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JUNIORACADEMY

80YEARS

The ethos of Junior Academy – combining musical excellence and friendliness in an especially fine alchemy for 80 years – has contributed to a unique musical education for talented young instrumentalists, singers and composers. How one can articulate such a unique singular and collective accomplishment is best left to those dedicated teachers who have committed so much of their professional lives to Junior Academy, and those who have experienced its offering first hand.

There are several attributes to Junior Academy life of which the Royal Academy of Music as a whole is justly proud. Whilst we see many of its pupils progress to the senior Academy, just as wonderful is the breadth of destination of the Junior Academicians who chose another path. Because of the values, disciplines and achievements gained on a Saturday, music never leaves them: they become the advocates, supporters and informed audiences invaluable to cultural life. Countless times I have met old ‘Juniors’ who have followed a completely different profession to music but who animatedly refer back to this formative time in their lives as being absolutely central to their sense of identity and self-confidence, and much else besides.

Today, above all, is a celebration of the present Junior Academy. Thanks to the extended period of leadership under Jonathan Willcocks and then more recently Ben Parry and Howard Ionascu, there have been some important shifts as Junior Academy becomes an ever-more identifiable beacon of the best in UK music education for serious and talented young musicians. At the same time, the work of the Junior Academy is becoming ever more central to the institution’s core mission. With the increasing crossover in our operations – whether in staff, perception, governance or investment – the aim is to create as joined-up a sense of what the Royal Academy of Music offers to people of all ages and backgrounds.

Finally, I would like to thank the people who over the years have mattered the most in forging the success of Junior Academy. They are the willing young musicians who sacrifice a good part of their weekends, the selfless parents who make the significant commitment of all kinds (including vast weekly journeys whether from the far north, Cornwall or the Continent) to support their children, and to the wonderful staff whose reputation is absolutely peerless in the sector. Junior Academy really is a jewel in the crown of Britain’s oldest conservatoire.

Professor Jonathan Freeman-Attwood Principal

In our 80th anniversary year, we have devised a programme that celebrates Junior Academy and our students, both past and present. In February, St John’s Smith Square will provide the glorious back drop for a concert showcasing a variety of ensembles. In July, we are delighted to welcome back violinist Thomas Gould to perform with the Symphony Orchestra. The Masterclass–Recital series will put a number of our current students through their paces with world-class musicians. Whether you are a parent, friend or former Junior Academy student, you will be most welcome to any of these events in what promises to be a memorable year.

Howard IonascuDirector, Junior Academy

JUNIOR ACADEMY80th Anniversary Year – 2015

A warm welcome to this celebration of our outstanding ‘Academy within an Academy’

The Junior Exhibitioners’ Course (JE) was set up in the 1930s by Margaret Donington for the students on the teachers’ training course at the Royal Academy of Music. Children were initially recruited from local London boroughs and the scheme was funded by the London County Council who supported between 75 to 100 pupils – pianists, violinists and cellists. During the war years many of the JEs were evacuated, with two teachers employed to go out to the countryside to work with them. The course on offer in those early years continues to form the core curriculum today.

When Margaret Donington’s assistant, Gwen Dodds, took over in 1957 lessons were moved to Saturday mornings. Graduate students taught the second

studies for a year as part of their training. As a composer, Gwen Dodds encouraged composition at JE and invited Mme Nadia Boulanger on several occasions to work with all the children. There were two concerts a term and attendance by all students and staff was mandatory. It is from that era that two young stars of the future were JE students: Andrew Davis and Elton John.

Gavin Brown took over the helm in 1976 and ten years later Junior Academy (JA) was born. With the change to funding, JA had to promote itself increasingly, giving regular concerts at the Purcell Room, Wigmore Hall and other major venues. The first prospectus, in booklet form, came out in 1987, including a picture of a young Nicola Loud (who went on to

Junior Academy A brief history

become BBC Young Musician of the Year). She was followed in the competition two years later by the JA pianist Freddie Kempf. 1987 also saw the start of one of our satellite programmes, the First String Experience, following consultation with Sheila Nelson.

Krystyna Budzynska acted as Director for a term before the arrival of Jonathan Willcocks in January 1990. During his time the curriculum grew as did the number of instruments offered.

In this period of expansion, Primary Academy came into being in 1995 to serve the needs of the 8–12 year olds. The final satellite course was Junior Jazz in 2004 for gifted young jazz musicians.

January 2009 saw the arrival of Ben Parry as Director. Ben raised the choral profile of Junior Academy, and also helped to support its widening participation work and profile. Today the entire JA outfit has nearly 400 students, 90 staff, a Saturday programme that runs from 8am to 5pm and forms an integral part of the nation’s musical landscape.

