Music on Thursdays
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Thursday 17th April 2025
12.30 lunchtime
Venue: Leatherhead Methodist Church KT22 8AY
Parking: Swan Centre multi storey KT22 7RH
Katherine Clarke
viola soloist
Programme
Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
from the Rosary Sonatas
Passacaglia in G C105 (for Violin, 1670-1674)
arr for solo viola
Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828)
arr Katherine Clarke
Ave Maria arr for singing viola
Henri François Joseph Vieuxtemps (1820-1881)
Capriccio Hommage à Paganini in C minor
(for viola) Op 55, (pub 1883, Op 9 posthumous)
Garth Knox (b1956)
from 3 New Spaces (for solo viola) (2017, pub 2023)
1 Microtonal Blues
Hildegard of Bingen (c1098-1179)
arr for singing viola Katherine Clarke
O quam mirabilis O how wonderful
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
arr Simon Rowland-Jones for solo viola
Cello Suite No 1 in G major BWV 1007
1 Prelude
2 Allemande
3 Courante
4 Sarabande
5/6 Minuet I / II
6 Gigue
Concert duration approx: 50+ minutes
Please donate to help fund these concerts at: cafdonate.cafonline.org/14455
Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
from the Rosary Sonatas
Passacaglia in G C105 (for Violin, 1670-1674)
arr for solo viola
Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828)
arr Katherine Clarke
Ave Maria arr for singing viola
Henri François Joseph Vieuxtemps (1820-1881)
Capriccio Hommage à Paganini in C minor
(for viola) Op 55, (pub 1883, Op 9 posthumous)
Garth Knox (b1956)
from 3 New Spaces (for solo viola) (2017, pub 2023)
1 Microtonal Blues
Hildegard of Bingen (c1098-1179)
arr for singing viola Katherine Clarke
O quam mirabilis O how wonderful
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
arr Simon Rowland-Jones for solo viola
Cello Suite No 1 in G major BWV 1007
1 Prelude
2 Allemande
3 Courante
4 Sarabande
5/6 Minuet I / II
6 Gigue
Concert duration approx: 50+ minutes
Please donate to help fund these concerts at: cafdonate.cafonline.org/14455
Katherine ClarkeKatherine Clarke is a talented viola player who specialises in performing works for singing violist. An innovator in this unique performance style, she has commissioned many new pieces including Three Wind Songs by Garth Knox, with funding from Arts Council England and the Nicholas Boas Charitable Trust. With arrangements from Hildegard of Bingen to Franz Schubert, Katherine has established herself as the leading singing viola player in the UK, showcasing the depth and range of the viola and voice to an exceptional standard. With more commissions on the way, she will continue to perform and contribute to this unusual and exciting repertoire. Having completed her undergraduate studies at the Royal College of Music, Katherine went on to achieve a Distinction in her Masters in Performance at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in 2017, with scholarships from the Goldsmiths’ Company and the Guildhall School Trust. |
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Katherine is a keen chamber musician and has performed with various ensembles at St John’s Smith Square, LSO St Luke’s, the National Gallery and the British Museum, and has recorded at Abbey Road Studios. In 2019 she participated in a residency at Snape Maltings with Illuminate Women’s Music, before touring the UK and recording a concert for the BBC Radio 3 New music show. In 2017 she was chosen to take part in the London Sinfonietta Academy, where she performed alongside players of the London Sinfonietta, the world’s leading contemporary music ensemble. Katherine also took part in the Lucerne Festival Academy 2018, where she rehearsed contemporary orchestral, ensemble and chamber music repertoire before performing at the Lucerne Festival, as well as at the Elbphilharmonie in Hamburg.
As a dedicated orchestral player Katherine has performed in a number of top London venues, such as the Royal Festival Hall, the Barbican and Milton Court Concert Hall, and she has worked with many conductors including Sir Roger Norrington, Sir Neville Marriner and Sir Simon Rattle. During her final year at the Royal College of Music, Katherine took part in the ENO Evolve scheme, which gave her the chance to participate in rehearsals and take part in an orchestral masterclass given by five members of the ENO. She was selected by audition to take part in the Chipping Campden Festival Academy Orchestra, the UK’s leading side-by-side scheme, which took place in May 2017. She also mentored the Festival's Youth Orchestra in August, culminating in a concert with soloist Nicola Benedetti.
