Music Matters: Some Christmas harmony

WEe (Peterborough Music Hub) hosted a triumph at the start of December with a superb concert featuring the soundtrack from The Snowman, performed live by members of the Peterborough Youth Orchestra, Ken Stimpson Community School Choir and PCYM.
The SnowmanThe Snowman
The Snowman

With the film running on a big screen behind them, the young performers (aged between nine and 18) did an amazing job, playing with enormous confidence and style. Under the watchful baton of skilled conductor Robin Norman – and with excellent narration from Jeremy Goldthorp – the event (pictured) played to three capacity houses across a full day and entertained and enthralled almost 3,000 people.

What a fantastic introduction to live music it was – also providing that all-important peer-to-peer experience that will inspire new young players to pick up an instrument in the future. Congratulations to everyone involved and credit too to the New Theatre, for its support staging the show and making this important community event part of the venue’s programme.

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Local venues have a huge part to play in providing opportunities for local performance artists to develop their skills and audiences.

The SnowmanThe Snowman
The Snowman

The concert was also a great way to see in the start of the festive season and, once again, music will feature heavily in all our lives over the coming weeks.

Pantomime is certainly all the better for its use of music – supporting the story-telling with atmospheric underscore and, more-often-than-not, some well-known foot-tapping tunes to sing along with too. Peterborough has great choice on offer this year with no less than three pantos in venues across the city and the return of Telling Tales Theatre Company to Oundle’s Stahl Theatre with its hugely successful panto with a modern twist – this year Barry Plopper And The Chamber Of Christmas Secrets! (December 19-23) – visit www.tellingtalestheatre.com for details.

For many of us December is very often the month we’re most likely to sing in public – not necessarily in front of the audience but along with it. Most concerts at this time of year will include the obligatory sing-along section. Singing is definitely good for us and it’s fantastic we all have the perfect opportunity to take our daily vocal performances in the shower to a wider audience with carols (and those Christmas hits from yesteryear) being sung at the tops of our voices. Why not consider joining a choir in the New Year and take that energy and natural talent into a new hobby?

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Peterborough has a wealth of superb vocal groups and the Hub can guide you to them – write to us at [email protected] for details.

The SnowmanThe Snowman
The Snowman

The Hub can also provide advice on musical Christmas gift ideas – music lessons and training, instrument purchase and hire – as well as introduce you to a network of local professional musicians.

The live music calendar is full of opportunity this month too. Stamford Arts Centre is hosting the Stamford International Music Festival Christmas Concert on Sunday, December 15, at 7.30pm – see www.stamfordartscentre.com – and the 2019 Peterborough Cathedral Christmas Concert will be held on 21 December (starting at 7.30pm) - www.peterborough-cathedral.org.uk.

May you all enjoy a happy, healthy and harmonious Christmas. Sing out, sing proud and enjoy some live music this holiday season.