Local students were working with young professional musicians from the Sinfonia Smith Square orchestra earlier this month, including one performer who returned home for the occasion.
Every year the Sinfonia Smith Square orchestra welcomes 34 of the world’s most promising musicians to form an orchestra. Many of them go on to glittering international classical careers.
Its relationship with Guernsey started about 20 years ago, and the orchestra visits each year to host workshops and promote the opportunities within the group.
The hand-picked musicians are part of the orchestra for an academic year, performing regularly. They are not paid but do receive a tax-free bursary to help with the cost of living in London.
One of the orchestra members and bursary recipients this year is 24-year-old Annabelle Pizzey, who grew up in Guernsey and started her music career locally with the Guernsey Music Service.
‘I first started piano lessons on the island when I was about seven and then joined the Music Service when I was nine and the wind intake started, which was when I picked up the oboe,’ she said.
‘Once you get involved with that you’re doing the Saturdays [orchestra rehearsals] and after school, and so then when I went into sixth form I just thought I guess I’ll do music, and I have not stopped playing.’
She heard about the Sinfonia Smith Square orchestra in Guernsey, when the young musicians would visit, and she would get to play with them.
After leaving school, she moved to Scotland to study at a conservatoire, doing her undergraduate and master’s degrees.
‘This is a fellowship orchestra, so it’s good to bridge the gap in the early careers of young professionals in between a master’s degree and entering the profession,’ she said.
‘It was perfect timing for me, I applied and was fortunate enough to be successful in each round and then got one of the two oboe spaces in the orchestra.’
There are 34 places across the orchestra, which runs from October to August every year.
‘We’ve done so much already, we’ve played the Festival Hall with CBeebies, playing soundtracks to Bluey and things like that, we’ve done an international piano competition. Every week we do a concert in the heart of Westminster, but we also work with schools and do nursery workshops, we work with music hubs in London,’ she said.
‘We basically live the life of a professional musician for 10 months and then get let loose.
‘After this, I’ll be auditioning for different orchestras, I have teaching jobs already, and I hope to continue building the portfolio of experiences that I’ve been working on over the years.’
The orchestra hosted two sessions at The Ladies’ College for students there, as well as students from Blanchelande and the Sixth Form Centre.
