Incredible.

The second group to perform on the final day were the Instrumental Group, lead by David Horne and accompanied by musicians Richard Harwood (Cello), Tom Kemp (Violin), Hannah Grayson (Flute) and Anna Hashimoto (Clarinet).

The compositions presented by the students were jaw-dropping. I found myself (much like the audience) completely stunned by the intricacy of the arrangements. Both the depth and detail of the students ideas were delivered to perfection by the musicians that they had to hand, of which the students were incredibly grateful for.

Each student introduced their piece before it was played, providing some context to the ideas that inspired their compositions. Sometimes this was built upon a fictional story, such as a violent battle between two armies, whereas others were more personal to the young composer. The students also shed light on the process; how in some cases ideas came naturally to them, and in others, it was a matter of constantly developing and re-writing melodies and harmonies as the week progressed and the performances came ever closer!

The enjoyable and sometimes challenging week the students had faced enabled their performed compositions to evidence the significant amount of learning they had undertaken. Prior to the entire Instrumental performance, David Horne himself took the time to acknowledge just how astonishing it was that only 6 days prior to the performances, none of the pieces composed by the 72 students attending the Summer School existed.