International Classical Concert Series
Vinehall International Classical Concerts 35th Season 2023 - 2024
July 2023
I have great pleasure in announcing the details of the 35th Season of concerts at Vinehall. With musicians from Ireland, Russia, USA, Hungary, New Zealand, Poland, Switzerland and more, this year’s concert will be truly international. We welcome for their first visit the acclaimed Calidore Quartet from USA and the outstanding young cellist Maciej Kulakowski with pianist Jean-Selim Abdelmoula . ,Also we are delighted to welcome the Northern Chords Ensemble. The English Chamber Orchestra, led by Stephanie Gonley, will make their return visit to Vinehall, as will the ever-popular London Conchord. Finghin Collins will be joined by two other outstanding pianists, Katya Apekisheva and Charles Owen, for our first performance with two pianos. Schubert &Co, who were so well-received in one of our post-lockdown concerts, will end what will surely be a wonderful season of music-making.
The 35th Season begins on Saturday 30th September with the ENGLISH CHAMBER ORCHESTRA, known world-wide and directed by Stephanie Gonley. We will hear works by Mozart, Haydn and Grieg, including Haydn’s first Horn Concerto played by the horn soloist, AnneMarie Federle, a bright young star of the brass world. AnneMarie was appointed Principal Horn of the LPO in January 2023.
PLEASE NOTE: THIS CONCERT ON THE 30TH SEPTEMBER WILL NOW COMMENCE AT 3.00PM NOT 7.30PM AS PREVIOUSLY ADVERTISED AND AS SHOWN IN THE PROGRAMME BELOW
On Sunday 5th November, we welcome the CALIDORE STRING QUARTET. They are one of the outstanding quartets from the USA and will be our first ever musicians to come from the States. Their recordings of the Beethoven quartets have been critically acclaimed and the programme of works by Beethoven, Korngold, and Schubert should be quite an experience.
On Sunday 4th December, we welcome KATYA APEKISHEVA, FINGHIN COLLINS, and CHARLRS OWEN. These three renowned pianists will perform works by Sally Beamish (requiring six hands and two pianos!) as well as works for two pianos by Rachmaninov, Grainger/Gershwin and Mozart. A chance to hear the Sonata for two pianos by Mozart is always a pleasure.
On Sunday 11th February, the acclaimed young cellist MACIEJ KULAKOWSKI and the pianist JEAN-SELIM ABDELMOULA make their debut at Vinehall. Both are outstanding new talents and will perform works by Janacek, Fauré and Brahms, ending with the compulsively rhythmic Grand Tango by Piazzolla.
On Sunday 10th March, we welcome back one of the most distinguished pianists of his generation, DANIEL LEBHARDT, who performed a stunning recital programme at Vinehall at the end of lockdown. Daniel will be joined by conductor and cellist JONATHAN BLOXHAM, violinist, BEN BAKER and violist ROSALIND VENTRIS who make up the NORTHERN CHORDS ENSEMBLE. With works by Mahler and Mozart, together with Brahm’s 1st Piano Quartet with its breathtaking gypsy style finale, this should be an unmissable musical event.
On Saturday 4th May, we are delighted to welcome back LONDON CONCHORD. They have established themselves as one of the finest chamber ensembles and have played at Vinehall regularly for many seasons, always offering works for wind and strings that we may know from recordings but do not see performed very often. They will perform the Nonet by Louise Farrenc. She was a leading French Romantic composer, having studied with Hummel and Reicha, and was also a gifted pianist. Her Nonet received a triumphant premiere, at which the famous violinist Joseph Joachim took the lead. After the interval we will hear Brahm’s tuneful Ist Serenade; familiar to many in its orchestral version but performed here in its original version by Brahms for Nonet.
The final concert of the season will be on Sunday 9th June when we welcome back SCHUBERT &CO led by the pianist SHOLTO KYNNOCH. The six singers present a programme of songs for solo and groups which capture the ease and conviviality of a Schubertiade. This time another master of melody, Rossini, is also included. Let’s hope the weather will match the sunny mood, so we can enjoy picnicking in the grounds beforehand and meet for complimentary Pimm’s at 6.30 p.m.
