June Emerson Wind Music

Play harmonica on your iPhone with the iMonica app

2012-02-29T10:30:00.001-08:00

Below is an excerpt from an article found on The Gizmag website:

There's no denying the popularity of music creation apps for the iPhone. Just about every instrument you want to play is available as a digital simulation - from guitars to pianos to drums, and even DJ decks - but what about wind instruments? The iMonica app for iPhone from DigitarWorld most definitely fits into this category and turns your iPhone into a digital diatonic harmonica. So, do you blow and draw on your smartphone? Kind of ...

The app presents the user with three options when loaded - Play, Setup and Help. The settings button allows users to change options like the color of the digital harmonica, change the tone to a whistle sound, or try a different key. The other buttons are self explanatory.

To get the feel of the app, you might want to start playing using your fingers to produce notes on the virtual harmonica. Pressing one of the ten hole positions onscreen and lowering the iPhone will result in a blow note being played that corresponds with that position. Similarly, a draw note can be achieved by pressing the appropriate note position and raising the iPhone. There are a number of songs by the likes of Bob Dylan and The Beatles transcribed on the website to get you started, with embedded YouTube videos to show you how the original artists whooped it up.

With the basics down, you could then move your new instrument to where it really belongs - your mouth. Although my smartphone is probably no dirtier than my much-neglected Hohner Cross Harp, the developers stress that the iPhone's playing area should be thoroughly cleaned before being used as a mouth organ, or perhaps covered in plastic food wrap to avoid infection from microscopic nasties.

Once you get used to the somewhat crazy playing style, you'll no doubt be freestyling rather than following pre-prepared notation. The app does appear to be limited to single-note playing techniques, with no obvious way to virtually bend, trill or vamp - so you'll not be able to emulate great harp players like the legendary Sonny Terry, the Maestro Shaky Horton, or the man who helped shape Chicago blues, Little Walter Jacobs. For such expressive playing, you'll need to buy a real tin sandwich.

For wowing friends, making some noise and having some fun, though, the iMonica app looks well worth the £0.69/US$0.99 cover charge. There is also a free version to try it out before purchasing the full version.

iPad 2 pushes sheet music, and page turners, off the stage

2012-02-29T08:14:00.000-08:00

From Sam Haywood - Pianist Sam Haywood uses an iPad to turn his pages.
credit: washingtonpost.com

Below is an excerpt from an article found on The Washington Post website:

The iPad continues its dizzying rampage, decimating netbooks, dayplanners and 90-pound textbooks. It now claims its most awkward casualty: the concert hall page turner.

The inevitable future of classical performance arrives in Washington this week when violinist Joshua Bell and pianist Sam Haywood enter the Kennedy Center Concert Hall. They’ll blend contemporary gadgetry with the repertoire.

Not to worry — Bell isn’t going electric. He’ll step onstage with his prized 1713 Gibson ex Huberman Stradivarius in hand to play a program of Brahms and Ravel, among others. Haywood, however, will carry a new prop for the Steinway, his multi-touch page turner, better known as the iPad 2.

Since early last year, Haywood’s Apple-accessorized lifestyle has allowed him to replace paper scores with digital ones archived on his iPad, a shift made possible through a wide array of technology, including the abundance of downloadable scores and Bluetooth-controlled foot pedals for page-turning.

Inadvertently, the human page turner, that fallible and sometimes reviled third party onstage, has been absent from most of Haywood’s recent performances, a consequence of the wireless age. The advantages are obvious: The iPad is portable, discreet, always well-rested. It won’t skip pages or inadvertently bump Haywood’s hands during Mendelssohn’s “Violin Sonata in F.” It listens to the commands of the pianist’s left foot, eliminating the awkward paper-ruffling sideshow between page turner and performer.

“I’ve had page turners who’ve forgotten their glasses or fallen off the stage,” said Haywood. “The iPad removes so much of the risk. And I can also practice in the dark.”

“I’ve often thought I should write a book about page-turning disasters,” echoed Bell. “I’ve had page turners that criticize in rehearsal, that hum along or hit keys and make funny noises. It’s a really hard job, and it’s sort of nice to walk out onstage without one.”

Haywood admits wireless page-turning is not without glitches. Once he accidentally set his iPad on the ridge of the piano so that it rested on the power switch. A loud chord caused the piano to vibrate so fiercely that the screen immediately went dark. “I’ve been careful to make sure the iPad is placed right side up since then,” Haywood said.

“I was a little nervous about it at first,” Bell said. “I love technology, and I have an iPad, but in concert, I was worried that something would go wrong. ... There are pros and cons to using it. You don’t want people talking about it during the concert.”

Haywood finds that some audience members are intrigued by the presence of the sleek glass tablet, but many don’t notice it. “The ones that see it are curious about how it works, particularly the pedal. ... Why don’t I have to touch the screen?”

Now, even conductors are experimenting with the iPad’s surplus of musical apps and its seemingly limitless library of scores. ForScore, an application for iPad ($4.99), compresses pounds of sheet music into a single device that helps musicians to access any score in the public domain. Users can also annotate copy, personalizing the pages before they practice or perform. Digital scores are a welcome development in a classical industry where many live nomadic, jet-setting lives.

“That was the initial draw— I can carry everything I’m studying and working on for an entire season with me,” says Jeff Kahane, conductor of the Los Angeles Chamber Orchestra, who caused a stir in November when he conducted the New York Philharmonic from his iPad. “It’s so functional, and it’s solved a lot of problems no one anticipated. Think of outdoor concerts and the wind. ... The iPad won’t blow away.”

For Hugh Sung, the professional pianist who invented AirTurn, the wireless foot-pedal that Haywood and Kahane use, digital page-turning is the culmination of a decade of tinkering.

“I’d been thinking about a hands-free page-turning device since I first saw a tablet computer in 2001,” said Sung. “It wasn’t until the iPad hit the market that digital scores really caught on.”

His silent, Bluetooth-controlled foot pedal, allows users to turn the pages on their iPads with the tap of a foot. The BT-105 model (costing around $129) has a pair of pedals that turn pages forward or backward. Since 2010, he has sold thousands to iPad users.

“The market is only getting larger,” said Sung. “There are estimates that 20 million American households have at least one member who plays an instrument. We estimate that the market for musicians using iPads is in the area of 2 million.”

Some musicians, even those who are proud iPad owners, are reluctant to make the switch from paper to digital. While ideal for pianists, a 9-by-7-inch screen doesn’t suit every soloist. “The iPad is a little on small side for my taste,” said Bell. “I’ve practiced off of it when I’m in a pinch in some remote corner of the world, but I’ve never used it in concerts.”

The tech-savvy Borromeo String Quartet, in residence at the New England Conservatory, began using MacBooks and foot-pedal technology in 2007. Nicholas Kitchen, violinist and founder of the quartet, began performing with digital scores because he wanted the quartet members to see all four lines of the score simultaneously, which is nearly impossible on printed scores. He prefers laptops to tablet technology.

“I keep my iPad in my bag, of course, just in case I need it,” said Kitchen. “But playing off the MacBook Pro is easier with the large screen.”

Kitchen said the greatest unexpected benefit of digital libraries is the easy access to original manuscripts. “I have probably 40 Beethoven manuscripts on my computer, and we’re reading off them as we play,” he said. “That’s been stimulating in a way I never could have anticipated.”

But for all the technological advancements available to musicians, Bell and Haywood still have dreams of new tools that could grace their performances decades from now.

“The gadget I’m waiting for is the display screen on glasses, or even better, contact lenses,” said Bell. “Then I could read music and no one would know at all. I’m hoping it will come along by the time I hit 70 and my memory starts to go.”

