Below are some reports written for our newsletter of recent Summer Schools

 

NWEMF Summer School at Ambleside July 2007

Although this was the 25th NWEMF Summer School it was the first time that I had attended it. St. Martin's College is on a hilly site and comprises the curiously-named, "Scale How" bulding, with refectory and and a few rooms, together with a number of locations such as the drama studio, the "Barn" and "Hill Top" (thankfully somewhat inaccurately named, but a brisk 5 minute'swalk away up hill). A few signposts would have been useful but after studying the map a few times the mists in my understanding cleared. The same cannot be said of the rain which for most days was falling in plenty so that my elderly umbrella had to be pensioned off at the end of the week.

The timetable was easily the fullest of any course I know. After breakfast there were warm-ups, the one for singers being entertainingly led by Deborah Catterall. Then there was an hour and a half session for viols, recorders or, in my case, voices with the same tutor each day. Clive Walkley was the original course director and this was the last year at which he will be a
tutor so I was fortunate to have the benefit of his tuition - imagine a musical Alan Benett. After coffee there were mixed consorts, at which I mostly sang as there was the usual shortage of low voices. Following lunch there was an optional session but as this was my chance to play the cornett I chose to do so. After tea there was usually a lecture-recital such as one on the broken consort, another on the life of a maestro de capilla and one drawing on a Scottish teenage lady's lute book given by Martin Eastwell and others. Then after a good supper we all trooped up to Hilltop to take part in polychoral music, or on one evening some dancing ably led by Elizabeth Dodd.

You might think that at this point we would all repair to the bar, and you would be right but at 10 p.m. our indefatigable course director, Roger Wilkes, led a group of more than 30 of us in singing till 11 p.m. The standard of sight-singing was excellent and we usually managed an acceptable performance on the second run of each piece, even though we were sitting in random order. This was one of the most satisfying aspects of the course,though it did mean being pretty tired by the time one got to bed.

On the final evening there was a banquet for a total of 90, including a few spouses and partners. This was enlivened by a multitude of short pieces involving most of the course participants and culminating in a spoof version of "The Sound of Music" given by the "Young Singers" - a troop of girls under the direction of Deborah Catterall. This being Ambleside, there was then a three-hour madrigal session led by Roger, ending at 1 a.m.

The atmosphere at Ambleside is friendly, as are the tutors, who as well as those named earlier included Philip Gruar (flute and recorder), Jonathan Morgan (flute,recorder and sackbut), Peter Syrus (voice) and Margaret Westlake (viol and other instuments). If you like to be kept busy, then this is the course for you.

David Fletcher

 

Ambleside 2006 – the twenty-fifth ‘Summer School of Renaissance Music’ – a personal view from a tenor participant

This was my fifth year at Ambleside. How would the Summer School of 2006 compare with the previous four? My friends know how much I love the opportunity ‘to sing from morning to night in different combinations’; love ‘to be introduced to an enormous range of new but singable music’; love the friendly atmosphere; and, love the beautiful surroundings.

The Summer School of Renaissance Music has evolved over 25 years. Our tutors told us that the standard of music-making has improved, year on year.

Every day started with ‘Warm Ups’, shortly before 9. Deborah Catterall is an outstanding singing teacher and warmer-upper; we progressed from body balance to relaxation, Alexander-style; we graduated from deep to controlled breathing; we made sounds, then notes, then harmonies. After 15 minutes, we were superbly poised for the singing and playing to come.

The singers assembled in small matched choirs, the viol-players and wind players in matched consorts. In the course of an hour and a half, each choir had tried two or three motets or madrigals, all of the music new to us. The principles of singing together were emphasised, in different ways, by different tutors, on successive days. It helped that I was an experienced sight-reader, but this was not an essential.

After coffee, we singers were combined with instrumentalists, in consorts of 10 to 15. I was doubled with a flute, a recorder and a viol, on different days. A spirit of mutual support prevailed under these circumstances, probably reflecting the camaraderie of the musicians in a Spanish cathedral, where the music (of Morales, for example) was composed and originally played. The emphasis was on enjoying the experience of performing an unfamiliar piece of music, re-creating the atmosphere of the Renaissance.

A vast range of options opened up in the afternoons; one-to-a-part consorts, two-to-a-part consorts, try a consort for ‘terrified’ beginners, sing a lute song, try a lute, try a viol, try a recorder, try other winds, try verse anthems, try singing from facsimiles, try improvisations, try singing or playing with Renaissance viols (brought, one day, by Richard and Vivian Jones), vocal technique. . . not to mention the opportunity to buy a CD, a recorder, music or books about music. Here was a wonderful pot-pourri of choices, deftly arranged in suitable groups with tutors with suitable music. Or, the delights of Ambleside or the beautiful countryside, could be enjoyed.

