Sport - Rugby School

Drama & Music
2009/10
Drama
&Music
Arnold Singers
Members of the Arnold Singers, Rugby School’s chamber choir,
are used to being worked hard by their conductor, the school’s
Director of Music, Richard Dunster-Sigtermans. Possibly Advent
Sunday 2009 will be remembered as one of their busiest days,
packing in two excellent performances and two excellent
meals.
The first official performance of the day was scheduled to be at
Blenheim Palace, although the choir did give a sneak preview
to the Holmes family (Cindy Holmes is one of the School’s
governors and mother to two boys in the School), who warmly
welcomed the choir, director and accompanist to their beautiful
home for lunch, effortlessly (it seemed) providing enough food
to feed an entire boys’ boarding house!
The afternoon performances at Blenheim Palace went down a
treat with the audience of Palace visitors, and the odd Rugby
parent or two. The Arnies, as they are affectionately known,
performed a selection of traditional and modern Christmas
carols, including one of the two pieces which secured the Rugby
School Upper Chapel Choir its place in the final of BBC Songs of
Praise School Choir of the Year Competition. Immediately after
the two recitals at Blenheim the choir had to rush back to School
to prepare for the next event – there wasn’t even a chance to
sightsee, let alone buy a souvenir!
It is not every day that a school choir is invited to perform with
such a renowned and superbly gifted saxophonist as Christian
Forshaw. However, this was the second time that Christian had
worked with Rugby School musicians (the previous occasion
was in 2007), and it proved to be a wonderful experience for
the choir to rehearse and perform with an international player
of Christian’s calibre. The Chapel was a perfect venue for the
concert and the blend of saxophone, percussion, soprano solo,
organ and the Arnies inspired the audience to give a standing
ovation. For me the performance of the night was undoubtedly
Forshaw’s Nunc Dimittis, a powerful piece of music that truly
makes one’s spine tingle.
Howard Goodall
Transformation was the theme of this year’s Arnold Foundation
lecturer, composer Howard Goodall, as he expertly deciphered
‘The Stravinsky Code: Music’s Untapped Power’. Supremely,
he said, music promotes self-esteem, team work and social
cohesion, whilst giving enormous pleasure. Sport might achieve
some of these goals but here ‘there are no losers’. Music is ‘the
only thing that really changes you’, that offers ‘an alternative
timescale’ and ‘puts the brain into a different place’. He has
witnessed its transformative power himself. There was the Iraqi
child, traumatised into voluntary mutism, who had recovered
her speech through singing. There was the gypsy wedding in
Romania which this ‘comfortable Londoner’ had found rather
threatening until the sound of an accordion suddenly put a
smile on every face. Music education is vital to ‘create a virtuous
life’ and singing in particular is a ‘birthright’, as important as
literacy and numeracy, not least because ‘music makes the brain
grow faster’. In children, music is a ‘magic’ that transforms their
lives.
JCS
How do you finish off a day like that Chili, of course! Straight
after the concert all of the singers, plus Christian and company,
descended on the Dunster-Sigterman’s abode for the now
traditional Advent fare of an RDS (in)famous chili con carne. On
behalf of the Arnold Singers, I would like to extend thanks to
Christian Forshaw and the Sanctuary Ensemble; Antonia Keeney
and her colleagues at Blenheim Palace; the Holmes family; and
most importantly, Mr Dunster-Sigterman and Mr Colley: the
day would not have been as successful as it was without their
help, support and input.
Abi Barber
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