Sunday 22nd February 3.30pmShowcase Concert at St John’s Smith Square

St John’s Smith Square, London SW1P 3HA

TICKETS: £12, £10, £8 (concessions: £10, £8, £6) Box Office: www.sjss.org.uk

Symphony Orchestra, Choirs & Chamber MusiciansHoward Williams & Howard Ionascu – conductors Programme to include Gabrieli ‘In ecclesiis’ and Mahler Symphony no.1

As part of Junior Academy’s 80th Anniversary celebrations, this concert will showcase the outstanding talent of current students in music for choir, chamber groups andsymphony orchestra.

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MASTERCLASS –RECITAL SERIES

Saturday 7th February Allegri String Quartet

Saturday 21st MarchJuliette Bausor flute

Saturday 6th June JA Alumni Wind Quintet

Saturday 17th OctoberLorraine McAslan violinVictor Sangiorgio piano

JUNIORACADEMY

80YEARS

All free 3.45pm start

‘impeccable technique and musicianship’ Gramophone

‘the shimmer and grace and intelligence of this ensemble is riveting’The Independent

‘rising star in the arts firmament’The Times

‘One of the most distinguished British violinists of her generation’The Strad

Saturday 17 January Danny Driver piano

Saturday 4th July 3.45pmThomas Gould performs with JA Symphony OrchestraDuke’s Hall

Tickets available from the Academy’s Box Office

Internationally renowned violinist and JA alumnus Thomas Gould returns to perfom with the Junior Academy Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Howard Williams.

Programme to include Ravel Violin Sonata arr. Simon Clarke for solo violin and large orchestra

Thomas Gould performs as soloist with orchestras worldwide including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra, Hallé Orchestra, LA Phil New Music Group, Orchestre Symphonique de Bretagne and West Australian Symphony Orchestra. Leader of Aurora Orchestra and associate leader of Britten Sinfonia, Gould appears as soloist and director with both groups, and is also a regular guest leader of Mahler Chamber Orchestra and London Sinfonietta. He is the dedicatee of Nico Muhly’s Concerto for six string electric violin, Seeing is Believing, and has recorded the work for Decca Classics.

Thomas is an Associate of the Royal Academy of Music, where he studied with György Pauk, and a former Young Concert Artists Trust (YCAT) winner. He plays a 1782 JB Guadagnini violin.

The Future

Ensuring that Junior Academy reaches out to the very best of talent in the UK is fundamental to our core mission. We strive to ensure that any child, regardless of background or circumstance, is able to benefit from the excellence of teaching on offer here every Saturday. We are very grateful to the generous benefactors who have enabled this to happen by funding Junior Academy bursaries, including long-standing supporters such as the Wolfson Foundation and the Leverhulme Trust.

Every year, Junior Academy receives thirty-five Music and Dance Scheme fully-funded places from the Department for Education. These enable students who would not otherwise be able to afford to come to the Academy to receive the essential and outstanding tuition they deserve and just as importantly – to make life-long friends with other dedicated musicians of their own age.

In 1958, an 11-year old boy from Pinner was awarded an Exhibition to attend Junior Academy, where he studied for the next four years. That boy, of course, went on to become Elton John. Now one of the most successful artists in music history, Sir Elton is unstinting in his support of the talented young musicians following in his footsteps, saying

‘I feel compelled to do everything that I can to assist the Academy in nurturing and developing these immensely talented, young people.’

‘Junior Academy gave me very strong musical foundations and helped me to develop the personal confidence, self-discipline, and broad outlook needed for a performing career.’

Danny Driver, alumnus

The Academy takes pride in its ability to identify and nurture outstanding young musicians, regardless of their background and circumstances. The cost of training a young musician to the highest professional standards comes at a premium, and we are building a bedrock of loyal supporters who enjoy being part of the Academy family, sharing in our success and helping young artists who might struggle without financial support. If you share our passion for music, we hope that you will consider joining our Patrons. Your contribution will provide a vital source of support for Junior Academy and senior Academy students, and for the Academy as a whole. Please visit www.ram.ac.uk/patronage or call Joana Witkowski, Deputy Development Director, on 020 7873 7334.

