A Year 7 pupil treated the St John's community to a first-class performance of Finzi's 'Five Bagatelles' for Clarinet and Piano. First performed in London in January 1943 by Pauline Juler and core repertoire for professional clarinetists in recitals ever since, this delightful set of pieces was performed with great maturity, technical assurance and characterful expressiveness.
Our Director of Music, Mr Simon Kirk, was delighted to welcome Naomi Marris, Pauline Juler's daughter, to the concert, following which our soloist had the unforgettable experience of being able to play one of the bagatelles on the very clarinet Pauline Juler used while giving the first performance of the pieces in 1943.
At St John's, we have an exceptional performance programme, which includes 50 or more concerts each year, allowing our youngest and oldest pupils and our least experienced and most seasoned young musicians to share a platform to develop their love of, and skills in, performing.
On occasions, we have individual pupils who are able to present their own full recital programme demonstrating our commitment to giving all children the opportunity to perform and to nurturing their talents at an appropriate level, up to a very high standard indeed.