A Guernsey violist has spoken of her joy and satisfaction in making her debut for the prestigious Sinfonia Smith Square in London.
Rebekah Dickinson is the latest alumnus of the Guernsey Music Centre to secure one of the coveted annual fellowships with the orchestra – previously known as the Southbank Sinfonia – and joined at the beginning of October.
She described the sold-out performance of ‘Bruch and Beethoven’ at the orchestra’s 18th-century Baroque venue of Smith Square Hall (formerly St John’s, Smith Square) as ‘a varied and creative programme’ that ‘balanced tradition and innovation in an accessible, yet entirely serious and rather poignant way’.
‘The sense of occasion was intensified by the orchestra’s entering the stage in the so-called “European style”, in other words, entering at the same time and standing until the entire ensemble was ready to sit down,’ she told us.
The musicians were obliged to remain seated during what Rebekah described as the ‘punchy and powerful’ opening piece – Restless Oceans by Anna Clyne – because it requires the performers to stamp, shout, and sing while playing, and ends with the entire orchestra instructed to ‘stand with defiant strength and look at audience immediately’.
Violinist Hyeyoon Park then performed Max Bruch’s violin concerto no.1 in G minor, which led to an encore – the Largo from Bach’s violin sonata in C major – which Rebekah told us was her highlight of the night.
‘In the midst of such a high-energy programme, it was a treat to be able to sit back for a few minutes and enjoy listening to an amazing violinist playing such precious music in a beautiful space and fantastic acoustic,’ she said.
The second half of the concert was performed standing ‘as chamber orchestras are wont to do’, beginning with Britta Byström’s A Walk to Beethoven, over which were played voiceovers of the orchestra’s members talking about their relationships to music.
‘Naturally, this was followed by a performance of Beethoven’s 7th Symphony,’ said Rebekah, ‘which seemed to be a particular highlight for the audience, although they were enthusiastic about every piece played.’
‘It is always satisfying to perform in a well-executed and well-received concert, but it was a particular joy to share the stage with such fantastic players, all of whom are as welcoming and generous on the concert platform as they are in day-to-day life,’ she said.
Rebekah’s place in the Sinfonia Smith Square is viewed as a privileged position, with 300 young musicians from all over the world applying for 34 places every year, but it’s also little surprise after years of rapid progress.
She started viola lessons in Guernsey 20 years ago, aged six, and won a scholarship to Wells Cathedral School at 14, before going on to get a First in her viola performance degree at the Royal Academy of Music.
She then pursued postgraduate studies in piano in Italy, before returning to London and winning a scholarship to study at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. While there, she led the Guildhall Symphony Orchestra violas and was a founder member of both a flourishing string quartet and a flute-harp-viola trio, performing recitals at venues around London and winning international auditions.
She also found time to achieve an Open University degree in German and Classics and a black belt in karate.
However, she still spent enough time on the island to have performed with the Youth Orchestra, the Guernsey Symphony Orchestra, Guernsey Camerata, the Guernsey Choral and Orchestral Society orchestra, the Town Church Strings – now the Samphire Ensemble – and several choirs, a jazz band and various other bands.
Rebekah recalls being inspired by a visit to the island of a previous violist with the Sinfonia, who came to give a masterclass as part of a programme of such visits that has been going on since a group of local music enthusiasts instigated a bursary to fund a member of the orchestra in 2010. This, and the progress of some of her best fellow university students into the Sinfonia, meant that it was ‘very much on my radar as something that might be good to do once I completed my conservatory education’.
A typical week involves three intensive days of work from Tuesday to Thursday, which has so far included rehearsals, workshops about musicians’ health, early-years music engagement and artist development – with visits to cultural institutions around London to learn about their education and outreach programmes.
The Sinfonia’s next public performance will be at the London Festival of Baroque Music in a concert on 29 October called Goldbergs Reimagined, again at Smith Square Hall.
This will showcase arranger and conductor Robin O’Neill’s ‘striking orchestral perspective’ on J S Bach’s Goldberg Variations.
Rebekah will be one of five Sinfonia musicians who will be involved in the GSO/Guernsey Camerata family concert at St James on Sunday 22 November.