“I think they do have those sorts of glasses in the military,” adds Haywood. “It’d be so nice to have a complete score, just hovering in front of your eyes.”

Joshua Bell and Sam Haywood

June Emerson Wind Music are delighted to support the Aeolian Orchestra

2012-02-27T04:04:00.005-08:00

St Sepulchre-without-Newgate, credit: John Salmon

We are please to provide some practical support to

the Aeolian Orchestra, who have a concert on 4th March.

The Aeolian Orchestra’s 2nd concert of 2012 brings together the three titans of the classical era – Haydn, Mozart and Beethoven. For this concert, on March 4th, the orchestra’s number will be reduced to that of a classical era orchestra.

The time elapsed between the writing of Beethoven’s Overture “Coriolan” (1807) and that of Mozart’s first Sinfonia Concertante - for 4 winds – (1778) is less than 30 years. Haydn’s Symphony No.99 falls between the two – written in 1793. The Aeolian Orchestra’s March programme provides a clear insight into the musical progress of this short time-span.

Sunday 4th March 2012, 7.30pm.

Tickets on entry £7 (£3 students)

Venue:
St Sepulchre-without-Newgate, Holborn Viaduct (junctionwith Giltspur Street), London EC1A 9DE. click for a map.

Aeolian Orchestra

Rory Storm – conductor
Emily Ross – oboe
Anthony Friend - clarinet
Jonathan Quaintrell-Evans* - horn
Joe Qiu*- bassoon

Joe Qiu and Jonathan Quaintrell-Evans are also members of the HMS Quintet – Launchpad winner for 2011 from the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

For more information on the Aeolian Orchestra, visit their website: http://aeolianorchestra.wordpress.com

10% Discount on Sheet Music for Wind Instruments

2012-01-31T21:02:00.000-08:00

Our next 10% DISCOUNT SATURDAY - 14th April 2012, 10.30am to 4.30pm

COME AND SEE US - we'll be open for anyone who'd like to come and browse through hundreds of feet of wind music on our beautiful North Yorkshire hilltop!

DISCOUNT - to make the day even better we're offering a 10% discount on everything bought or ordered by those present on the day.

DON'T JUST BROWSE THROUGH IT, PLAY IT - we have an adjoining room where you can play through the music. Stands and an electric keyboard are available if required. Please contact us if you'd like to make use of this facility.

Our contact information and directions are given in the right margin.

We look forward to meeting you!

Sheet Music - 10% Discount Day and Christmas Closing Times

2011-12-21T08:56:00.000-08:00

10% DISCOUNT DAY - Saturday 7th January 2012 from 10.30am to 4.30pm

COME AND SEE US - we'll be open for anyone who'd like to come and browse through hundreds of feet of wind music on our beautiful North Yorkshire hilltop!

DISCOUNT - to make the day even better we're offering a 10% discount on all sheet music and everything bought or ordered by those present on the day.

DON'T JUST BROWSE THROUGH IT, PLAY IT - we have an adjoining room where you can play through the music. Stands and an electric keyboard are available if required. Please contact us if you'd like to make use of this facility.

Our contact information and directions are given in the right margin. We look forward to meeting you!

Please note - in case of heavy snowfall we may need to cancel the Open Day. This information will be posted on our Facebook page by 5pm on Friday 6th January, so please check before setting out.

CHRISTMAS CLOSING
Please note that our office will close at midday on Thursday 22nd December 2011 and will re-open at 9am on Tuesday 3rd January 2012. You can continue to place orders online at any time during this period, but they will not be dispatched until the office re-opens. If you need your order to be despatched before Christmas, please let us know and give us plenty of notice - we cannot guarantee that the music you want will be in stock, but we will do our utmost to get it to you in time.

New Solar Panels Installed - June Emerson Wind Music Goes Greener!

2011-11-30T08:51:00.000-08:00

Solar panels being installed

The finished product - Solar panels installed

June Emerson's mail order music company celebrates 40 years

2011-11-15T07:22:00.000-08:00

June Emerson and June Emerson Wind Music
are featured in the Gazette & Herald newspaper

June Emerson Wind Music in the Gazette & Herald, Wednesday 9^th November

Below is an excerpt from the article on the Gazette & Herald Website:

NATALYA WILSON speaks to a Ryedale artist and musician whose global mail order company, which started as a small concern in her front room, is celebrating 40 years of success.

June Emerson, foreground, and team at the office near Ampleforth, from left, Barbara Jones, Stewart Thorp, Sarah Ware, Jeremy Durant, Rachel Emerson, John Toll and Graham Jeff.

CHILDREN wielding strange-shaped cases containing weird and wonderful instruments at the school gates is hardly an unusual sight, as primary and secondary pupils alike are encouraged to learn an instrument and join their school’s band or orchestra.

Yet rewind several decades and this would have been a much more unusual sight, as peripatetic music teachers weren’t such an available resource in schools and the sheet music that they taught was even scarcer.

This was just the opportunity entrepreneur June Emerson needed when she decided to set up her music publishing and distribution business 40 years ago.

June, herself a bassoonist and teacher, saw this gap in the market and leapt on it, setting up June Emerson Wind Music in 1971.

June Emerson with her bassoon outside her mail order office near Ampleforth

“This was just at the time when teaching of wind instruments in schools was beginning to take off in the UK,” says June.

“Many of my friends, who were also teachers, were finding it difficult to get music for their pupils and that’s what made me start up the business.”

June decided to start this mail order music business specifically for wind players and, with a starting capital of just £11.23 and a great deal of enthusiasm, having developed a love of handling printed music when librarian of the Edinburgh Rehearsal Orchestra (now The Rehearsal Orchestra), she blew away any doubts and entered into it with a sense of adventure that she has applied to other areas of her life ever since.

Starting with music for teaching and branching out into music for professional players, the range grew and now June estimates that she has approximately 40,000 different titles on the shelves of her business, based at Windmill Farm, near Ampleforth.

“I don’t know of any other businesses that do what we do – it’s very specific,” says June, pointing out that they sell printed music for brass, woodwind and ‘those that lie somewhere in between’, such as the harmonica.

As such they order their music from more than 1,000 different publishers worldwide and often send out as many as 100 to 200 orders a day all over the world.

June found out early on that they not only needed to buy in music, but that there was a need to self-publish, especially music suitable to be taught to children in schools.

“We approached some composers to write good but simple music that was worthwhile and possible to play, and that’s how the publishing arm started,” says June. “Now, many exam boards feature our music on their syllabus.”

They have since published 600 different pieces.

June’s business supplies music to individuals and orchestras worldwide, teachers and schools, and has some famous and eminent customers, too.

“Perhaps the Sultan of Oman is the most famous of our customers – he has not only a library of music but also his own orchestra, and we always receive his orders on special headed paper – it’s lovely,” she says.

Other well-known clients include flautist James Galway, the British Library and the BBC, but, at the other extreme, June and her team also number many amateur musicians as some of their most treasured clientele.

“We often get puzzled mothers ring up saying that their child has come home carrying a black case but it needs a book to make it work, so our skilled team, some of whom are players themselves, can talk them through what they need and want,” she says.

June says that many customers have become friends, adding that the company does not have to advertise, relying instead on word of mouth to spread the ‘music’.

Although June stepped down from being so active in the company six or seven years ago, it is still in the hands of the Emerson family, with daughter Rachel being a partner and running the business.

June with her daughter Rachel

June also says that many of the staff are like family, with some having been there for 25 and 30 years.

“It’s a good mixture of musicians and nonmusicians, with a wide range of skills and abilities,” says June. “It’s a very relaxed and happy place.”

June says the success of her business is that they have always stuck to what they are good at, and can do things well in depth, which she believes is more valuable to their customers.

