2011 Anniversary Brochure - Paxos Festival Trust

GSMD at the September Festivals 2005 - 2009
One afternoon towards the middle of September 2003, over a stiff drink, John told
me, Julian Jacobson and Pal Banda that the Paxos Festival as we knew it was no
more. His reasons were cogent and compelling: what had started in 1986 as a
convivial and amateur event had turned into something serious, professional and
hugely expensive. He said he wanted to scale things back, and try to recapture
the easy spirit of that very first concert. He told us proud excitement about the new
Spring Festival of modern music (2004-present), which would concentrate on developing
the skills of young Greek musicians.
Later that day, over another drink, John admitted to me that some effort had
been made to save the Autumn Festival by finding a new benefactor to step into
the breach, but that negotiations had come to nothing. I have to say that I was a
little troubled by this, largely on behalf of the loyal audience we had built up over
the years, for most of whom the prospect of a modern music series would not be
enticing. At this point I have to admit to being a little underhand: without asking
John’s opinion, I informed Geoffrey and Hilary Herdman of the turn of events,
doubtless over yet another drink (I can only think it must have been a very hot
day). On being told the sort of money that might be needed to save the Festival,
Hilary’s response was magnificent, munificent and entirely characteristic: “I don’t
think that will be a problem, Philip”, she said.
John was a little surprised that the 2004 Festival happened after his having cancelled
it, but accepted the situation with good grace: “I’m not going to come
over all King Learish!” he told me at the time. Well, I’m very glad he didn’t, and
very glad for the hard work and generosity of Herdmans, because without them
there would not have been a 2004 Autumn Festival, and without a 2004 Festival
there would have been no Autumn Festivals in all the years since…. Somebody’s
just recharged my glass, so if you’ve got a drink to hand, join me in toasting Geoffrey
and Hilary, wherever they might be.
Philip Gibbon
In about 2003/4, John Gough became very much focussed on the new Spring Festival,
where the Trust was involved with the Ensemble Moderne. However, he was
happy for the Trust to continue with the September Festival, on the basis that this
was under the aegis of The Guildhall School of Music and Drama. This was a return
to the early days of the Festival, when many of the the students came from Guildhall.
Thus began 5 very happy years' direct association with Guildhall, for the first 2
years directed by Bernard Lansky, and then for 3 years by Caroline Palmer, who
had played at the Festival many years previously, at a time when she was staying
near Preveza.
So far as the students were concerned, I had thought that as they were all from
Guildhall, they would have played together regularly. However I was told by many
students that one of the benefits of coming to Paxos was that it gave the opportunity,
for example, of woodwind playing in ensembles with strings, something that
the
exigencies
of
timetable
and
rehearsal
rooms
makes
difficult
in
London.
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The students' enthusiasm and hard work was matched by the professors. One particular
example was in I think 2006, when Bernard got to Gatwick at some hideous
hour in the morning, having flown in from Singapore the day before, to find that
following the terrorist bomb scare, no instruments could be taken on board as
hand
luggage.
Undeterred,
he
sent
the
students
off,
and
he
and
Lucy
Pickles
loaded the instruments into his VW Golf which fortunately he had left near Gatwick
This in itself was a miracle of packing. They set off by road, driving all night to get
the ferry from Italy, and arriving in Paxos only a day or so after the students. In the
meantime they managed to cram a student, stranded in Bologna, and her instrument
into a car already bulging at the seams!
It was that year that David Takeno came as Professor of Strings, and memorably
had a quartet marching round the school room at rehearsal, carrying a cello case
like a coffin, to find the funereal mood that hewanted from them.
One year Geoffrey and I drove to Paxos with a cumbersome passenger in the form
of a double bass. The logistics of taking this instrument are always a problem, but
as one of the staff at Guildhall had said, it does provide the "floorboards" to a
piece. It was a very tight fit, and a great relief to get it safely back to Guildhall!
Hilary Herdman
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