THE PROMETHEUS ORCHESTRA

Choral societies in Suffolk have come to rely on a band of fine local musicians who come together to play for them for concerts all over the county. Professionals in their own right, these musicians seldom get the chance to perform outside the major concert halls so they were delighted when Edmond Fivet gave them the opportunity to do so in May of last year, at a performance given by the Aldeburgh Music Club in Orford Church.

The concert included Beethoven’s Symphony No 1 and the Overture to Prometheus. Writing about the concert, Humphrey Burton said:

A £250,000 grant has been awarded to The Suffolk Punch Trust to safeguard the future of the Suffolk Punch horse, the oldest and rarest breed of heavy horse in the world.

The grant means that the Suffolk Punch Trust is now nearing its £700,000 target needed to build an education and heritage centre at Hollesley Bay, where many of the horses are kept.

The Trust bought 27 Suffolk Punch horses, buildings, equipment and 180 acres of land at Hollesley Bay in 2006 to secure the future of the stud and these magnificent horses.

Under their new Drector of Music, Edmond Fivet, the Aldeburgh Music Club is planning to stage a major musical event in November 2009 to celebrate the work of William Walton. A concert at Snape Maltings Concert Hall will include William Walton's brilliant oratorio Belshazzar's Feast.

This is a major undertaking for the Aldeburgh Music Club which relies entirely on charitable giving and the hard work and support of the its members and friends.

A new orchestra for Suffolk

Choral societies in Suffolk have come to rely on a band of fine local musicians who come together to play for them for concerts all over the county. Professionals in their own right, these musicians seldom get the chance to perform outside the major concert halls so they were delighted when Edmond Fivet gave them the opportunity to do so in May of last year, at a performance given by the Aldeburgh Music Club in Orford Church. The concert included Beethoven’s Symphony No 1 and the Overture to Prometheus. Writing about the concert, Humphrey Burton said:

Since Benjamin Britten, Peter Pears and Eric Crozier founded the Aldeburgh Festival in 1948 Aldeburgh has remained the epicentre for musical excellence in East Anglia.

A Walk around Orford.

Without doubt a really delightful and fascinating village, Orford has retained almost all its historic charm, despite its failing fortunes over the centuries and some not terribly attractive house building over the last twenty years.

Christmas 2007 is now over and yes, despite all my fears, it was a good Christmas. We spent time with family and friends, no one argued, the turkey was delicious and the cat wasn't sick! What more could I ask for?

Well........, it sounds terribly indulgent I know, but actually I could do with a quiet and peaceful holiday away from everyone. Long walks, bracing sea air, not too much to eat and somewhere cosy where I can curl up and read all those wonderful books I was given for Christmas.

December is the one time of the year when I am likely to go into major depression. Minor signs appear towards the end of September as the supermarket shelves fill with Christmas cards and garishly painted boxes of chocolate biscuits. By the end of October my mood, like the days, gets darker as mince pies, Christmas nuts and wreaths of holly are added to those yawning Christmas shelves.

By now I am dreading the phone ringing and those inevitable words: “Have you any plans for Christmas?” or worse still “It would be nice to see you over Christmas”. Urghhhhhhhhhh!

December is the one time of the year when I am likely to go into major depression. Minor signs appear towards the end of September as the supermarket shelves fill with Christmas cards and garishly painted boxes of chocolate biscuits. By the end of October my mood, like the days, gets darker as mince pies, Christmas nuts and wreaths of holly are added to those yawning Christmas shelves.

By now I am dreading the phone ringing and those inevitable words: “Have you any plans for Christmas?” or worse still “It would be nice to see you over Christmas”. Urghhhhhhhhhh!