Concert showcase for young talent
The Perth and Kinross Schools concert on May 23 delighted the crowd at St John’s Kirk.
It began with the council’s head of music services Allan Young explaining the premise of this concert.
Most schools have their own lunchtime concert but this event was introduced to feature pupils from schools who were unable to put on their own concert and showcased a range of small ensembles, soloists and duets from across the county.
The programme opened with a small ensemble of pianists from primary schools, led by piano teacher Maureen Rutherford. Young pianists do not often get the opportunity to take part in out-of-school music activities and this group was set up to allow them to attend Perth and Kinross’ junior music camp.
The small piano orchestra played a fun medley, including well-known tunes from Abba and Disney, as well as a taste of baroque.
This was followed by Perth Academy soloist Michael Mauchline, who filled the kirk with his bagpipes, playing emotional renditions of Gordon Duncan’s‘Sleeping Tune’and‘Greenwood Side’.
A highlight of the concert came from Ulla Gingule from St John’s Academy, who silenced the audience with her performance of Oskar Marikanto’s‘Valse Lente’on piano, showing skill and pasion for the music.
Perth Academy then showcased a number of their talented young musicians. Naimh Martin played Massenet’s ‘Meditation’confidently on violin and Catriona Ross delighted the audience with an unaccompanied performance of Bach’s allemande from‘Suite No. 1’on viola.
The Academy’s four-piece percussion ensemble performed a fast, bouncy selection and the group shared a smile as they finished their challenging piece.
Other soloists from schools across Perth and Kinross performed.
Katherine Gray from St John’s Academy played a madrigal by Gaubert on flute and Perth High School’s Andrew McDowall and Keir Barbary played Paganini’s‘Caprice’and the iconic‘Minuet’by Borodin confidently and expertly on piano.
The lunchtime concert closed with a group of fiddle players whose set included tunes composed by Duncan Chisholme, violinist with Scottish folk rock group Wolfstone. The group was made up of keen fiddlers from Newhill, St Stephen’s RC, North Muirton and St Ninian’s Episcopal primary schools.
The fiddle group was led by two confident soloists, Chloe Moodie from North Muirton Primary on violin and Victoria Ritchie from Newhill Primary in Blairgowrie on viola.
Overall this was a highly enjoyable concert, giving the opportunity for Perth and Kinross’young musicians to shine, and captivated the audience at the kirk. Some of the young pianists