An Excellent Day in Cambridge
If you were to ask me what I would be doing on Sunday 15th February 2009 the previous morning, then I would have told you that I would be working my way though a mountain of homework, perhaps stopping to listen to a bit of the cricket at some point. How come, then, 27 hours later, I was in Jesus College Chapel, in Cambridge, playing 2nd Horn with the College orchestra? Well, on Saturday afternoon, I received a phone call from Edward Leach OI, who is mentioned on this site as conductor of Schubert’s 8th Symphony at Snape Maltings, and barbershop arranger at the Midsummer Soiree. Apart from that, he is an excellent singer and oboeist, and is now a Choral Scholar at Jesus College, Cambridge. Anyway, Ed phoned to say that he was short of a horn for the College orchestra’s performance of Dvorak’s 8th Symphony, and asked for my services. Once practicalities were sorted out (the Leach family kindly gave me lifts each way), I was happy to accept.
I arrived in the early afternoon for the rehearsal, where I discovered that the programme not only compromised Dvorak 8, but also Mendelssohn’s Die Hebridies overture and Weber’s Clarinet Concerto. All of these pieces had busy horn parts, especially the Weber where the second movement features a trio between two horns and the clarinet soloist, which would have sounded particularly bare with no Second Horn. All was sounding good, and I felt very priveliged to be playing with such an excellent orchestra.
There was then a rehearsal for Evensong, and then the service itself. Ed very kindly arranged with the Director of Music and the Organ Scholar for me to be able to sit in the organ loft for the rehearsal and the service. Thanks to all concerned for this marvellous opportunity. It was very exciting to hear such an accomplished choir and see what the organ scholar had to do in terms of accompanying. This service was mostly very simple music (chanted Canticles), and the rehearsal featured mostly unaccompanied music, but it was still brilliant to be there. The Director of Music played the hymns and the voluntary at the end of the service, and I can categorically state that it was the best hymn playing I have ever seen!
It was soon time for the concert itself, and there was a great sense of anticipation in the orchestra, not least because Professor Stephen Hawking was meant to be present. I don’t think he came in the end, because we waited an extra ten minutes for him to arrive, but we started without him present. Die Hebridies went well, conducted by the Organ Scholar, and it was next time for the Weber. The clarinet soloist was amazing, and our exposed passage in the second movement went alright, despite some dodgy tuning from me. The Dvorak was played after the interval, and this was too a great success. The orchestra really responded to Ed’s conducting and there was magnificent colour there. This was also the piece with the busiest horn parts, so incredibly fun to play. Overall, the concert was a great success and I was glad to play a small part in such a fantastic orchestra. Thanks once again to Ed for asking me to play, and to the Leach family for kindly taking me to and from Cambridge.