Since passing the business to Rachel, June, who, at 74, doesn’t believe in retirement, has been busy with many other projects. She has taken up painting again and is currently showing her work in a solo exhibition, Oh Wake Up You Flying Bird, at Helmsley Arts Centre – her third there – and is heavily involved in Kirkbymoorside Environment Group.

June with one of her paintings, in the exhibition at Helmsley Art Gallery

“Running the business was so precise. You had to get everything so right the whole time, so my painting means that I can just break loose and turn the brain off – it’s lovely,” she says. “I go into the studio without any idea and come out at the end of it having done something which is as much of a surprise to me as anything else – it’s a complete contrast and exciting and cathartic and I love it.”

Oh Wake Up You Flying Bird runs until November 25. Join June for Sunday Views on Sunday, 1pm-3pm, and on Sunday, November 20, 11am-3pm

June Emerson Art Exhibition - Helmsley Art Centre

2011-11-13T07:28:00.000-08:00

Oh wake up, you flying bird 36” x 32”

Exhibition of abstract paintings by June Emerson with special Sunday views with the artist and wine, nibbles, tea, coffee or cake: Sunday November 13th from 1pm - 3pm Sunday November 20th from 11am - 3pm.

June Emerson with one of her paintings on display

"I want my work to express the richness and excitement that I find in life. From a chance beginning: a shape, a gesture, splash or trickle, I explore and develop it, using colour and texture, until it becomes something that I had never thought of before." - June Emerson

June Emerson's art can also be seen online on her art website: http://www.juneemersonart.com

Exhibition Details
Date: 1st Nov - 25th Nov, daily from 11am - 3pm (Closed Saturday and Monday)
Admission: Free
Website: www.helmsleyarts.co.uk
Telephone: 01439 771700
Address: Helmsley Arts Centre, The Old Meeting House, Helmsley, North Yorkshire, YO62 5DW

About Helmsley Art Centre
Helmsley Arts Centre has gained a nation-wide reputation for its live-event and film programmes, which has grown over time. The venue, which has a 140-seat auditorium and 40-seat studio/exhibition space, has provided film screenings, live music, theatre performances, comedy clubs, art exhibitions and workshops/classes to tens of thousands of people since opening its doors.

Emerson Edition Ltd - New Publications - October 2011

2011-10-31T17:16:00.000-07:00

Unaccompanied Flute
Jazzarhythms
Paul Lewis

E627 £5.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 8’40”
Four new jazzy solos for flute: Teatime Jazz, Birthday Blues, Dotted Waltz and Midnight Rag.
ISMN: M-57040-810-8

Flute & Piano
Desert Winds
Michael Regan

E604 £6.50 Grade 7/8 Duration 4’00”
An interesting and challenging suite of movements depicting three types of desert wind: Harmattan, Santa Ana and Brickfielder.
ISMN: M-57040-811-5

Flute Quartet
Sprites
Geoffrey Walker

E631 £9.50 Grade 7/8 Duration 2’30”
A scherzo for flutes – a modern mystical echo of the magical worlds created by composers such as Mendelssohn and Weber.
ISMN: M-57040-809-2 score & parts

Clarinet & Piano
Brook Green Suite
Gustav Holst, arr. Russell Denwood

E602 £8.00 Grade 5 Duration c.10’00”
Originally written for the string orchestra of St Paul’s School for Girls, this charming suite works brilliantly for clarinet & piano.
ISMN: M-57040-783-5

Clarinet & Piano
Serenade
Frank Bridge, arr. Russell Denwood

E624 £6.50 Grade 5/6 Duration 2’40”
This is a gorgeous piece for clarinet and piano, adapted from the original for violin/cello, written in 1903.
ISMN: M-57040-807-8

Bassoon & Piano
Blue
Fulvio Caldini

E650 £6.00 Grade 8 Duration 4’30”
A challenging, but brilliantly written bluesy showpiece for the more advanced bassoonist.
ISMN: M-57040-813-9

Bassoon & Piano
Autumn Day & Crunch Cat!
Eve Barsham

E626 £6.00 Grade 2/3 Duration 3’30”
Two characterful and contrasting pieces for bassoon – good fun to play and enjoyable to listen to.
ISMN: M-57040-805-4

Bassoon & Piano
Walking Cimbrone
David Dubery

E639 £6.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 3’40”
A characterful concert piece, written for Graham Salvage and inspired by a stray dog encountered whilst on holiday in Italy.
ISMN:M-57040-814-6

Horn & Piano
For Leah
Arthur P. Barnes

E637 £7.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 6’00”
Written for his granddaughter’s senior year recital, this new piece by American composer, Arthur P. Barnes, makes an excellent addition to the horn-player’s repertoire.
ISMN: M-57040-815-3

Trumpet & Piano
An Excursion
Gordon Carr

E609 £9.50 Grade 8 Duration 10’00”
An exciting new work for the more advanced trumpeter – recorded by Simon Cheney on his CD, ‘An English Trumpeter’.
ISMN: M-57040-804-7

Clarinet, Bassoon & Piano
Eight Pieces Op.83, Volumes 1 & 2
Max Bruch, arr. Russell Denwood
Vol.1: E622 Vol.2: E623
£15.00 each Grade 8 Duration 15’30” & 17’30”
An excellent arrangement of this wonderful set of Romantic chamber pieces. A new corrected edition of the original (for clarinet, viola & piano) is also published by Emerson Edition.

Vol.1 ISMN: M-57040-800-9 score & parts
Vol.2 ISMN: M-57040-801-6 score & parts

Wind Quintet
Five Madrigals
Henk Kox

E632 £22.50 Grade 8 Duration 14’30”
Not easy to play, but a witty and very effective piece in five movements: Leave the Cities, The White Cottage at the River,

Tick-Tack Ticks Walk, Malparthus is Renard’s Home & Cinq Leffes Blondes S’il Vous Plait.
ISMN: M-57040-803-0 score & parts

Wind Quintet
Six Miniature Pastorals
Frank Bridge, arr. Russell Denwood

E618 £16.50 Grade 8 Duration 11’30”
An arrangement of six of Frank Bridge’s Miniature Pastorals, originally written for piano.
ISMN: M-57040-802-3 score & parts

The New Trinity Guildhall Woodwind Syllabus 2012

2011-10-20T08:32:00.000-07:00

The new Trinity Guildhall Woodwind Syllabus 2012 is out this week, with new exam lists for flute, oboe, clarinet, bassoon, saxophone and recorder.

They’ve also published two brand new series of books for flute, clarinet and saxophone which will be included on the exam lists: ‘Musical Moments’ is a series of progressive repertoire books, in 5 volumes for each instrument, featuring newly-composed pieces by leading educational composers, plus new arrangements of popular and less well-known repertoire. ‘Mosaics’ is a series of unaccompanied repertoire books containing newly composed solo pieces by Mike Mower and James Rae. As well as addressing specific areas of technique development, these books offer attractive, stand-alone repertoire for beginner to advanced standard players. They’re published in two volumes for each instrument: Book 1 covers Initial-Grade 5 and Book 2 covers Grades 6-8. All the books are listed on the website.

June Emerson Launchpad Prize at Guildhall School of Music and Drama

2011-09-30T12:26:00.000-07:00

On Friday, 7th October 2011, various wind quintets compete for the June Emerson Launchpad Prize. The event starts at 2pm. Tickets are free of charge, more information can be found here.

Venue Details

Address:

Guildhall School of Music and Drama
Silk Street
London
EC2Y 8DT

Telephone: (020) 7382 7043

Earlier this year, June Emerson Wind Music announced the winners of this year's Launchpad Prize.

