Welcome                            

Cockermouth Music Society's 18th Season promises to be as interesting as any in the past, with a celebrated pianist, Kathryn Stott, to start us off in style, followed by the outstanding Atrium Quartet, a cello and piano duo, a Hungarian guitar duo, a  recital from great violin virtuoso, Matthew Trusler, a welcome return visit from the Frith Piano Quartet  and a grand finale to the season on Music Nation Weekend 2012 (note this is on a SATURDAY) with the Scottish Ensemble and a very special soloist in trumpeter Alison Balsom, which will bring the season to a triumphant close. All concerts feature superb programmes of music which should please everyone.

For more information about our concert dates and how to find us, read on below or contact the Hon Secretary, Mrs Susan Allison at cmusoc@btopenworld.com. 

Next Concert                          

Tuesday, 14 February 2012. 7.30pm  United Reformed Church, Cockermouth.

Frith Piano Quartet

Benjamin Frith (piano)

Robert Heard (violin)

Louise Williams (viola)

Richard Jenkinson (cello)

Admission: £13 (Members of Cockermouth Music Society - £10)

Accompanied children Free

Tickets: From Billy Bowman Music, Lowther Went Cockermouth (personal callers only)

or Hon. Secretary, Cockermouth Music Society, Fell Edge, High Ireby, Wigton CA7 1HF (Please enclose S.A.E.) 

Programme 2011-2012 season  (For information about the artists click on the photo to follow a hyperlink.)

Concert reviews

KATHRYN STOTT (piano)

One of Faure’s Nocturnes opened the evening, followed by an amazing rendering of pianistic pyrotechnics in Ravel’s Jeux d’Eau. Debussy’s Nocturne was contrasted with his L’Isle Joyeuse, the virtuoso aspects of which were masterfully handled. Franck’s Prelude, Chorale and Fugue was new to many but Kathryn’s performance did it justice in every way. The second half opened with a spirited handling of Ginastera’s First Sonata, full of Argentinian rhythm and intensity. Four pieces by Chopin completed the recital in the most felicitous way imaginable, showing the power and technique of this performer, coupled with the extreme delicacy that she conjures up when necessary. I have never heard the C sharp minor Scherzo better played and the Nocturne Op.Posth, was magical. The music society could not have had a better opener for its 18^th season.

ATRIUM STRING QUARTET

As expected, the young Russian string players in the Atrium Quartet delivered a superlative concert for Cockermouth Music Society when they returned to the town for their third visit.  A large audience waited with baited breath for  the performance which began with Haydn’s Quartet Op33 No1, usually known as one of the ‘Russian’ quartets, first played in Vienna in 1796 in honour of the Russian Crown Prince Paul. Violinist Alexey Naumenko produced his customary exquisite sound to lead the group through a wonderful performance of this charming piece. Violinist Anton Ilyunin, violist Dmitry Pitulko and cellist Anna Gorelova ably complemented and sensitively underlined Alexey’s sound, Anton’s expressive face reflecting the nuances of the music at every turn. The group’s total commitment and positive dynamism were clear from the beginning and kept the audience entranced throughout.

Beethoven’s Quartet Op18 No1, with its spaciousness and romantic passion, was given a fine interpretation and was followed by Schubert’s Quartet in G D887. Schubert can be a trifle long winded at times and this may have accounted for a slight lapsing of my interest at this point. Possibly too, this quartet still has some way to go to achieve a full understanding of this composer’s music, but such fine players are sure to find the standard they have already achieved with Russian music, so sublimely demonstrated on their last visit to Cockermouth. An encore from a quartet (nicknamed “Divorce”!) by  composer Fazil Say was brilliantly played and demonstrated a facility for dealing with all the technical demands of a quirky and aggressive modern style in a way which ended the concert to everyone’s satisfaction.

TIM LOWE (cello) with ANNABEL THWAITE (piano)

KATONA TWINS (guitars)

A UNIQUE SOUND
Peter and Zoltan Katona returned to play for us on 13 December, twelve years after their first visit to Cockermouth. In the meantime they've aged little, but grown in maturity. The rapport between them is as uncanny as ever, their range of sound subtler and richer still. This is especially true of their quiet playing, for which the URC was ideally suited. And they overcame our venue's one disadvantage - the lack of a platform - by obligingly standing up for quite a few pieces. Two guitars are not everyone's favoured combination, and I must confess to a prejudice against arrangements and transcriptions. But these two are as one, and time and again I found myself marvelling at the ways in which music meant for the piano - or, in the case of the Falla suite, for
orchestra - was recreated for the new medium. If chiefly a salute to the quality of the playing, the rapturous audience response was also, I suspect, about gratitude for being so effortlessly transported to the Mediterranean on such a storm-tossed Cumbrian evening.  (DL)

MATTHEW TRUSLER (violin) with MARTIN ROSCOE (piano)

AN EXHILARATING EVENING

Cockermouth Music Society’s violin and piano recital in January turned out to be a very special event indeed. Just when you thought the concerts couldn’t get any better, along comes one which grips the audience from start to finish. Matthew Trusler, with his 1711 Stradivarius violin, and Martin Roscoe, a pianist of superior calibre, were a duo of distinction, performing a wonderful programme of music including items not often heard.

The Debussy Sonata was a taste of things to come with so much to enjoy, and was followed by Bartok’s Sonata for Violin. Trusler’s performance of this was breathtaking, full of finely honed technical virtuosity and musical understanding, which made this bravura composition (rarely heard because of its extreme difficulty both in performance and interpretation) accessible to all, lasting as it does for nearly 24 minutes. The audience responded with an intense concentration which was almost tangible. The interval followed, giving the violinist a well earned moment of calm and the audience some time to reflect on a unique musical experience.

