Music Matters: Get ready for Midsummer music

We (Peterborough Music Hub) have been highlighting the excellent lunchtime concerts at St John’s Church in Peterborough’s Cathedral Square and the final offering of this series, on Tuesday, June 11, will transport the audience back 300 years with violinist Roger Stimson and accompanist Fergus Black. These well-known local musicians will appear as Signor Francesco Geminiani, maestro of the violin, and Herr Georg Händel, an unsurpassed master of the harpsichord, with a programme of music, history and humour (see right). The church will be open one hour before the concert begins at 1pm. Admission is free, but a donation of £5 would be most welcome.

At Stamford Arts Centre this month (Wednesday 26), one of the most influential bands in the history of Irish traditional music, Lúnasa, pays a visit to the Arts Centre Ballroom. Folk Roots magazine once dubbed them an: “Irish music dream team” and they will be sure to prove popular with local audiences.

There’s also an opportunity to join Stamford Chamber Orchestra (Saturday 29) for an entertaining evening featuring local violinist and former Uppingham pupil Anthony Poon playing Brahm’s Violin Concerto, sandwiched between Beethoven’s Leonore Overture and ever-popular Symphony No. 7.

Stamford Brass presents its summer concert at the Arts Centre too, on June 30 at 7.30pm. The programme will contain an eclectic mix of musical styles featuring the band and its host of talented soloists.

Meanwhile, tickets for this year’s Music in Quiet Places concert series (starting today, June 6) are almost sold out, but a trip to St Andrew’s Church in Denton on August 1 will not only reward you with a look at a beautiful church with a riverside setting, but also offers a fantastic concert courtesy of the chamber choir Blossom Street. There’s a local connection, too, with young Peterborough musician and composer Toby Hession providing the accompaniment.

Finally, this month Peterborough Music Hub has announced that applications are now open for the PYO summer courses, starting on August 27. These excellent workshop programmes provide fantastic value and terrific experience for young players.PETERBOROUGH YOUTH ORCHESTRA

August 27-30: Open to all orchestral instrumentalists Grade 6 standard and above. Cost is £80. Programme to include  Antonin Dvorak Symphony No.9 (from the New World).

PETERBOROUGH YOUTH JAZZ ENSEMBLE

August 27-29: Open to all jazz instrumentalists Grade 4 and above. £60

PYO TOO (Incorporating “First Steps”)

August 27-29: Open to all instrumentalists Grade 1-5. £60.

Contact [email protected] for more details or to make an application. Closing date for applications is August 2 .