Wind quintets compete for the June Emerson Launchpad Prize

About Guildhall School of Music and Drama
The Guildhall School of Music & Drama is one of Europe's leading conservatoires, offering musicians, actors, stage managers and theatre technicians an inspiring environment in which to develop as artists and professionals.

About the prize
The Launchpad Prize was an idea that began as a desire to help young musicians in some significant way. With our limited financial resources it was difficult to come up with something that would make enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. The idea of sponsoring a prize at one of the UK music colleges was something we just couldn’t afford, and we also felt that we’d like to be able to offer something to more than just one college and be a little more ‘hands on’. We eventually decided that we would assist one young (predominantly) final year wind ensemble from each of the major UK music colleges to launch themselves onto the professional circuit.

June Emerson Wind Music at the RNCM Sax Day - Sunday 13th November 2011

2011-09-19T03:03:00.000-07:00

We'll be taking all our saxophone music and books off the shelves and over to Manchester for the 11th annual Sax Day at the Royal Northern College of Music. With such a comprehensive stock of music available for you to look through and buy, you can't afford not to come and see us! If you're going to be there and would like music put aside for you, please give as much notice as possible, as some things may be needed to be ordered in, which can take time.

If you haven't yet registered for this hugely popular event, please visit www.rncm.ac.uk for booking details. This year's programme includes workshops, masterclasses and performances featuring John Harle, Julian Arguelles and Rob Buckland.

About the Royal Northern College of Music Saxophone Day

This year, the 11th RNCM Saxophone Day, we have another action packed day of concerts, masterclasses and workshops for saxophonists of all ages, abilities and backgrounds, covering a wide variety of saxophonic styles and genres. Special guests this year are all UK artists, celebrating the rich tradition of world class saxophone playing that we have in this country: John Harle joins the RNCM as featured classical guest, and Julian Argüelles makes his first appearance at the event as the featured jazz artist, in a duo with award-winning pianist Kit Downes.

As ever, there will be a comprehensive trade exhibition featuring the world’s leading instrument manufacturers, retailers and publishers, plus a series of creative workshops especially for young beginners.

Venue
The RNCM is located one mile south of Manchester City Centre, in the heart of the Education Quarter, on the corner of Oxford Road and Booth Street West. Oxford Road connects the RNCM by bus to the City Centre and all of Oxford Road, Piccadilly and Victoria train stations.

Successful Open Day for June Emerson Wind Music

2011-09-16T02:23:00.000-07:00

June Emerson Wind Music, Windmill Farm

It was a blustery day up at Windmill Farm, but we were very pleased to welcome a steady stream of customers, some of whom had travelled quite a distance to visit us for the first time.

Among the first-time visitors was a group of six friendly and enthusiastic young players who make up part of Blow Me Down Woodwinds (www.blowmedownwoodwinds.co.uk) – an organisation run by Caroline Leak, dedicated to providing playing and performing opportunities for young woodwind players in Lincolnshire. They had recently been awarded a grant and were looking for lots of new repertoire, so they all made the 2 and a half hour trip to arrive for 10.30am, finally leaving with 2 big boxes of sheet music at 3.30pm! They’d brought their instruments along and treated us to a play-through of many of our flexible ensemble titles.

Other visitors had travelled from as far as Leicester, Nottingham, Harrogate and Hull.

Our next Open Day will be on Saturday 14th January 2012, weather permitting…

The Kudo Saxophone Quartet - Launchpad Winners 2011

2011-08-31T03:44:00.000-07:00

The Kudo Saxophone Quartet

The Kudo Saxophone Quartet is comprised of Abraham Mennen, Eleanor McMurray, Amy Green and Rebecca Parrish; a young, lively quartet dedicated to performing contemporary and classical chamber music.

In June 2011 they were awarded the Royal College of Music June Emerson Launchpad Prize. They performed in the Festival of Britain at London’s Southbank Centre in May 2011 and at the Science Museum as part of the 2010 Exhibition Road Music Festival. Other venues have included Somerset House, Lincoln’s Inn and St Stephen’s Church.

The Kudo Saxophone Quartet was formed in September 2008 at the Royal College of Music where they received coaching from Kyle Horch and Martin Robertson and performed in masterclasses with Nobuya Sugawa, Claus Oleson and Frederick Hemke.

For more information and updates join their Facebook Group.

The Hafren Wind Quintet - Launchpad Winners 2011

2011-08-27T03:05:00.000-07:00

The Hafren Wind Quintet

The Hafren Wind Quintet was formed by a group of friends who began studying as BMus (hons) students at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama in September 2007. They came together through a mutual love of ensemble playing and their motivation, drive and determination together with their sense of fun, passion and ambition has proved a winning formula. Following the success of their first recital just a few months after their formation, the Quintet have performed at music societies and in concert series across Wales and England, gaining a reputation for exciting and musical playing. Keen to make the best use possible of their creative music making, the quintet have raised money for many good causes and taken part in outreach projects for the Touch Trust and school children both locally and further afield. Lovers of new music, the quintet have performed premieres of many works, not only for wind quintet, but also in collaborations with string quartets, singers, and other performers.

The Hafren Wind Quintet have played in masterclasses with many renowned artists and coaches, their main coaches being Meyrick Alexander (former Principal Bassoon, Philharmonia Orchestra) and Christopher Vale (Sub-Principal Bassoon, Orchestra of Welsh National Opera). They took part in the Welsh National Opera Elgar Project in 2007 and as a result, were asked to coach ensembles at the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama Junior Department. Many members of the Quintet have since been invited to perform as members of the Welsh National Opera Elgar Quintet. In just their second year at the College, the Quintet won second place in the RWCMD Woodwind Chamber Prize. In 2009 they were invited to be the Welsh National Opera Young Players of the Year, culminating in a performance with the National Dance Company of Wales.

The future looks bright for the talented Quintet. They are grateful and privileged to have won the June Emerson Prize, providing them with support at the crucial time when many members graduate from the Royal Welsh College of Music and Drama. With many recitals and outreach projects to come, the Quintet are looking forward to a great deal more years of very enjoyable music making.

Bells Up! - Launchpad Winners 2011

2011-08-09T06:07:00.000-07:00

Bells Up! Andrew McLean (horn), Cillian Ó Ceallacháin (trombone), Eoin Tonner (trumpet),
Rachel Brown (tuba), Holly Boddice (trumpet)

“Bells Up!” Brass Quintet was formed in 2009 by a mixture of first and second year students studying on the undergraduate BMus course at the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama. The brass quintet is young and fresh and there is a surplus of ambition and enthusiasm within the ranks. The members all hail from different corners of Scotland and Ireland which include Dunoon, Carnoustie, Glasgow, Mid-Lothian and Cork. Individually, each member of the quintet is a highly experienced ensemble player. They have experience in orchestral, wind band, jazz band, wind ensemble, brass band and symphonic brass playing, to name but a few.

The group's learning environment offers the expertise of the best professional players and teachers throughout Scotland of which Tony Swainson (former Principal Tuba BBCSSO), Nigel Boddice (former Principal Trumpet BBCSSO), Bryan Allen (former Trumpet Fine Arts Brass) and John Wallace (Principal RSAMD) have offered their advice. Bells Up! Brass Quintet have been fortunate to play in many beautiful places in Scotland including Dunkeld Cathedral and "A House For An Art Lover" in Glasgow. As well as this, the group have performed with numerous Choirs and Choral Societies including Les Sirenes and The Bridge of Weir Choral Society.

Bells Up! performing

This brass quintet are also keen enthusiasts of music education in Scotland and have recently started working with primary schools helping to promote instrumental tuition. Bells Up! are the recent recipients of the Mary D Adams prize for Chamber Music from the RSAMD and were finalists in the Academy’s Governor’s Recital Prize for Chamber Music.

