire,
funds have been seriously depleted, and as The Ven. Dr Brian Russell, popular
senior churchman in the Stratford area, subtly pointed out during his engaging introduction
to the evening, it was essential to replenish the coffers.
That the coffers were replenished by over £1000.00 is a
tribute to the generosity of the performers, donating their services, to the
dedication of those ladies in the church who provided a delicious array of
canapes for interval consumption, and to around 75 audience members who bought
tickets which included the buffet with wine, made donations, and bought books by
Stephannie Williams and Christopher Morley, and CDs featuring the evening’s
musicians.
Sisters Fiona and Jean Kelly were a delightful flute and
harp duo, some of their offerings including music from their native Ireland;
pianist Mark Bebbington and his past student Irene Loh made a Yamaha keyboard
sound like a Steinway grand; and soprano Robyn Pullen, a dramatic 11th-hour
replacement for an ailing Maria Jagusz, entertained with a Puccini aria and
songs from the shows. Everyone introduced their own contributions charmingly,
and with some delightful anecdotes.
The two-and-a-half world premieres? Local composer Edward
Watson, previously with the Royal Shakespeare Company, heard Mark Bebbington
give the first performance of his haunting “Love’s Melody”; Christopher Morley’s
miniature “The Robin and the Honeysuckle” was colourfully delivered by the
Kelly sisters, Jean telling the story of how Gwyn reappears to his family in
the form of a robin, inspecting both Stephannie and the honeysuckle in their
garden; and Bebbington and Loh gave a sneak preview of the uproarious “Fun and
Games” for piano three hands by the late Master of the Queen’s Musick
<SIC> Sir Arthur Bliss. The official premiere is on Monday morning at the
Hereford Three Choirs’ Festival.
As the concert began, the west door of the church was left
open, allowing the evening sun to shine directly down the nave, illuminating
the performers, their music wafting out to mingle with the birdsong in this
country churchyard, where Gwyn Williams lies to rest.
Christopher Morley