At the beginning of May, we hosted our highly anticipated ‘Farnborough Introducing’ in The Prospect Theatre. The evening's performers were a diverse blend of different musical styles; from romantic to rock, with a collection of College and student-led ensembles; there was something for everyone to enjoy.
The evening began with a performance from one of our two BTEC Music Performance bands with their high energy performance of ‘Valerie’. The Big Band followed playing ‘Absoludicrous’ by Gordon Goodwin with a clarinet solo, performed by second year A level music student, Daniel. The spotlights then moved to the Chamber Choir who enchanted the audience with their serene voices as they sang ‘Agnus Dei’ from The Armed Man by Karl Jenkins, accompanied by Guy Murgatroyd on piano. Student-led jazz group, The Golden Age Jazz Trio, changed the mood with a fabulous performance of Dave Brubeck’s ‘Tokyo Traffic’ before Mae’s encapsulating rendition of ‘Danse Espagnole’ by Manuel De Falla on violin. The second of the BTEC Music performance bands showcased their jazz arrangement of Harry Styles’ highly popular track, ‘Adore You’, fronted by second year student, Tilda.
Our compère, second year student Adrien, briefly spoke with Daniel from Take Ten, a student-led jazz ensemble before their first brilliant performance of the evening, a Paul Murtha arrangement of ‘Vehicle’. Emma sang a haunting rendition of ‘Need You Now’ by Lady Antebellum before Contemporary Voices closed the first half with a superb performance of ‘My Desire’ by Kirk Franklin, adapted by André da Silva, Music Enrichment Lead.
The second half began with ambient purple lighting illuminating first year music student, Alice, during her enchanting rendition of ‘Valse De Concert’, written for the harp by Alphonese Hasslemans. More performances from The Big Band and our second BTEC band followed this before Kabir’s stunning solo performance of ‘She Used To Be Mine’ from Waitress. Take Ten played the iconic Stevie Wonder track ‘Isn’t She Lovely’ before a few words from Stuart McSweeney, Curriculum Manager for A Level Music, and one final number by Contemporary Voices, a powerful performance of ‘Come Alive’ from The Greatest Showman.
It was the perfect end to an evening that truly showcased the broad range of musical talent here at The Sixth Form College Farnborough. Well done to all involved!