As a dedicated orchestral player Katherine has performed in a number of top London venues, such as the Royal Festival Hall, the Barbican and Milton Court Concert Hall, and she has worked with many conductors including Sir Roger Norrington, Sir Neville Marriner and Sir Simon Rattle. During her final year at the Royal College of Music, Katherine took part in the ENO Evolve scheme, which gave her the chance to participate in rehearsals and take part in an orchestral masterclass given by five members of the ENO. She was selected by audition to take part in the Chipping Campden Festival Academy Orchestra, the UK’s leading side-by-side scheme, which took place in May 2017. She also mentored the Festival's Youth Orchestra in August, culminating in a concert with soloist Nicola Benedetti.
Recordings of the works in today's concert
Heinrich Ignaz Franz von Biber (1644-1704)
from the Rosary Sonatas
Passacaglia in G C105 (for Violin, 1670-1674) [8:05]
arr for solo viola
The violist on this recording is Krzysztof Komendarek-Tymendorf:
from the Rosary Sonatas
Passacaglia in G C105 (for Violin, 1670-1674) [8:05]
arr for solo viola
The violist on this recording is Krzysztof Komendarek-Tymendorf:
Franz Peter Schubert (1797-1828)
arr Katherine Clarke
Ave Maria arr for singing viola [4:40]
Despite the age of the recording and the characteristics of the reproductive equipment, the beauty of William Primrose's viola playing shines through on this recording with harpist Sidonie Goossens.
I have not heard Sidonie Goossens' playing for 65 years. She it was who played in my very first "concert for schools" at Briar Road Infants in Twickenham! Her harp was utterly beautiful with a most ornate finial that slowly drew my eyes. I was in awe of this instrument. I knew they existed, yet I had never been close to one, never heard one live, despite our Welsh background.
And then, she played it. From that amazing moment, music became my life.
A founder member of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Madame Goossens died in 2004, a few weeks after her 105th birthday.
Henri François Joseph Vieuxtemps (1820-1881)
Capriccio Hommage à Paganini in C minor
(for viola) Op 55, (pub 1883) [5:00]
Steven Baloue is the solo violist in this performance from the Mary Baldwin University, named after the top girl in its first intake, and eventually, the Principal who steered the College through the Civil War.
Garth Knox (b1956)
from 3 New Spaces (for solo viola) (2017, pub 2023)
1 Microtonal Blues [2:50]
We often say the best person to perform a new work is the composer themself. Here, then, is Garth Knox, with Microtonal Blues, at the Tenerife Viola Masterclass Festival 2023.
Hildegard of Bingen (c1098-1179)
arr for singing viola Katherine Clarke
O quam mirabilis O how wonderful [4:20]
Here is a quite mystical performance of the antiphon O quam mirabilis est, sung by Marijke Daphne Meerwijk in Antwerp's Walburgiskerk. Among Hildegard of Bingen's vast array of attributes she was the earliest-known female composer. We don't know her surname and she is always as 'of Bingen', where she was a member of the Order of Saint Benedict.
Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750)
arr Simon Rowland-Jones for solo viola
Cello Suite No 1 in G major BWV 1007 [17:25]
1 Prelude • 2 Allemande
3 Courante • 4 Sarabande
5/6 Minuet I / II • 6 Gigue
Our recording of this familiar work comes from the Israel Conservatory of Music in Tel Aviv. The violist is Vera Vaidman who was born in St Petersburg, studied in Moscow, and whose tutors included David Oistrakh.
Previous concert
10 April 2025 - Aeris Trio - 2 flutes & piano, from the Royal Academy of Music click here
Next concert
24 April 2025 - Faccini Piano Duo (piano 4 hands) from Italy, click here