After a cup of tea, we enjoyed the intellectual bit; ‘Music and Rhetoric’ one day, ‘Byrd, the Catholics and the Consort song’, (an illustrated lecture delivered by a PhD student from Lancaster University), another day. A ‘Grand Tour’ of Renaissance Italy featured each of our 8 tutors; for 10 minutes, each shared their knowledge and enthusiasm for a musical aspect of 8 different Italian cities. Striggio’s 40-part motet, ‘Ecce, beatam lucem’, was the after-tea delightful sing on the last day.

After dinner, there was something for all 83 of us. Often one or more polychoral pieces:-

a Mass in 12 parts by Phillipe Rogier,

Exultate iusti by Hieronymus Praetorius,

Venetian pieces – O ben felice a pieno and O passi sparsi by Striggio,

So ben mi c’ha ben tempo by Vecchi,

Maria stabat and Canticum di dio by A Gabrieli

and O magnum mysterium by G. Gabrieli.

On these occasions, all of us were assigned parts.

One night it was singing for all – two lovely motets by Hans Leo Hassler – O sacrum convivium and O altitudo divitiarum. Another night, we enjoyed dancing for all; a pavane and a bransles, newly devised for us by Elizabeth Dodd, provided a useful complementary activity to our music-making.

For me, a special part of each day starts at 10 pm, and 2006 did not disappoint. Those who still have enough energy and voice, assemble to sing informally through motets and masses. This session is ably facilitated by Roger Wilks, who provided a wonderful succession of new pieces, and one or two favourites on request. The quality and accuracy of sight reading, and thus the ability to experience such a range of new and exciting music, was thrilling. A high spot this year was to sing two verse anthems; Sing Joyfully by John Mundy, and When Jesus Sat at Meat by Richard Nicholson, with four of our tutors playing a quartet of viols.

The week ended with the traditional Musical Banquet, where musical items are interspersed between the courses of food, illustrating all the activities of the week. This was followed by the traditional informal singing of madrigals from the Oxford Book of English Madrigals – this year 19 of them – until we retired, exhausted but exhilarated.

For me, this week was just wonderful. The standard of music was higher than ever. The range of music we were introduced to, was amazing. Did I really manage to sing pieces by:-

Victoria - Ne timeas, Maria; Vidi speciosam; Ave, regina coelorum;

Lassus - Domine, Dominus noster; Da pacem, Domine; Heroum soboles, amor orbis; Jubilate Deo; Regina caeli laetare; various chansons; Peccavi; Mirabile mysterium; Fremuit spiritu Jesu;

Lechner - Missa Domine, Dominus noster;

Penalosa - Pater noster;

Guerrero – Surge, propera, amica mea; Ave virgo sanctissima; Maria Magadalene;

Clemens non Papa - Vox in Rama; Veni electa mea; Job, tonso capite; O Maria, verhans rosa; Ego flos campi;

Cipriano da Rore – Descendi in hortum meum; O Sonno;

Gombert – Magnificat primi toni;

Esquivel – Vox clamantis in deserto;

Vivanco – Ecce sacerdos magnus; Quis dabit capiti meo aquam;

Hassler – Ecce quam bonum et quam jucundum; Beata es, Virgo Maria; Dixit Maria;

Gesualdo – O come e gran martire;

Verdelot – madrigals;

Crequillons – chansons;

Josquin – Scaramella va alla guerra;

Obrecht – Factor orbis

Morales – Tu es Petrus; Andreas Christi famulus;

as well as works by:-

John Hilton – Fair Oriana, Beauty’s Queen;

Weelkes – Welcome sweet pleasure;

Byrd – Veni sancte Spiritus ut emitte;

Tomkins –The fauns and satyrs tripping.

Here was a wealth of music, new to me, that I could take home to try again with our one-to-a-part group, or in our small choir.

The tutors were all teaching and sharing their passions, in a friendly but scholarly way. The organisation of so many different groups and combinations was meticulous, and much appreciated. The friendliness was palpable; it was lovely to meet 60 or so veterans from previous courses, but also to welcome newcomers. I was not aware of any cliques, and showing off was minimal. Grumbles were rare. Informal conversations about all aspects of music, abounded. And the weather. . . gorgeous.

Despite this superb evolved programme, our tutors were keen for feedback and suggestions for improvement. They will start with a blank sheet to plan next year’s course. I am already keen to sign up for 2007.

David Adshead

 

Summer School Ambleside 2002

This Report was published in the October 2002 Newsletter
 

I arrived at Ambleside for this years Summer School of Renaissance Music with only one aim in mind, and this was to immerse myself in as much music as possible. In actual fact I ended up taking away much more than an increased knowledge of the repertoire, and in this report I will try and relate what for me, at least, were the most rewarding aspects of the course, and above all why I want to return next year. 


