You can see that William Saunders has a busy 2012 planned!

2012 Organ Recitals added

Prometheus Singers dates uploaded

Huge 2012 Ipswich School Festival of Music in September planned

William is featured in this months edition of the East Anglian Daily Times Suffolk Magazine.

To read about his weekend click here – http://edition.pagesuite-professional.co.uk/launch.aspx?referral=other&refresh=8Sb1y0T307nJ&PBID=546d2070-7efd-44fd-937f-fb62ca8143ec&skip=

Germany Organ Recital Tour a huge success.

Pictures of instruments played added to the Gallery section of the website.

Details on next years tour will appear shortly.

Lights, cameras, action!

William Saunders

There were lights, cameras, and plenty of action – including billowing smoke, stupendous organ music and 1,300 cheering children – at the Keys, Hands, Feet and Pipes organ extravaganza at the Corn Exchange, Ipswich, on Monday 4th July.

Organists Daniel Moult and William Saunders took their young audiences on a whirlwind exploration of the history, music and mechanisms of the organ, dipping in and out of centuries with the aid of a time machine and a bountiful props department.

“I liked the organ music best, especially when the organ was lit up with red lights and smoke,” said Matilda from St Matthews’ Primary School, one of the 13 schools from Suffolk and north Essex to attend. “She couldn’t stop talking about it,” said her mother. “It was such a memorable way to introduce the organ to 8-10 year olds.”

The show opened in style with the immensely engaging Dan belting out Bach’s Toccata in D Minor. He then bounded across the stage to explain about the 3,000 pipes, some of them as tall as the Corn Exchange itself. The cameras panned to the interior of the organ. “Oh my goodness, there’s a man living inside the organ!” Closer scrutiny revealed it to be his colleague William. “Say hello to William everyone.” As live pictures of William examining the smallest pipes beamed onto the big screens, pupils from Ipswich Preparatory School politely chorused, “Hello Mr Saunders!” as they recognised the Assistant Director of Music from their Senior School.

“Ipswich Preparatory School pupils were thrilled to be able to take part in such an exciting project, giving them first hand knowledge of this amazing instrument. I don’t think any of them will look at a pipe organ in quite the same way again!” said Beverley Steensma, Director of Music, who also prepared the pack sent to all children beforehand.

The pack contained activities designed to introduce them to musical composition, and listening skills. The tasks were based round Animal Parade, Iain Farrington’s astonishing composition of animal sounds, first recorded by William Saunders last year at Brentwood Cathedral. As Dan encouraged the children to consider modern organ music, William played extracts illustrating the very different sounds symbolic of penguins, piranhas and hippopotami.

Then it was time to play ‘Who wants to be a millionaire?’ Although the prize turned out to be lollipops (and not even a million of them), the children voted with gusto on questions relating to the sounds produced by the varying pipe lengths. Volunteers helped Dan play ‘Twinkle twinkle little star’ on organ pipes.

Dan Moult

And then to everyone’s astonishment, they were treated to the final pedal solo from J.S. Bach’s Fugue in D major, played entirely by William’s feet in specially clad shoes.. “See the Smarties on his socks!” was the whisper going down the rows. “Mr Saunders has amazing twinkle toes and can play music really fast with his FEET!” exclaimed Chloe from Ipswich Prep.

Finally, they heard the story of Daedalus and Icarus, who built wings of feathers and learnt to fly in order to escape from King Minos of Crete. Icarus in his exuberance flew too near the sun, and fell into the sea, leaving his father Daedalas broken-hearted. It was accompanied by improvised interludes from Dan to illustrate composition themes from the pack, such as swooping and falling.

“The show was an education into the awesomeness of the organ,” said William who organ-ised it for the Suffolk Organists’ Association. “Lights, smoke, visual effects, and a superb selection of the world’s most famous organ music gave the pupils an inspirational and an educational experience. The concert also covered aspects of Key Stage 2 music, science, and literacy.”

1300 school children attended!

For Carolyn Moss, Head of Prep at St Margaret’s School, Gosfield in Essex, it was the cross-curricular experience that was particularly useful. “We had picked it up in science for the Year 5s, and also introduced it into history and music. They hear the organ at the local church during carol concerts, but never as an instrument on its own.”