The highlight of the quintet's career so far has been appearing on the Christmas Eve television broadcast for the BBC in 2010 where they were chosen to play as representatives of the RSAMD's Brass department. This can be viewed on the Bells Up! Facebook page.

Les Trois Canards - Launchpad Winners 2011

2011-07-31T09:11:00.000-07:00

Les Trois Canards is made up of three postgraduate oboe students from the Royal Northern College of Music. The trio was formed in September 2009 and has already achieved success, having made it to the final of the Woodwind Chamber Music Prize in both 2010 and 2011.

The trio has also taken part in master classes in both Manchester and London. In March it had the opportunity to provide a whole recital programme as part of the Monday Lunchtime concert series at the RNCM.

Les Trois Canards enjoys playing a wide range of music from Baroque to contemporary, as well as discovering some of the lesser known works written for oboe trio. In 2011 they will be recording ‘Intercession’ by James Macmillan to be part of a new CD of woodwind works performed by students at the RNCM.

Vesuvio Wind Quintet - Launchpad Winners 2011

2011-07-31T08:56:00.000-07:00

The Vesuvio Wind Quintet was founded in 2006 when its members were all students at Trinity College of Music (now Trinity Laban). Past highlights include competing in the 6th Henri Tomasi International Woodwind Quintet Competition in Marseilles, performing in the 2009 Chiddingly Festival and a recital at the Old Royal Naval College Chapel, Greenwich. In April 2011 the quintet travelled to Saudi Arabia to perform for the International Concert Committee and British International School in Al-Khobar, and at the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in Thuwal.

The Vesuvio Wind Quintet is focused on performing contemporary quintet repertoire by living British and Irish composers, recently commissioning a new work from Irish composer Cormac McCarthy. They like to combine these works with standard repertoire of both European and British works from early 19th century onwards, alongside solo, duo, trios and quartet works in order to add more colour and interest to their programme.

The quintet is also committed to music education and has enjoyed performing many school and family concerts.

The Vesuvio Wind Quintet is grateful for support from the Fidelio Charitable Trust.

For details on future performances visit www.vesuviowindquintet.com

June Emerson Wind Music 2011 Launchpad Prize

2011-07-29T04:27:00.000-07:00

We are absolutely thrilled and extremely proud to announce the winners of the 2011 June Emerson Wind Music Launchpad Prize. They are:

Vesuvio Wind Quintet

Trinity College of Music
Vesuvio Wind Quintet

Royal Northern College of Music
Les Trois Canards

Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama

Les Trios Canards

Bells Up!

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama
Hafren Quintet

Royal College of Music
Kudo Saxophone Quartet

Guildhall School of Music & Drama
to be announced in October 2011

Bells Up!

Royal Academy of Music
- not awarded this year

About the prize

Hafren Quintet

The Launchpad Prize was an idea that began as a desire to help young musicians in some significant way. With our limited financial resources it was difficult to come up with something that would make enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. The idea of sponsoring a prize at one of the UK music colleges was something we just couldn’t afford, and we also felt that we’d like to be able to offer something to more than just one college and be a little more ‘hands on’. We eventually decided that we would assist one young (predominantly) final year wind ensemble from each of the major UK music colleges to launch themselves onto the professional circuit.

The Kudo Saxophone Quartet

The Launchpad Prize consists of practical help including: a substantial JEWM music voucher; dedicated space on the JEWM website; publicity at any time through our online media channels (JEWM blog, Twitter, Facebook etc); editorial coverage wherever possible; unlimited free advertising flyers in JEWM music orders in order to publicise themselves; exclusive access to the JEWM shop with use of all music and facilities; complimentary copies of any existing and future Emerson Edition titles which fit their instrumental line-up; anything else we can think of.

We’d like to wish the 2010 winners all the very best for a successful future. Please support them by going to hear their performances - they’re all incredibly talented ensembles and you won’t be disappointed! They are: Gelachter Trio, Meridian Brass, Carter Quintet, Ellipsis Wind Quintet, Dolce Cinque and Pure Brass.

Celebration of 40 years in business for June Emerson Wind Music

2011-06-30T09:33:00.000-07:00

Good food and good company

Saturday 25th June marked the celebration of 40 years in business for June Emerson Wind Music. A select gathering of staff, ex-staff, friends, family and a few music business colleagues got together for an afternoon in the office, being shown round and meeting the current staff, followed by a really memorable evening party in a marquee in the field outside on our hilltop. It was wonderful to see people who had travelled such a long way, people who’d never visited before and so many old friends who used to work here.

Rachel, Daniel and June Emerson

Mid-way through the evening, June made a short speech to thank everyone for coming, followed by a presentation to two members of staff for their many years of hard work and dedication - John Toll, for 30 years as our accountant, and Tracy Battensby, office manager, for her 25 years with the company.

Party continued through the evening

The evening seemed to be over so quickly and was rounded off with a firework display. A really good time was had by all!

Supplying Sheet Music for Wind Players for 40 years - June Emerson Wind Music's 40th Anniversary

2011-06-24T03:09:00.000-07:00

2011 marks the 40th birthday of June Emerson Wind Music!

June and Rachel Emerson with sheet music flying in the wind

Having spotted a gap in the market, June started the business with a working capital of £11.23 and no sheet music stock. It has grown gradually over the last 40 years and we now have what is probably the biggest stock of wind music anywhere with over 38,000 titles of music for wind instruments. Catering for everyone from beginners to professionals, we stock everything from exam syllabus repertoire to the obscure pieces that you wouldn't find anywhere else. Ordering from our suppliers at least three times a week and dealing with publishers big and small worldwide, this is probably the only place you'll find such an interesting and diverse selection all under one roof.

None of this would have been possible without a combination of incredibly loyal customers, wonderfully dedicated staff and, of course, the hard work and passion of June Emerson herself.

THANK YOU!!

New London Chamber Ensemble are to play Jonathan Cooper’s The Funambulist's Daring Feats

2011-06-16T06:18:00.000-07:00

Music at Leasowes Bank Festival host the New London Chamber Ensemble with members of the Dante Quartet
Saturday 30th July 2011 - 8.00pm

Renowned for its innovative programming and attention to musical detail, New London Chamber Ensemble is one of the UK’s leading wind ensembles. Its programmes range from works that form the core of the chamber music repertoire to newly commissioned contemporary pieces. This concert celebrates the music of Martin Butler and the group joins with members of the Dante Quartet to give the second performance of his ‘Rondes d’automne’ which the ensemble will be premiering at the Cheltenham International Music Festival earlier in July, juxtaposed with Spohr’s ‘Nonet in F major Op 31’. Martin was commissioned by Music at Leasowes Bank in 1991 to compose ‘Down Hollow Winds’ and tonight it will have its 20th anniversary performance. With music by Jonathan Cooper and Poulenc this concert is destined to be a fitting finale to the 2011 Festival.

Tickets: £12.00 (adult) £9.00 (under 18) - You can find details on booking tickets here.

Click the image to view sheet music details in our online store

About Music at Leasowes Bank
Music at Leasowes Bank is one of England’s remotest music festivals. About ten miles to the south of Shrewsbury in Shropshire, between the dramatic rocky outcrops of the Stiperstones and the Long Mynd is Leasowes Bank Farm where, each summer, concerts covering a diverse range of music are held in a converted barn.

For more information on the fesitval visit http://www.leasowesmusicfestival.co.uk

Gallimaufry at the City of London Festival

2011-05-31T07:14:00.000-07:00

Music in the Yard: Office Musicians of the Year

Wednesday 06 July

12:30pm - Guildhall Yard

2010 winner Chris Horril performs Jonathan Cooper's new work for clarinet, Gallimaufry. Joined by this year’s Office Musician of the Year and Office Ensemble of the Year 2011. Presented by Music in Offices.