Whilst the most attractive feature of the week is the opportunity to engage in new musical experiences, everyone on the course has their own skill as singer or instrumentalist that they wish to develop throughout the week. This was catered for by the first session of each day, which grouped musicians into like consorts and the choir, and stayed the same each day. As a singer myself, it was evident that something special was taking place in the choir even as we began our first piece, Byrd's Memento Homo. The sound of experienced sight readers with a real enthusiasm and skill for singing Renaissance polyphony is something to be treasured, and for me personally this set the tone for the rest of the week. Added to this was the fact that the sound was given direction and purpose by a tutor, Roger Wilkes, who has the ability not only to interpret music imaginatively, but also to convey this to the choir. It was a revelation, for example, that with one of our main pieces for the week, Morley's Laboravi in gemitu meo, rehearsal really did focus on the meaning of the text, a point that is often made in connection with Renaissance choral music, but less often realised in practice.


Alongside the main ensembles, then, the course offers the opportunity to get involved in smaller groups, tackling more specialist repertoire with a tutor. The sessions of dance I attended, led by Elizabeth Dodd, were fascinating on one level because of the movements themselves and the teamwork involved in practising them. This was made all the more worthwhile, however, because of the insight gained into the social context of instrumental music, particularly rhythmical and metrical nuances, which became real when we presented the work accompanied by a mixed consort of instruments. 


In another session a small group of us were taken through Josquin's Pater Noster by Peter Syrus, and in another Jonathan Morgan introduced us to Claude le Jeune's May fait les Bois and Giovanni Gabrieli's Deus Qui Beatum Marcum. Although inevitably these sessions tended to end just at the point when you thought things were getting interesting, they worked really well as a way of bringing alive music that you might not encounter all too often, even as an early music enthusiast.
The biggest revelation to me in this smaller context was the music of Palestrina, of which the motets Pulchra es and Tu es Petrus seemed uncomplicatedly beautiful when we sang them one afternoon. Until that moment Palestrina to me had always conjured up images of textbook examples of contrapuntal technique, and although this was simply the product of my experience, I am grateful that I have now had the opportunity to redress this. It is easy to admire the technique of Palestrina, Byrd and Lassus, but I believe that what the Summer School confirmed for me is that the only way to really understand the music is by experiencing it in practice. 


Perhaps the most surprising aspect of my week at Ambleside was simply how much was packed into each day: indeed, as a singer it is not impossible to find yourself singing continuously from after breakfast until the end of the 'after hours' session at 11.00p.m! For the fact that my voice had not packed in by Monday night I must thank Deborah Catterall, the vocal tutor, who coaxed our voices into action each morning with an imaginative warm up that prepared us nicely for the day ahead. As well as this, the lesson I had with Deborah was valuable in that she was actually able to explain to me how I should approach supporting my voice; something that sounds simple but as many will know is far from being easy.


After dinner each evening was the chance for all the course participants to get involved in some larger scale pieces. Working through the music from one of the Florentine Intermedi was both informative and fun, as was the twenty-one part Praetorius motet, both reminders that the idea of Renaissance music as being typically small-scale is sometimes misleading. In both cases, along with Dancing and Singing For All sessions, the fact that you were alongside sixty other people who shared your enthusiasm was deeply satisfying, and I suspect that it is here, in shared music making, that the real attraction of the week lies. 


Other highlights of the week which I must mention include the walk to Rydal Cave, where the sounds of Victoria and Lassus reverberated around the cavern walls, much to the amazement of passing walkers who were treated to a free concert! Clive Walkley's interactive Thomas Morley lecture was still interesting even if it was the second time this year I've been treated to it: I think the idea of focusing the week around one or two composers adds good historical value to the practical nature of the course. Although there was little I didn't manage to get involved in, the presentation of solo lute songs with Hugh Cherry on the final day was so enthralling that I have made that a target for the future. 


Are there any criticisms? Well not with the course itself, but I do feel that the lack of young people at the Summer School is partly indicative of the situation of music education in Britain today, in that Renaissance music does not enjoy the exposure it should do at all levels of the education system. My enjoyment of the week was partly tempered by the knowledge that this wonderful resource could make a big contribution to the development of many more students of Renaissance Music, and next year I hope to try and do something about this.


As is traditional, the final night of the course was taken up by a splendid musical banquet, where dinner was interspersed with musical offerings from various small ensembles. The common theme was to give thanks for all the hard work of Clive Walkley, who this year stood down as Director of the Summer School. As it was Clive who suggested to me earlier this year that I would find the course 'useful and interesting' (and how right he was!) I owe him a particular debt of thanks. During the week it was not hard to see the respect with which Clive is held for his part in making the course what it is now, and it seems appropriate to repeat the thanks of all course members to Clive for establishing a very special week in the year. 

Philip Taylor


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