The show’s sponsors, the Suffolk Organists’ Association (SOA), were thrilled with the take-up by so many schools, and by the local media, who sent out radio journalists, reporters and photographers. “We successfully showed that the organ is an immensely versatile instrument, in that you can play anything and everything on it, from the Beatles to Bach,” said SOA President, Roger Pulham.

But the final note comes from Raul Ismaili, in Year 5 at Whitehouse Primary School, Ipswich, who has already been to the Royal Albert Hall. “It was fascinating, especially when he told us how the organ works. I would like to play the organ.”

]]> http://www.william-saunders.net/archives/262/feed 0 http://www.william-saunders.net/archives/245 http://www.william-saunders.net/archives/245#comments Mon, 18 Apr 2011 10:53:16 +0000 williamsaunders101 http://www.william-saunders.net/?p=245

This years solo recital series will take place in -

St Andrew’s Hall, Norwich
Great St Mary’s, Cambridge
St Paul’s Cathedral, London
St Edmundsbury Cathedral
Northern Germany Organ Concert Tour 2011
St Peter’s Kirche, Recklinghausen
St Christophorus Kirche, Friedrichstadt
St Petri Hauptkirche, Hamburg
St. Laurentius, Tonning
St. Michaelis Hauptkirche, Hamburg

For further details click on the Concerts tab at the top of the page

Ipswich School’s second Festival of Music was launched on 21st March with a performance in the School Library by the Chapel Choir singing Jesu, Joy of Man’s Desiring by JS Bach, in celebration of his birth, exactly 326 years ago.

Festival Director William Saunders announced the line-up for the Festival, taking place this year at Ipswich School from 21^st-27^th September.

“Once again, we have a superb array of musicians to suit all tastes. Celebrity violinist Chloe Hanslip, one of the most inspirational young musicians in the world, will be giving a recital and a masterclass.”

“The London Mozart Players perform the opening concert, and the Classic Buskers are holding workshops for local primary schoolchildren.”

“There will be choral workshops by Collegium Regale members of King’s College, Cambridge, including Old Ipswichian Ben Goble, and a concert by Suffolk’s Prometheus Orchestra and choir.”

“Sebastian Black, one of our Music Scholars, has been commissioned to write a special composition to be played by Andrew Leach, our Director of Music.”

Last year’s star performer, cellist Julian Lloyd Webber, described the event as “a brilliant first festival.”

Tickets are available from 1^st April from the Ipswich Entertainments Box Office or online atwww.ipswich.school.sch.uk/music

New Prometheus Singers page added to the website giving details of all future performances

Animal Parade receives sparkling review in the January issue of the Gramophone Magazine

“New music, played on a new organ in a new cathedral, is a delight”

“The whole thing exudes bright cheer and happiness; and you can’t say that about every organ recording.”

“Saunders communicates the wit and humour admirably”

“This delightfully happy and unaffected playing”

William is thoroughly enjoying organising the first Festival of Music at Ipswich School to be held in September this year. Below you will find a recent press release issued by Ipswich School -

“The Music Department is organising its first-ever Festival of Music, from 16th-20th September this year. The Festival is the brainchild of William Saunders, Assistant Director of Music. “Ipswich School is an centre of excellence for music, and we have a wealth of experience in organising public events. The Festival programme ranges from world class musicians, such as Julian Lloyd Webber, who will be giving a cello masterclass as well as a lunchtime recital, to a community event involving local schools in an African drumming and Brazilian Samba Workshop.” The School’s own Chapel Choir will lead the Festival Evensong, and the Big Band will join the Ipswich Musicians’ Union Big Band in a concert. His Majestys Sagbutts & Cornetts will perform music from Music from England, Germany, Spain and Italy, and there will be concerts by percussionist Joby Burgess, tenor Richard Edgar Wilson, and organist James Parsons. Tickets are available online from July.”

William will be launching his third CD, Animal Parade, at Brentwood Cathedral on Saturday 9th October 2010 at 7.30pm