Join the Patrons of the Royal Academy of Music

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Biographies

Widely recognised as one of Britain’s leading flute players, Juliette Bausor was selected by the European Concert Hall Organisation as one of its Rising Stars 2014. Over the past season, Juliette has performed with acclaimed pianist, Alasdair Beatson at some of Europe’s most prestigious concert venues, including Laeiszhalle Hamburg, Het Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Bozar in Brussels, Town Hall Birmingham, Palace of Arts in Budapest, Vienna Musikverein, Stockholm Konserthus, L’Auditori in Barcelona, Konzerthaus Dortmund, Philharmonie Luxembourg, Sage Gateshead and the Barbican Centre in London. Following international success in competitions, including early recognition in reaching the televised Concerto Final of BBC Young Musician

and winning the Gold Medal in both the Shell LSO Competition and the Royal Over-Seas League Competition, Juliette has appeared as a concerto soloist with orchestras such as the London Symphony Orchestra, Ulster Orchestra, Academy of St Martin-in-the-Fields, European Union Chamber Orchestra, Royal Northern Sinfonia and London Mozart Players, with conductors including Yannick Nézet-Séguin, Thomas Zehetmair, Mario Venzago and Sir Neville Marriner. Juliette is principal flute with both Royal Northern Sinfonia and London Mozart Players, and frequently appears as guest principal flute with orchestras all over Britain. Also highly regarded as a chamber musician, Juliette is a member of the celebrated chamber group Ensemble 360.

Lorraine McAslan was at the age of seventeen heard by Isaac Stern, and on his recommendation went to study at the Juilliard School in New York with the legendary Dorothy DeLay. Since then she has produced a large discography and appeared as soloist with many of Britain and Europe’s leading orchestras, including the London Symphony, London Philharmonic, Royal Scottish National, Royal Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool, London Mozart Players, Bern Symphony, Scottish Chamber and English Chamber Orchestras, and with conductors including Andrew Davis,

Raymond Leppard, Jerzy Maksymiuk, Libor Pesek, Eliahu Inbal, Alexander Gibson, Jukka-Pekka Saraste, Barry Wordsworth and Martyn Brabbins. In addition to an extensive mainstream repertoire, she has performed and recorded the concerti of Howard Blake, Lionel Sainsbury, William Alwyn and York Bowen. Internationally she has performed extensively throughout Europe, America, Canada and Japan. Lorraine is the most recorded British violinist with over 30 solo CD’s to her name for such labels as Sanctuary Classics/ASV, Collins, Nimbus, Dutton Epoch and Naxos.

The Allegri Quartet has had a very busy birthday year, with two packed Wigmore Hall concerts and a Kings Place birthday concert still to come to celebrate its 60th anniversary as the UK’s oldest chamber group. It looks back upon its key role on the British musical scene, having worked with composers such as Benjamin Britten, Michael Tippett, Elizabeth Maconchy, John Woolrich, Anthony Payne, James MacMillan, Matthew Taylor and Alec Roth, collaborating with new commissions and recordings.

Having completed a Beethoven and Shostakovich Cycle at London’s Kings Place, the Allegris have gone on to perform cycles in Switzerland, Oxford, Richmond and Benslow, UK. These have been followed by the release of the Opus 18 Quartets on the Vivat label, recorded on Hi-Definition audio at the Yehudi Menuhin School’s Concert Hall, working in collaboration with Tony Faulkner, engineer and Robert King, producer. This recording recently was awarded ‘Five Stars’ in the BBC Music Magazine.

Danny’s recent orchestral highlights include concerts with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, including Walton’s Sinfonia Concertante at the ‘Roman Holiday’ Prom at the 2014 BBC Proms, conducted by Charles Dutoit, his début with the BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra (Chisholm), RTE Concert Orchestra (Beethoven) and with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment at London’s Queen Elizabeth Hall (CPE Bach’s Double Concerto for Fortepiano and Harpsichord on a period instrument), Beethoven’s ‘Emperor’ Concerto with the RPO at the Barbican Centre and Birmingham Symphony Hall,

concerts with the Minnesota Orchestra (Tchaikovsky), American Symphony Orchestra (Saint-Saëns), the Queensland Symphony Orchestra, Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra, the Orchestra of Opera North and a performance of Rachmaninoff’s Third Piano Concerto in Hong Kong’s City Hall. Driver’s most recent recitals include the Bridgewater Hall Midday Concert Series, the Husum Festival of Piano Rarities (Germany), the Petworth Festival and a début performance at the Festival O Modernt in Sweden, where he performed music by Rameau, Dukas, Debussy and Ravel.

JA Alumni Wind Quintet

Hannah Grayson Eugene Feild Joanna Stark Tim ThorpeMarie Lloyd

The Allegri Quartet

Juliette Bausor

Danny Driver

Lorraine McAslan

Marylebone Road London NW1 5HT | tel 020 7873 7373 www.ram.ac.uk | Registered Charity No. 310007facebook.com/royalacademyofmusictwitter.com/RoyalAcadMusicinstagram.com/royalacademyofmusic

Patron: HM The Queen

President: HRH The Duchess of Gloucester GCVO

Principal: Professor Jonathan Freeman-Attwood