RYO were delighted to play at the Aldworth Philharmonic Orchestra’s 20th anniversary concerts on 29th October 2022. Our young players joined APO players on stage for two concerts – a family concert in the afternoon, and a celebratory formal concert in the evening.
The family concert featured RYO playing a world premiere of Bob Good’s Sinfonietta No. 1 “Silver”, with some members of APO playing with them. Both orchestras then took the stage together to play a movement of Caitlin Harrison’s ‘From Dawn to Dreams’ called Rhododendron Bells and Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy.
The evening concert included the culmination of the Adopt A Music Creator project, run by Making Music in partnership with Sound and Music, and funded by the PRS Foundation and the Philip & Dorothy Green Music Trust. This project paired both RYO and APO with the amazing composer Caitlin Harrison. Having got to know our groups, she wrote ‘From Dawn to Dreams’ for our two orchestras, and this was our opportunity to perform the world premiere of the work.
You can read more about the Adopt a Music Creator project here, or take a look at the fantastic blog posts on the Making Music website:
- Mel Le Breuilly writes about RYO starting work learning Caitlin’s new piece
- Caitlin Harrison talks about her journey working with both orchestras
- Pippa Moore writes about the ethereal atmosphere at the performance
Alongside ‘From Dawn to Dreams’, APO also performed ‘Biscuits, Beer and Bulbs’ by their past Young Composers Award winner Michael Betteridge, and the sumptuous Rachmaninoff Symphony No. 2.
The whole day was a fantastic experience in Reading’s Concert Hall, creating memories we will all remember for a long time!
