Spring Concert 2019

On Thursday 4 April, the Sports Hall was transformed into the venue of this year’s Spring Concert.

On the day before the Spring Term ended, hundreds of parents, pupils and staff filled the Sports Hall, as the Spring Concert got underway. The tone was set by Rare Groove and W. Mandondo’s rendition of My Girl by The Temptations. Mandondo’s on-stage sass and energy, more of which was to come, was utterly intoxicating, and had guests tapping toes and bopping in their seats.

C. Thomas joined W. Mandondo on stage, and hosted the evening when they weren’t performing. The Community Choir were welcomed onto the stage and performed Cynthia Gray’s Afternoon on a Hill. Head of Careers Mrs Rapple Moore conducted the choir and bowed as members returned to their seats. They were followed by the Shiplake Collective, who combined their orchestral instruments to produce the most impressive rendition of Guns ‘N’ Roses’ Welcome to the Jungle. Conducted by Mr Slade, the Shiplake Collective translated the rock classic into a truly unique performance.

After rapturous applause, Director of Music Mr Curran conducted the Camerata who sang Latin classic, Locus Iste. The combination of the girls’ highs and the boys’ lows produced a beautiful rendition of the song. Next up was Year 12 pupil B. Howard-Jones, who led the BHJ Brass group in a piece called War, by Hypnotic Brass. His confidence and determination was clear to see, and he led the piece brilliantly.

P. Kenny, also in Year 12, took the stage next, with I. Ashfield on guitar. Mr Kenny won the Solo round of this year’s House Music Competition, and won the opportunity to share his winning performance at the Spring Concert. He sang Ed Sheeran’s Photograph, and certainly did it justice. As the Lower School Choir did with their version of Shine by Take That. Conducted by Deputy Head Mr Jones, the boys’ confidence and charisma shone through, much like the title would suggest.

The Junior Covers Band were next to take to the stage, and they covered Wheatus’ classic Teenage Dirtbag, in which the Year 8 and 9 pupils utterly triumphed! The First Eight came next, and delivered a medley of George Ezra songs, which was harmonised and timed to produce quite a unique recital of the popular artist’s favourites.

One that really raised the tempo was the BTEC Ensemble’s version of the Red Hot Chilli Peppers’ Under The Bridge. Both C. Thomas and W. Mandondo were absolutely rocking out on stage, and their energy was utterly contagious. With the energy in the room at an all-time high, the Festival Teaser Band assembled on-stage to give a taster of what is coming at this year’s Summer Festival, which will happen in the place of the Summer Concert. H. Richards of Year 8 sang Escape by Rupert Holmes, with the assistance of three Shiplake dads on guitar and keyboard, while E. Pratt took to the drums.

After more applause, Rare Groove returned to the stage to perform their last number of the evening; James Brown’s I Feel Good. Their performance certainly left the audience feeling good, and ready for the Senior Covers Band to swoop in at the end with versions of Pink Floyd’s Money and Dire Straits’ Sultans of Swing.

Mr Curran also returned to the stage after the Senior Covers Band had taken their seats, and thanked Mr Davies for his years of service at the School. He went on to say;

 ‘The Spring Concert is always a highlight in the Music calendar and this year's was one to celebrate! As a prelude to the main event Rare Groove set the scene by building a performance of 'Papa was a Rolling Stone' with Mr Holland's motif reverberating around the hall from off stage. The band then brought a smile to the faces of many with a sultry arrangement of 'My Girl' before giving way to the Community Choir who gave their best performance to date. With a talented line-up in all of our Rock and Pop bands we saw more 'performances' than ever before, with frontmen commanding the stage and guitarists enjoying their moment. Our Camerata and First Eight have reached their 'sweet spot' in balance and repertoire now, with a delicate rendition of Bruckner's Locus Iste and an energetic delivery of a George Ezra medley, respectively. Before bringing the entertaining celebration of Music to a close we had a superb Summer Festival teaser which included three Dads performing with pupils and staff, giving a flavour of what's to come on Thu 20 June! The concert was played out by possibly the performance of the night: Pink Floyd's 'Money' presented by an extremely talented Senior Covers Band. Huge congratulations to all performers for what was a great end to term 2.’