Training Orchestra

Programme notes

Welcome to the first concert of this season.  You are sure to enjoy a variety of ensembles and different musical genres. 

1. Medieval Dance

The Training Orchestra starts the afternoon gently with Medieval Dance which gives each section of the orchestra a chance to play the main tune over a drone accompaniment.

2. Scenes from The Marriage Of Figaro

In Scenes From Marriage of Figaro we hear many of the melodies from Mozart’s opera which tells of how the servants Figaro and Susanna succeed in getting married, foiling the efforts of their philandering employer to seduce Susanna and in the process teach him a lesson in fidelity.

This is an Opera Buffa – a comedy opera – which was composed in 1786 and premiered in April of that year. 

3. Russian Sailor's Dance

The Russian Sailor’s Dance is taken from Glière’s ballet The Red Poppy. The tune is of folk derivation and is interpolated into the ballet score. All sections of the orchestra share the melody as it accelerates towards a frantic finale.

4. Ain't Misbehavin'

Ain’t Misbehavin’ from 1929 is an early swing number. Andy Razaf writes the lyrics to a score by Thomas “Fats” Waller and Harry Brooks for the Broadway comedy play Connie’s Hot Chocolates.

The song has been recorded by many well-known artists but probably the best known is the one by Fats Waller himself, a re-recording of which received a Grammy Hall Of Fame Award in 1984.  In 2001 it was voted one of 365 Songs Of The Century by the RIAA and was selected as one of fifty recordings to be included in the National Recording Registry by the American Library Congress in 2004.

5. Christmas In The Kitchen

With Christmas drawing near the inclusion of a couple of Christmassy numbers was inevitable.  Christmas In The Kitchen features the percussion section who will add something special to Up On The Rooftops and Jingle Bells using cups and pots and pans.

6. Three King Strut

Three King Strut has the three kings enjoying a jazzy romp on their way to the end of our concert.