Music In Offices makes music accessible in the work place and shares the many benefits music brings to an office environment. They have set up eleven new office choirs and bring tuition into News International and Norton Rose. www.musicinoffices.com

Click the image to view sheet music details in our online store

Sheet Music Collections - Pieces for Flute, Clarinet, Saxophone ...

2011-05-28T06:23:00.000-07:00

One section of our Saxophone sheet music collection at Windmill Farm

Here at June Emerson Wind Music we are proud of our ever increasing collection of sheet music for wind instruments. As of the middle of the May 2011 (new titles added each week) our catalogue consists of:

4,270 flute pieces
2,615 clarinet pieces
1,544 flexible ensembles
1,308 wind quintets
1,922 trumpet pieces
1,072 saxophone quartets.

These don’t include duets, trios, quartets etc.

Editor's Choice - May 2011

Our Editor's choice for this month is Paul Lewis's Four Jazz Sketches for solo bassoon - an entertaining and fun to play suite of movements. Perfect for the later grade player to release their inner groove!

More details >>

Corfe Castle - Drums, Fanfares, Flags and Fire - Saturday 21st May 2011

2011-05-20T09:18:00.000-07:00

Opening Spectular in the grounds of Corfe Castle

Launchpad prize-winners, Meridian Brass, are joining forces with Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra Brass, the Marylebone Quartet, Magic Drum and Fipenny Piece in the grounds of Corfe Castle for a spectacular evening of Drums, Fanfares, Flags and Fire to kick-start the Purbeck Arts Week Festival.

Reflection of Meridian Brass

After 5.30pm entrance is free. There will be a BBQ food stall with teas, coffees and soft drinks. At dusk there will be a performance of Fire and Flame by Matt Wilkinson.

For more information about the festival, please visit: http://www.purbeckartweeks.co.uk/

Launchpad Winners Gelachter Wind Trio visit June Emerson Wind Music

2011-04-27T03:46:00.000-07:00

Last Monday we had a visit from the Gelachter Trio, one of our Launchpad winners. They had traveled up from London, spent a few hours here and then went back down again, all in the same day. They were such a lovely group and it was great to listen to them playing their repertoire – obviously all very talented musicians.

Gelachter Wind Trio with Rachel

Here's an excerpt on the day from the Gelachter Wind Trio website:

On Monday 18th April Gelachter Trio had an amazingly fun road trip up to York to visit the lovely Rachel Emerson who has so kindly been supporting us since last year after our success in the Royal College of Music Chamber Competition.

It was such a useful experience to be able to choose whatever music we liked from the shop and have a play through as sometimes you really can never judge a piece by its cover! We discovered a whole new repertoire that day with some beautiful arrangements of Shostakovich, Bozza and Rameau that we are very keen to programme into our up and coming recitals! We came away hours later weighed down with new music and heading back for London very sleepy but very excited for our next rehearsal.

Thank you again Rachel for a memorable day :)

If you wish to purchase music we highly recommend their store so please visit them at http://www.juneemerson.co.uk/

Read the whole story on their website: http://www.gelachtertrio.com/news.html

Visit to June Emerson Wind Music for Meridian Brass

2011-04-26T04:15:00.000-07:00

Last month we had a visit from Meridian Brass. They’d set off at about 6am from London and drove back down again that evening, having spent a good part of the day browsing through new repertoire and enjoying the surroundings.

Three members of Meridian Brass with Rachel Emerson

Meridian Brass are an exciting and diverse brass quartet and one of our Launchpad Prize winners for 2010. With an emphasis on performing their own arrangements, they enjoy repertoire from classical and popular genres.

They entertained shoppers at Canary Wharf yesterday. Join their Facebook group to keep up-to-date on upcoming events and performances. For information about the group be sure to check out their website too: www.meridianbrass.co.uk

10% Discount at this Month's June Emerson Wind Music Open Day

2011-04-07T05:33:00.000-07:00

Monday 25th April 2011, 10.30am to 4.30pm

Browse

Come and browse through our unrivaled stock of wind music
Beautiful setting, peaceful atmosphere, warm welcome & refreshments

Play

An adjoining room is available for you to play through any of our music
Hour-long slots are bookable (in advance), chairs and stands provided

Save

All visitors will receive a 10% discount on everything bought or ordered on the day

Stay

Make a weekend of it and stay overnight in North Yorkshire
Where to Stay brochures available on request

Let us know you’re coming & book your playing slot:

Slots available: 10.30-11.30; 11.30-12.30; 12.30-1.30; 1.30-2.30; 2.30-3.30; 3.30-4.30

01439 788324

sales@juneemerson.co.uk

How to find us

From the A1 (west)

Leave the A1 on the A168 (to Thirsk) which then joins the A170 near Thirsk.
Approximately 3.5 miles from the top of Sutton Bank take the right turn,
signposted to Ampleforth, and follow the road for a further 2 miles.
Windmill Farm (privately rented) is on your right, and the office is down the drive just before it.

From York (south)

Follow the B1363 which exits the north side of the York ring road.
Continue as far as Brandsby where you should turn left for Ampleforth village.
Turn right at the T-junction in the village, then take the first left up the hill (signposted to Helmsley).
At the top of the hill turn left - Windmill Farm is the first house on the left, approximately 500 yards from the junction.
The office is down the drive behind the house (privately rented).

From Helmsley/Scarborough (east)

Follow the A170 out of Helmsley towards Thirsk.
After approximately a mile and a half turn left at Sproxton - this turning is on a right-hand bend and a large stone archway stands opposite.
After a mile, take the right-hand turn to Ampleforth uphill through the woods.
At the top of the hill turn right - Windmill Farm is the first house on the left, approximately 500 yards from the junction.
The office is down the drive behind the house (privately rented).

June Emerson Wind Music
Windmill Farm
Ampleforth
York YO62 4HF
Tel: 01439 788324 - NOT answered on the day
Fax: 01439 788715
sales@juneemerson.co.uk
www.juneemerson.co.uk

We look forward to seeing you on the day!

Dolce Cinque are to Play at The Bridgewater Hall

2011-03-25T09:34:00.000-07:00

On Friday 20th May 2011 at 12.30 pm Dolce Cinque are going to play in the foyer (free admission) at The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester

Award-winning woodwind quintet Dolce Cinque, formed in September 2007 at the Royal Northern College of Music. After playing together for just five months, the quintet won the RNCM Woodwind Chamber Music Competition and Trevor Wye chamber music award.

Dolce Cinque - Emily Berridge (Clarinet), Jo Wilcox (Oboe), Helen Wilson (Flute), Amy Briggs (Bassoon), Kirsty Howe (French Horn)
image: www.dolcecinque.com

Since then the quintet has covered a large and diverse set of repertoire and has performed together in several recitals, always keen to discover new works. Dolce Cinque were asked to premiere new works at the RNCM Chamber Music Festival in 2009 and 2010, and in May 2009 they won the Chris Rowland prize for chamber music performing Poulenc's Sextour for Piano and Winds with Duncan Ward. Most recently, Dolce Cinque have been awarded the June Emerson Launchpad Award.

For more information visit their website: www.dolcecinque.com

Venue Details

The Bridgewater Hall is in the centre of Manchester, easily accessible by public transport and by road.

Metrolink tram passengers should alight at St Peter’s Square. Discounted Metrolink vouchers are available to purchase from the Box Office or online when you buy your concert tickets. The discounted fare is £3.50 adult and £1.50 child; vouchers are valid for unlimited travel from any Metrolink stop after 9.30am.

The nearest bus stops for major routes into the city centre are St Peter’s Square, Portland Street or Deansgate.

