School Matters 36

17

LIEDERABEND Our annual Liederabend is a celebration of languages and song. Pieces were presented in the full range of languages taught and spoken at IPS, accompanied by fresh translations by School’s top linguists. The Ballroom was packed to bursting in support of these talented young singers. The concert opened with Lexi Humber, S10’s T’intendo si, Mio Cor, Beethoven’s setting of a Metastasio text which had been translated by Valentina Sommadossi, UVI. We moved through Spanish folk songs to Italian arias by Handel, to lieder by Schumann, Schubert and Mendelssohn, via French chansons, Latin hymns and Maori traditional music. Natalie Lees, LVI treated us to ‘La Vie En Rose’, translated by Hannah Harvey, LVI which brought the Ballroom to an extraordinary stillness. Congratulations to all performers, translators, and the Music and MFL teachers who prepared both! And many thanks to Mr Gorrie for his typically immaculate accompaniment.

SINGER SONGWRITER SUCCESS Congratulations to Melis Buberka, LVI, whose debut single has been released released after two years of Covid disruption. In late 2019, Melis competed in Open Mic UK, a national competition affiliated with The Voice. Melis won the performers’ platform prize and was signed to their record label. Melis’s song is called ‘Life Like This’. It’s fantastic!

BARNES MUSIC FESTIVAL: YOUNG MUSICIAN MASTERCLASSES

As part of Ibstock Place School’s growing affiliation with the Barnes Music Festival, two pupils were invited to perform in a Strings Masterclass as part of their annual Young Musician Competition. Zephany Coleman, S8 and Lottie Sanderson, PVI travelled to St Paul’s Girls’ School to perform and be coached by cellist Leo Popplewell, a Fellow at the prestigious Guildhall School of Music. Zephany performed Frank Bridge’s Spring Song and Lottie played Johannes Brahms’s Violin Sonata no.3 to great acclaim and responded positively to all of Leo’s coaching and suggestions. Both pupils were fantastic ambassadors and took a tremendous amount from the masterclass, learning as much from listening to the other participants as they did from their own coaching. We were subsequently delighted to host the Woodwind Masterclass as part of their Young Musician competition. The masterclass saw advanced musicians from across South West London flock to our Theatre to enjoy coaching from Nicholas

Daniel OBE, an acclaimed oboist and Professor of Music at several international conservatoires. Alongside IPS’s home grown talent were pupils from both St Paul’s schools, LEH, Tiffin and the Purcell School.