Photo: Molly Hollman
News from the Music Department | May 2021
Playing on!
University of Kent | Music Department | May 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Spring is here; lockdown measures are slowly beginning to lift, the days are growing longer, and we’re finally able to start looking ahead to a more positive term and the possibility of some live music-making!
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University of Kent | Music Department | May 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Scholars’ Spotlight series
Our Scholars’ Spotlight series has continued throughout the spring term with a brace of Baroque arias from second-year Psychology student, Felicity Bourdillon; and the first movement of Schumann’s Kinderszenen performed by final-year Film Studies student, Kiyan Agadjani; a brace of brass works by euphonium player and third-year Biochemistry student, Euan Bonnar; and two English songs by final-year
Drama and Theatre Studies student, Carmen Mackey. As always, we are both delighted and slightly awestruck at how our Music Scholars and Music Award Holders continue to combine their course commitments with developing as musicians, the dedication to both practicing as well as taking the time to rehearse and perform to the camera.
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University of Kent | Music Department | May 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
In Conversation series
The next episode in our In Conversation series of talks with luminaries from the world of music featured saxophonist with the Jools Holland Rhythm and Blues Orchestra, Phil Veacock, in a fascinating dialogue with the director of the University Concert Band and Big Band, Ian Swatman.
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Reflecting on a career that started with playing the recorder and clarinet before taking up the saxophone when he realised there were no clarinettists on Top of the Pops, Phil reflects on becoming part of the Jools Holland band and appearing on Wogan, Don’t Forget Your Toothbrush and the annual Hootenanny television programmes, illicit snaffling of vegetables in the east Kent area when returning home after gigs late at night, and his alternative career as a bread-maker and bakery deliverydriver during COVID restrictions.
University of Kent | Music Department | May 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Cellular Dynamics in lockdown
Cellular Dynamics in lockdown; in collaboration with Professor Dan Lloyd, in March we were able to present a filmed series of chapters from our collaborative project with the School of Biosciences, highlighting aspects of their cuttingedge sub-molecular research in images and film, accompanied by live piano music performed by Dan Harding. The sequence of chapters, filmed in ColyerFergusson Hall, combines high-resolution photography with mesmerising piano pieces by Debussy, Philip Glass, John Cage and Tarik O’Regan.
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University of Kent | Music Department | May 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Summer Music Week As the weather improves and restrictions begin to lift in stages, we have also started to be able to plan ahead to this year’s end-of-year musical celebrations, our annual Summer Music Week festival. Although it won’t necessarily be able to unfurl in the usual manner, we all feel that something need to take place – not only musically to mark the end of the academic year, but also to have something to which we can all look forward! We are currently planning a series of small-scale events to take place between Sunday 6 and Saturday 12 June, including a Big Band Sunday Swing event and two recitals by University Music Scholars; initial plans are now online here. www.kent.ac.uk/music/summermusic-week
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University of Kent | Music Department | May 2021 | www.kent.ac.uk/music
Vinyl Countdown Our live webshow, Vinyl Countdown, has continued to grow, and last month featured two special episodes featuring University staff; the first episode with Chris Deacy, Will Wollen, Harmonie Toros and Olly Double; and an all-staff special from the Marketing, Outreach, Recruitment and Admissions team.
As always, we continue to be hugely grateful for the support of all the music donors in so generously supporting all the (rather unusual) programme of activities this year, and the prospect of being able to perform a rather more modest than usual Summer Music Week is a real tonic for both all the students and staff involved in music-making, as well as to the various members of the Music team who have worked so hard to keep musicians at the University engaged. We can now look forward to what seemed, earlier in the year, to be a remote possibility – the opportunity to bring student and staff musicians at the University together in June for a somewhat different, but nevertheless very welcome, musical finale to the year.
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www.kent.ac.uk/music Colyer-Fergusson Building, Giles Lane, Canterbury CT2 7NB
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