The nearest rail stations are Deansgate and Oxford Road.

Coaches can drop off and pick up outside the main entrance on Lower Mosley Street; longer term coach parking is available near Piccadilly Station.

The Bridgewater Hall, Lower Mosley Street, Manchester, M2 3WS

Event information was taken from www.bridgewater-hall.co.uk

The Arcomis International Flute Event 2011

2011-03-17T04:47:00.001-07:00

A music festival for everyone
1–3 April 2011, Cardiff, Wales

The Flute Event is being held in Cardiff Bay's iconic arts venue, Wales Millennium Centre, between April 1-3, 2011. During the weekend there will be concerts, workshops, masterclasses and special events given by some of the world's finest musicians. The event is for everyone: professionals, students, children and the public.

The event contains celebrity recitals, masterclasses, workshops, demonstrations and special performance events to appeal to everyone from active or aspiring professionals to students, those new to the instrument and the general public.

For ticket information and full details on this event visit: www.arcomis.com/flute

Introducing the Emerson Quintet

2011-03-17T04:09:00.000-07:00

"proudly using the Emerson name for the group"

Formed in 2009, the Emerson quintet has played in many concerts including a prestigious appearence at Cadogan Hall. They were the winners of the June Emerson 'Launchpad Prize' in the Royal College of Music Chamber Music Competition in the summer of '09 and now are proudly using the Emerson name for the group. They have attracted record label interest and hope to record a CD in the near future.

Nicola Crowe: Flute
Sarah Turner: Oboe
Elizabeth Mace: Clarinet
David Horwich: Horn
Howard Dann: Bassoon

Check out their Facebook page.

Obituary: Richard Adeney

2011-02-26T06:48:00.000-08:00

Obituary Written by June Emerson and Featured in the Guardian Newspaper

Principal flute with the LPO who played with easy vitality

Richard Adeney, image: guardian.co.uk

The easy vitality of the flautist Richard Adeney, who has died aged 90, made him a very popular soloist and recitalist. He appeared with several of the chamber orchestras that began to flourish after the second world war, and was a leading light of the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO) for two separate periods. The first of these started in 1941: the following year he became principal flute, and he stayed until 1950. Then came freelancing with the London Mozart Players, the Goldsbrough Ensemble (later the English Chamber Orchestra), the Boyd Neel Orchestra and the New London Orchestra. As a chamber musician, Adeney was a founder member of the Melos Ensemble.

The Royal College of Music (RCM) offered him a professorship, but after one afternoon of teaching he decided that it was not for him. His lifelong friend Malcolm Arnold – they met at the RCM, and were colleagues in the LPO, where Arnold was principal trumpet – wrote his Sonatina for him, as well as two concertos, which Adeney recorded with the Bournemouth Sinfonietta in 1972. Adeney was also involved in the first performances of a number of Arnold chamber works, starting with a Grand Fantasia for flute, trumpet and piano in 1938, and including, five years later, the Three Shanties for Wind Quintet.

After a decade of freelancing, Adeney found that he missed the discipline of orchestral playing. In 1961 he returned to the LPO as first flute, and remained there for nine years. This second period was less rigorous than the first, and he was able to take time off to travel and develop his considerable skill as a photographer. He played in the Aldeburgh festival for many years, taking part in Benjamin Britten's Church Parables, A Midsummer Night's Dream and Death in Venice, as well as Britten's television opera Owen Wingrave.

In 1970, due to the constant high level of sound in the orchestra, he began to go deaf. So he left the LPO and returned to playing in "quieter music". After a year, his hearing returned to normal, but on a London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) tour to South America with Claudio Abbado in 1972, he began to lose confidence in his playing. He stopped at the age of 70.

Adeney came from an artistic background. At the time of his birth, his father, the painter Bernard Adeney, was married to the artist Thérèse Lessore; she later married Walter Sickert. His mother, Noël (nee Gilford), was also a talented artist, and their circle of friends included Henry Moore and many of the Bloomsbury group.

His love affair with the flute began at Bryanston school in Dorset when he was 14. He happened to hear a recording of the French flautist Marcel Moyse playing a Mozart concerto. It made him cry uncontrollably, completely unaware of his fellow students. On a later visit to an Essex music camp with his parents, he heard the sound of an orchestra for the first time, and it had the same effect on him.

In his own words, he "managed to avoid being educated" at Bryanston. A battered old flute was found for him at the school and he had lessons with a local bandmaster. From the moment he held the flute in his hands he lived from one orchestral rehearsal to the next. The flute also provided an emotional outlet for his feelings of anxiety, and sometimes misery, about his homosexuality.

At the age of 15, he had some lessons with John Francis, who found him a Rudall Carte wooden flute. He had further lessons with Frank Butterworth, who played in the French style, using vibrato on a silver flute. Adeney gained entry to the RCM at the age of 17, studied with Robert Murchie, first flute with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, and managed to avoid everything in the curriculum except flute-playing.

After a year he was advised by his teacher and the director of the RCM to try another profession. Supported by his parents, he went to Gordon Walker of the LSO for a second opinion, and was recommended to continue his studies. His first professional engagement, aged 18, was to play in Bach's St Matthew Passion for Ralph Vaughan Williams in Dorking, Surrey, an overwhelming experience. He made many lifelong friends at the RCM – as well as Arnold, the pianist Maria Donska and the viola player Cecil Aronowitz – and from them he caught a new self-confidence and optimism. A conscientious objector, he did not enlist in the armed forces during the second world war. Instead he joined the Wessex Philharmonic under the young conductor Reginald Goodall, and survived on minimal wages in Bournemouth. Then Arnold got him a trial week with the LPO.

Once he stopped playing in orchestras, other interests and friendships took over. Conscious of his good fortune, Adeney had joined the Samaritans in 1965, and served with them for the next 25 years.

When young he had listed three important ambitions: to be the best flute player in the world, to have as much sex as possible and to understand the meaning of life. Although he admitted to having fully achieved only one of these three, he enjoyed a happy and fulfilling existence. He is survived by a nephew.

Richard Gilford Adeney, flautist, born 25 January 1920; died 16 December 2010

Image and text excertped from the Guardian online.

Ellipsis Quintet at St Martin in the Fields, Trafalgar Square, London

2011-02-12T07:15:00.000-08:00

Lunchtime Concert - Ellipsis Quintet

Royal Academy of Music Series 1:00pm - Tuesday 7 June 2011

The Ellipsis Quintet
image: www.stmartin-in-the-fields.org

The Ellipsis Quintet was formed in Autumn 2009 and is already establishing itself in the public domain as a dynamic new wind ensemble. The quintet comprises Michael Hsin-en Liu (Flute), Peter Facer (Oboe), Charlotte Swift (Clarinet), Ashley Myall (Bassoon) and Hannes Arnold (French Horn). The group met whilst all studying for their Masters in performance at the Royal Academy of Music.

In January 2010, the quintet was the winner of the Royal Academy's Nicholas Blake Wind Ensemble Prize, got to the semi-finals of the Royal Over-Seas League Chamber Music Competition in March and was recently named the winner of the June Emerson Wind Music Launchpad Prize 2010 in June.

The quintet greatly enjoy playing contemporary music; they recently premiered Benjamin Hollway's Quintet No 1 and will soon perform James Lark's "As the Winds and the Months" in a forthcoming concert. Recent performances include concerts in the David Josefowitz Hall and Duke's Hall of Royal Academy of Music, Holy Trinity Church in Stratford-upon-Avon, the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge and the Regent Hall, London.

