Youth Music Festival

On Saturday afternoon, 19th March, a large and enthusiastic audience enjoyed a delightful series of musical pieces, presented in St Mary's Church by local children and teenagers. The church building was nearly full, and the relatively new cctv cameras and large screen monitors meant that the audience had splendid views of the performers — some of whom were quite small!

No less than 30 very talented youngsters took part, offering a diverse set of recitals that ranged from Bach and Mozart to John Williams and Goffin & King, with pieces featuring piano, flute, violin, drums (those of a nervous disposition were warned of the acoustic effect!), 'cello, saxophone, and voice.

The majority of musicians presented solo pieces, but the concert also featured local rock band 'Nuclear Dropout' and two enchanting songs with actions from 'The Trebel Clefs', Haddenham St Mary's CE School choir.

The variety of contributions and slickness of organisation made for continual interest and real enjoyment for those attending. All the young people receive instruction from Haddenham music teachers.

The compere was local professional musician, Daniel Mullin — a member of the BBC Concert Orchestra and distinguished in piano, violin and teaching. His enthusiasm and comments were an invaluable contribution to a great event. During the concert he offered the young musicians lots of encouragement as well as a few tips to help them craft their musical talents still further. And in the evening he gave generous time to four of the performers in a detailed consideration at a Master Class.

Jenny Hardy was responsible for co-ordinating the performers and arranging the programme so ably, and the event was introduced by Tricia Stradling on behalf of the Friends of St Mary's, a community organisation which exists to help raise funds for the maintenance and restoration of Haddenham's parish church and churchyard. The event raised over £400 for important renovation projects.

The concert ended with cakes and tea.

There are lots more photographs of the concert displayed in the GALLERIES section of this website.