Successful Choral Festival for Thameside Schools Music Association
The Thameside Schools Music Association, chaired by Rosemary Dymond, has been running a Recorder Festival and a Choral Festival every year since around the 1940s. This year, TSMA have been working with Kent Music to help ensure that the festivals can continue.
Following the successful TSMA Recorder Festival in April, this year’s Choral Festival took place on the 27 June and 4 July 2017 at St George’s Church in Gravesend.
Around 280 pupils took part in the Choral Festival over the two days, representing Cobham Primary School, Manor Community Primary School, Painters Ash Primary School, Shears Green Junior School, Cecil Road Primary School, Culverstone Green Primary School, Higham Primary School, St Joseph’s Catholic Primary School and St Joseph’s Preparatory School.
Each school took part in one day of rehearsals followed by an evening performance to a full audience. The second performance got a standing ovation which was brilliant for the children to experience and brought a tear to many eyes after all the hard work that had gone into the event!
The conductor for the Choral Festival was the dynamic Rose Martin. Rose was a member of Kent Music’s County Choirs before studying music and becoming a professional singer, so she was a great inspiration to the children. A live musical accompaniment for the singing was provided by Karen Barton on piano, Nick Downs on percussion and Richard Lock on double bass.
We are now looking forward to next year’s TSMA events and collaborating with local music teachers to gather new ideas and suggestions to refine future festivals.
If you teach the recorder or singing in a school in the Gravesham/ Dartford area and would like to get involved, please contact Lucy Duff at lduff@kent-music.com.