Once again, Junior Consort enjoyed their annual festive visit to The Fairways Retirement Village and Care Home in Chippenham. The girls donned their Christmas attire and brightened up a cold and dreary day with their glittering tinsel, beautiful voices and happy faces. 

On Monday 9th December, the LIV (Year 7) girls made the short walk along the Oxford Road to entertain the residents of Penn Court with some seasonal cheer. Bedecked with Christmas jumpers, tinsel, antlers and hats, there was an array of festive colour on display.

With hundreds of candles glimmering in the dark, the scene was set for the school’s annual Service of Nine Lessons and Carols at St Mary’s Parish Church. 

On Thursday 28th November, an audience of parents and supporters gathered in the Chapel of the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich for the eagerly-anticipated performance of Fauré’s Requiem.  The piece was performed by St Mary’s Chamber Choir and Junior Consort, together with a choir of 25 tenors and basses from Eton College.

Now a regular fixture in the Music Calendar, this year’s Autumn Concert took place in Chapel on Thursday, 14th November, marking the first major outing of the year for all of the school’s major instrumental ensembles.

On the evening of Wednesday 6th November, the Music Scholars came together for their annual gathering, which this year took place in Top Hall. The evening began with solos from two of our UIV Scholars, Deborah and Izzy. Deborah opened with a lovely rendition of Bach’s aria Bist du bei mir, before Izzy gave an atmospheric performance of the opening movement from Beethoven’s Moonlight Sonata.

Once again this year we were privileged to have been asked to give a concert for the Calne Music and Arts Festival.

The Cecilia James Company Music Festival took place on Friday 4th October and was adjudicated by Roy Rashbrook, who is a classically trained singer, director of various vocal ensembles and Vicar Choral at St Paul’s Cathedral. 

On Saturday 22nd June, St Mary’s Concert Artists joined Bath Choral Society for an exhilarating concert at
St Mary’s the Virgin, Bathwick. Under the energetic instruction of the much lauded composer himself, Alexander L’Estrange, the girls took part in a brief workshop to hone actions and musicianship for the demands of Zimbe! a choral work involving SATB choir, a youth choir and a jazz quintet.

On Thursday 13th June, St Mary’s Concert Artists performed solo repertoire at a fundraising event at Cadenham Manor, Foxham.

On 4th June, the acclaimed baritone Christopher Purves visited St Mary’s to give a much anticipated masterclass and solo performance in the Chapel. Currently performing at Glyndebourne in the powerful La Damnation de Faust by Berlioz to rave reviews, Christopher made a huge impact working with senior singers on their chosen repertoire.

Some of our LV (Year 10) singers visited Trinity College, Cambridge on 12th-13th May, with a view to finding out more about Choral Scholarships at Cambridge.

On Friday 10th May our Music Scholars presented their annual concert to a supportive audience of family and friends in Chapel.

Saturday 27th April saw the annual ‘Calne Spring Sing’ take place at various venues around the town. As the school’s contribution to this vibrant venture, we sent the LIV (Year 7) Choir to showcase some of their favourite repertoire from the past year.

This year’s concert was held on 22nd March at the Wiltshire Music Centre in Bradford on Avon, in the splendid, sold-out 300-seat concert hall.

On the weekend of 9th March, St Mary’s was one of a number of schools from across the South of England to participate in a Piano Festival at Pangbourne College. Fourteen girls from right across the age range took part, providing them with a wonderful opportunity to play on a Steinway Model D grand piano. 

On Tuesday 5th March we welcomed a group of Year 5 and 6 girls to take part in The Greatest Showman Musical Theatre Workshop, and it certainly was a full day of ‘the greatest show’!

The week before Half Term saw the beginning of this year’s Fourth Form Music Festival, starting with the preliminary rounds. The Festival is an opportunity for our junior musicians to play or sing to a live audience of their peers, regardless of what standard they have reached.  We had girls who had only been learning their instrument for just over a term, proudly performing their pieces alongside girls who have already reached the upper grades.  

On Sunday 20th January, St Mary’s musicians created some very special musical memories, with a day’s residence at the Royal Academy of Music, London. This was followed by our much-anticipated evening concert, ‘Inspire!’ as part of the school’s Cantabile Concert Series, raising funds for the Armed Forces Fund.

After some 30 years’ service to the Nesbitt Room, our ageing grand piano, which had been in situ ever since the Music Department was built in the late 1980s, was replaced with a brand new Yamaha C5X model during last year’s summer holiday. On Monday 14th January, we were joined by the Berkshire musician, Mrs Pamela Chilvers, for a dedication concert.