The standard price of £28 (including refreshments) is for all concerts, but please consider the much cheaper season ticket and five concert options. The full season ticket offers a massive saving and works out at an extremely reasonable £18.57 per concert. The ticket price for children and students remains at only £10 as it is so important to encourage the next generation of music lovers. We are very proud to attract such distinguished artists down to this part of Sussex and are enormously grateful to our sponsors, without whom the ticket prices would have to rise substantially.
I very much look forward to welcoming you to the Thirty-Fifth Season at Vinehall and hope that you find our programme to be of interest to you and your friends. If you would like tickets, then please follow the instructions below. We do, of course, take bookings by post, telephone and email throughout the season.
With best wishes,
Geoffrey Whitehead
A.G. Whitehead
Vinehall International Classical Concert Series
HOW TO BOOK
This year we have moved bookings on to Trybooking.com which is an on-line booking service. This will save a great deal of paper and postage and will also streamline our bookings. You can still have a hard copy of the leaflet, should you request one. This can also be downloaded from the link below.
Please EITHER complete the hard copy booking form and return it by post with a cheque (details on the leaflet) . Please note that if you do pay by cheque, it must be made payable to A.G. Whitehead.
OR preferably follow this link: https://www.trybooking.co.uk/CMJQ
You will need either a credit or a debit card to book online.
A few helpful tips!
You will get a receipt and ticket immediately sent back to you. It will NOT have a seat number on. It is purely an acknowledgement of the booking and payment.
After two weeks from the start of bookings the applications will be processed by me as usual. After this, you will then get an email from me with your ticket numbers for all the concerts you have booked.
If you book a season ticket you will still need to enter all seven concerts on the list. It doesn’t do it for you! This occurs because the system adds up the number of tickets sold and works out when we are sold out.
If a concert is sold out and you are seeking either a season ticket or five concert option, then you should book individual tickets for the ones available and send a message to me, so I know to put you on the waiting list for the other concerts. If by the end of the season you have managed to come to all seven or five selected, you won’t be charged more than the season ticket or five concert option price!
If you wish to request a particular seat/area/sit with a friend or send any other relevant information or message then you will find on the first screen a little box which says ‘Contact event organiser’ If you click on that you can then send me a message.
When you come to the concert, all you need is the seat numbers. You do not need to be printing everything out.
If you can’t find a concert on the list, it means it is sold out and has automatically been removed. If this happens and you want to go on the waiting list, please send me a message (as above) and I’ll put you on the waiting list. Last season nearly everyone on the waiting lists got to the event they wanted, so do not be discouraged!
The new booking system will, I’m sure, work perfectly seamlessly! However, if you experience difficulties then please email me on geoffreywhitehead@vinehallschool.com and I will endeavour to ensure that your booking is processed.
For further information, please contact Geoffrey Whitehead:
Tel: 01580 883092
Email: geoffreywhitehead@vinehallschool.com
Send a letter: A.G. Whitehead, Vinehall School, Robertsbridge. East Sussex. TN32 5JL.
CHANGE OF ADVERTISED PROGRAMME
MACIEJ KULAKOWSKI (Cello) JEAN-SELIM ABDELMOULA (Piano)
Sunday 11th February 2024 at 3.00 p.m.
Programme
Janacek Pohadka
Fauré Après un Rêve
Fauré Sonata No.1 in A Op.13 arr: for Cello and Piano
Brahms Cello Sonata No.1 in E minor, Op.38
Piazzolla Le Grand Tango for Cello and Piano
"…the ‘wackiness’ of Debussy, Ravel and Poulenc has rarely been better demonstrated…of the intelligence and artistry on display there is no doubt." BBC Music Magazine 5 star review. Nov 2022 (Maciej’s debut album of French music ‘Beau soir’.)
“Not only is Jean-Sélim Abdelmoula a fine pianist with great sensitivity and imagination, he’s also a major talent in composition. When he plays Bach, Chopin and Schubert, he does it with a composer’s understanding.” Sir András Schiff