On Friday 28th February, a packed chapel enjoyed a brilliant ‘Name that Tune’ gala concert. It showcased the wealth of talent, musical diversity and incredibly high standards of the Schools musicians. With a quarter of the girls in the School performing, the gala concert once again proved to be one of the highlights of the school year.

Head of HR at the School, Ms Jane Schofield, reviews the concert;

The evening began in great style with the full orchestra performing movements from Kodaly’s opera, Hary Janos, and Greig’s Peer Gynt – receiving rapturous applause from the audience. This was followed by two contrasting performances from the choirs – the beautifully harmonious Eleanor Rigby performed by the senior singers and the dramatic and exhilarating Ballad of Sweeney Todd, performed by the full choir.

The string orchestras, with both the junior and senior strings, entertained us with their brilliantly lively renditions of the themes from James Bond, and Wallace and Gromit. The enjoyment on the faces of the pupils playing was clear for all to see. Then came a confident and powerful vocal solo from Eden (Yr12), with Kitty (Yr10) on drums, performing a punchy hip-hop number from the award-winning Hamilton. The first half was rounded off with a medley of songs by the choir from the musical Evita, combining ballads and rhythmic Latin styles, and a beautiful solo by Katarina (Yr12).

The second half of the concert opened with the School Band performing some delightful highlights from Mary Poppins, followed by a riotous A to Z journey to ‘name that tune’. Additional fun was had by spotting the notable faces in the brilliant accompanying visuals.
A change of atmosphere ensued, with choir and orchestra performing an excerpt from the opera, Hansel and Gretel – it was an extremely demanding piece performed with great style and accomplishment. The audience were soon toe-tapping again to the songs and music of the 1920s from Thoroughly Modern Millie. A wonderful evening’s music making was brought to a close with an uplifting rendition of Hey Jude performed by the orchestra, choir, staff, parents and everyone else in the audience – a whole school community together in song. Well done to all 160 pupils who were involved and demonstrated their skills and sheer enjoyment of music, making it an evening of stunning performances. 

Thanks are also due to Ms Fewkes, Mr Rous, and Ms Bartlette, who continue to inspire, motivate, and challenge our pupils to such astonishingly high quality. The rousing cheers and applause from the girls as the teachers took their bows is testament to their hard work in creating such a joyful evening – well done!