Wednesday November 6th 7.30 pm

The New Street Ensemble

Simon Smith (violin) Marie Lloyd (clarinet)
Penny Driver (cello) Joseph Tong (piano)

Beethoven: Piano trio in D Op 70 no 1 ‘Ghost'

Bartok: Contrasts for violin, clarinet and piano

Brahms: Clarinet trio in A minor Op 114

Gershwin arr. Farrington: Three songs

Admission free with retiring collection. No tickets issued beforehand

'The New Street Ensemble, formed in 2017, is a flexible ensemble made up of some of the fine London-based chamber musicians on the faculty of Wells Cathedral Specialist Music School. We were inspired by the beautiful newly built Cedars Hall at Wells to put on a series of concerts and are now taking these programmes elsewhere.

Violinist SIMON SMITH has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the Academy of St. Martin in the Fields, and the Philharmonia, in Beijing and Hong Kong and given recitals at the Wigmore Hall and the Purcell Room, across Russia from Moscow to Vladivostock. He toured for many years as a member of the Academy Octet, and has released a CD of string chamber music by Kodaly and Dohnanyi. His recent disc of solo violin works by Kurtag and Bartok drew praise in The Strad Magazine as a “luxuriantly detailed reading” and in Gramophone Magazine for “his thoughtful, sympathetic performances” . Much in demand as a teacher Simon teaches at the RNCM, RCM Junior Department and at Wells Cathedral School. He has given masterclasses across the UK, and in institutions such as Moscow Conservatoire and Central Conservatoire, Beijing.

Marie Lloyd has been a member of the Chamber Orchestra of Europe since 2001. With the COE, she has worked prolifically with such musicians as Bernard Haitink, Nikolaus Harnoncourt, Sir András Schiff,Mitsuko Uchida and Yannick Nézet-Séguin. Also as a member of the Wind Soloists she took part in the Centenary celebration concert at the Wigmore Hall. Marie has played with the vast majority of the orchestras of Britain, including, as guest principal, with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and many others. Marie has kept a special interest in chamber music, performing with such groups as The Nash Ensemble including the World Premiere of Van Gogh Blue by Julian Anderson, and recently the 1st Mendelssohn Konzertstucke at The Wigmore Hall. Marie also teaches at the Junior Department of the Royal Academy of Music and Wells Cathedral School.

Penny Driver performs all over the world with a wide variety of ensembles and orchestras including the London Symphony Orchestra and Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, and performs as recitalist and chamber musician in festivals and series throughout Europe and the UK. She studied with Ralph Kirshbaum whilst at Cambridge University and at the Royal Northern College of Music, and then spent two years in Chicago USA on a Countess of Munster scholarship. She has taught specialist cellists aged 11-18 at Wells Cathedral School for over twenty years, teaches on summer courses in France and Hungary, is Co-Director of con spirito chamber music Sundays in London, is a string coach for Cambridge University. She examines for Royal Conservatoire of Scotland and Royal Academy of Music. She was Professor of Cello at Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in Cardiff for sixteen years and is now regularly invited to give performance classes at the Royal Academy of Music.

Joseph Tong studied at Wells Cathedral School, Cambridge University and the Royal Academy of Music, making his Wigmore Hall debut in 1997 as winner of the Maisie Lewis Young Artists Award. He has recently made two Sibelius recordings, released on the Quartz label to widespread critical acclaim, and has performed extensively in Finland, including recitals at Sibelius's home Ainola on the composer's original Steinway. Other recent highlights have included recitals in Germany, Spain and at St David's Hall, Cardiff. St George's Bristol, Fairfield Halls Croydon, Newport Cathedral and Hatchlands in Surrey. Last year, Joseph gave an all-Schumann recital at the Sendesaal in Bremen and a CD recording was released in June. Joseph Tong has a keen interest in performing new music and premiered works by Cydonie Banting and Gareth Moorcraft at the 2018 Presteigne Festival. He is also a busy chamber musician and has enjoyed performing with the New Street Ensemble since 2017.

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