The second half opened with an exciting performance of Beethoven’s Kreutzer Sonata, with thrilling tempi, powerful sound and all the composer’s genius very much on show. The slow movement was Roscoe’s opportunity to shine, with its intricate and beautiful piano accompaniment, and this was followed by a third movement played at tremendous speed which was incredibly exhilarating. Bartok’s Roumanian Dances were a most enjoyable finish to the programme and the audience showed their appreciation in a way which produced an encore - Ravel’s Piece en forme d’Habanera - a perfect choice, bringing a moment of calm tranquillity at the end of what had been a memorable evening.

FRITH Piano QUARTET

SCOTTISH ENSEMBLE with ALISON BALSOM (trumpet)

Previous seasons' highlights

Cockermouth Music Society has promoted many concerts by professional musicians and has also been active in  commissioning new works.  Memorable evenings of music have been provided by soloists and ensembles including:

Soloists: Ilya Itin - winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition in 1996, Nikolai Demidenko - piano, Peter Katin - piano, Peter Donohoe - piano, Martin Roscoe - piano, Joanna MacGregor - piano, Tamas Vasary - piano, Antti Siirala - winner Leeds International Piano Competition 2003, Andrew Brownell - winner of the Leeds International Piano Competition in 2007, Chiao-Ying Chang - prize-winner in the 2003 Leeds International Piano competition, Marat Bisengaliev - violin, Lucy Wakeford - harp, Nicholas Daniel - oboe, Paul Watkins - cello, David Childs - euphonium, Jennifer Pike - violin, Tasmin Little - violin, Mark Padmore - tenor, Hannah Marcinowicz - saxophone, Leon McCawley - piano, Eleanor Fagg - violin, Rowena Calvert - cello.

Piano Duet: Anthony Goldstone and Caroline Clemmow.

String Quartets - Danel Quartet, Endellion Quartet, London Haydn Quartet, Maggini Quartet, Vanburgh Quartet, Wihan Quartet, McFarlane String Quartet, Atrium String Quartet, Carducci Quartet and Brodowski Quartet (playing as both quartets and as an octet).

Chamber Orchestra: The Hanover Band, The City of London Sinfonia, Britten Sinfonia, Northern Chamber Orchestra, Academy of St Martin in the Fields

Other notable ensembles - Fujita Piano Trio, London Mozart Trio, London Concertante, Leopold String Trio, The London Flute Quartet, The Wakeford Ensemble, McLEAN-THORSEN-STRANGE Piano Trio, The Debussy Ensemble, The Fibonacci Sequence, The Frith Piano Quartet, The Gould Piano Trio

Commissions of new works: To date five new works have been commissioned and given their première in Cockermouth.  With the support of the Arts for Everyone (A4E) scheme the society commissioned:

Simon Parkin's Quartet No. 3 - first performance June 1998 by the Chalabi Quartet (students from the Royal Northern College College of Music); 

Errollyn Wallen's Rhapsody, a piece for viola - performed by Malcolm Allison with Timothy Lissimore at the piano in December, 1998 and recorded live by the BBC;

Philip Wood's Four Bagatelles performed by Martin Roscoe in September, 1999.

Philip Wood's Piano Trio No. 1 - performed by the Lorca Piano Trio (Malcolm Allison - violin, Bovidar Vukotic - cello and Timothy Lissimore - piano)

The fifth commission, with funding Cockermouth Music Society and Cockermouth Neighbourhood Forum (Cumbria CC) was Philip Wood's Diversions for Cello and Piano performed by Rowena Calvert (cello) and Alison Rhind (piano) in January 2009. 

Preview 2012-13 

Further information and bookings

All concerts are open to the public.  Accompanied children are admitted Free (but please ensure you  inform the box office so that a seat is available).

Tickets for all concerts are usually available from Billy Bowmans Music Shop, Lowther Went  (personal shoppers only from first Monday of the month) or from the Hon Secretary (send cheque with s.a.e., please).  Tickets can also be purchased at the door, though for the most popular concerts it is strongly advisable to purchase tickets in advance.

Members of Cockermouth Music Society are entitled to a number of benefits including a reduced admission charge, season tickets and regular newsletters.  For information about membership or if you have any queries please contact :

                            Mrs Susan Allison

                            Hon Secretary Cockermouth Music Society

                            Fell Edge

                            High Ireby

                            Wigton

                            Cumbria CA7 1HF

                            Tel: 016973 71397

                            Email: cmusoc@btopenworld.com

How to find us

All concerts, except the orchestral concert in September which is in Christ Church,  are in the United Reformed Church, Main Street, Cockermouth not far from Wordsworth House. The church is set back from the road. Parking at the United Reformed Church is very limited, so please park on the road or in the main Car Park.  There is a lift and a Stannah chair lift for those who need assistance with the stairs.

For street plan of the area, click here.

Links

Information about concerts and other arts events in the area can be found from:

Making Music  

Cockermouth Harmonic Society

Keswick Music Society 

 Theatre by the Lake Keswick

Rosehill Theatre

Sponsors

The Society is very grateful to those shops, companies, arts organisations, including councils, and individuals who provide financial support and other services that enable the Society to provide high quality concerts in Cockermouth.  

Cockermouth Music Society

Patrons: Lord Egremont; Robert Ponsonby, CBE

Registered Charity No 1037505