The backgrounds of each of the players are extremely varied: Charlotte, Peter and Ashley read Music at Cambridge and Leeds Universities, while Hannes studied at the Universität Mozarteum in Austria and Michael at the City University of New York. The group frequently plays together in an orchestral context as well, often taking prominent roles in the Royal Academy's Symphony and Concert orchestras. For more information, please visit www.EllipsisQuintet.co.uk (coming soon).

Concert Details

This lunchtime concert is FREE and no ticket is required. Lunchtime concerts last approximately 45 minutes and latecomers will be admitted to the church when there is a suitable break in the programme. A collection is taken at the end of the concert which goes towards the work of St Martin's.

Information excerpted from the St. Martin in the fields website.

Val’s Flapjack Recipe - A Favourite at June Emerson Wind Music

2011-01-31T02:11:00.000-08:00

Our dear friend Valerie Watts, who passed away last year, used to make flapjacks and biscuits for the office almost every week. Her flapjacks were simply THE BEST flapjack we’ve ever had and we thought it would be nice to share her recipe:

photo: Rob Brewer

Val’s Flapjack

This flapjack is the best I’ve ever tasted. Obviously, after making it for years and years, Val was the master flapjack-baker, but it’s such a simple recipe that it’s hard to go wrong with it. To achieve the best results, it’s essential that you use jumbo oats and that you don’t overcook it – it should be gooey!

Ingredients:

4oz/115g butter
4oz/115g Demerara sugar
1 (generous) tbsp Golden Syrup
5oz/140g jumbo oats

Instructions:

Pre-heat the oven/Aga (Val always used an Aga) to 170oC/325oF/GM3
Melt the butter, sugar and syrup in a pan.
Stir in the jumbo oats.
Grease a baking tin and spread the mixture evenly.
Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes.
Leave to cool in the tin a little before dividing into squares.

Emerson Edition Ltd New Publications - January 2011

2011-01-26T01:12:00.000-08:00

"Long may Emerson Edition prosper and flourish!
They are a leading light in wind music."

- Leslie Craven, Principal Clarinet, Welsh National Opera

Emerson Edition Titles are all available from June Emerson Wind Music

	Flute & Piano Rondo John Field, arr. Anthony Hedges E577 £6.50 Grade 7 Duration 5’00” An arrangement of a lively rondo movement from one of John Field’s very attractive piano pieces. ISMN: M-57040-764-4
	Flute & Piano Two Little Pieces Eve Barsham E576 £4.50 Grade 3/4 Duration 4’00” ‘Dotty’ and ‘Wishful Thinking’ are two contrasting pieces that are as characterful as their titles suggest! ISMN: M-57040-763-7
	Oboe & Piano Serenade Charles Gounod, arr. Lionel Salter E616 £4.50 Grades 4/5 Duration 2’30” A delightful little piece, perfect for the younger player. Originally published by OUP, this is a well-deserved return to print. ISMN: M-57040-795-8
	2 Oboes & Cor Anglais Hautboy Suite Marion Holland E594 £12.50 Grades 6/7 Duration 26’00” A charming and effective suite of movements for oboe trio: Passacaglia, Scherzo, Sarabande and Carnival. ISMN: M-57040-78606 score & parts
	Clarinet & Piano Trio Movement (from Op.114) Johannes Brahms, arr. Chris Allen E606 £5.50 Grade 7/8 Duration 5’00” A piano reduction of the Andante grazioso (3rd) movement of Brahms’s wonderful Trio for clarinet, cello and piano. ISMN: M-57040-789-7
	Clarinet Choir Four Dances (from Op.174) Cornelius Gurlitt, arr. Russell Denwood E508 £12.50 Grade 6/7 Duration 7’20” This is a set of four tuneful and jolly dances from Op.174, ideal for the progressing clarinet choir. ISMN: M-57040-665-4 score & parts
	Alto Saxophone & Piano Bagatelles Chris Noble E603 £8.00 Grade 8 Duration 7’00” A challenging and exciting set of 5 short movements in a variety of moods. ISMN: M-57040-790-3
	French Horn Horn Warm-Ups Bob Ashworth E635 £5.00 All grades A brilliant little A5 booklet of daily warm-up exercises, designed to consolidate techniques and achieve a focused sound. Road-tested by the Opera North horn section! ISMN: M-57040-812-2
	Horn & Piano Elegy Norman Warren E590 £4.50 Grade 5 Duration 5’00” A beautifully lyrical piece, perfectly suited to the instrument, from this very English composer. ISMN: M-57040-791-0
	Clarinet, Violin & Piano Celtic Twilight Christopher Ball E619 £7.50 Grade 8 Duration 8’30” “A pastoral miniature in the best tradition of the English landscapists…” Fanfare magazine, USA ISMN: M-57040-796-5 score & parts
	Clarinet, Viola & Piano Eight Pieces Op.83, Volumes 1 & 2 Max Bruch, ed. Russell Denwood Vol.1: E629 Vol.2: E630 £15.00 each Grade 8 Duration 15’30” & 17’30” A new corrected version of this wonderful set of Romantic chamber pieces. Editorial commentary also available on request. Vol.1 ISMN: M-57040-798-9 score & parts Vol.2 ISMN: M-57040-799-6 score & parts
	Wind Decet Overture for Whethoryon Op.80 Judith Bailey E605 £14.50 Grade 8 Duration 5’00” An evocative piece for wind ensemble. Cornish for ‘blowers of wind instruments’. ISMN: M-57040-793-4 score & parts

Sheet Music Open Day at June Emerson Wind Music

2011-01-20T05:11:00.000-08:00

10% DISCOUNT DAY at June Emerson Wind Music - Bank Holiday Monday 25th April from 10.30am to 4.30pm

We'll be open for anyone who'd like to come and browse through hundreds of feet of wind music on our beautiful North Yorkshire hilltop!

We're offering a 10% discount on everything bought or ordered by those present on the day.
If you'd like to play through some of the repertoire, bring your instruments along - we have a room available with music stands and an electric keyboard if required (please book in advance).

As usual, there'll be a warm welcome and regular rounds of tea, coffee and biscuits to keep you going...

For directions to the shop, please click on the Contact tab on our website. We look forward to meeting you!

Happy New Year to All

2010-12-31T01:25:00.000-08:00

From all of us at June Emerson Wind Music,
we wish you a Happy New Year!

We open again on Tuesday 4th January 2011, when all orders and enquiries will be dealt with promptly.
We hope you are going to come to our next Open day on Saturday 8th January 2011 (10.30am to 4.30pm)
Come and see us - browse through hundreds of feet of wind music on our beautiful North Yorkshire hilltop, accompanied by regular rounds of tea, coffee and biscuits.
Discount - to make the day even better we're offering a 10% discount on everything bought or ordered by those present on the day.
Don't just browse through it, play it - we have an adjoining room where you can play through the music. Stands and an electric keyboard are available if required. Please contact us to book your hour-long slot.
For contact information and directions, click on the Contact tab on our website. We look forward to meeting you!

The Carter Wind Quintet visit June Emerson Wind Music

2010-12-13T02:56:00.000-08:00

Carter Wind Quintet

June Emerson Wind Music had a visit on 9th December from the Carter Wind Quintet who are one of our Launchpad prize-winning ensembles for 2010.

They braved the snow and ice to come and spend the day playing through many of our wind quintets. As the surroundings here are so picturesque, particularly with all the snow, they also brought along their concert clothes and a camera, taking the opportunity to get some new publicity shots!

Jessica Lowe (flute), Mary Noden (oboe), Holly Reardon (bassoon),
Emma Whitney (horn) and Emily Heathcote (clarinet)

It was lovely to meet them all. They really enjoyed themselves and found lots of new music to add to their repertoire.

Snow at Windmill Farm

2010-11-26T22:36:00.000-08:00

Snowfall and its effects...

Windmill Farm House

The view from the office window

Up here on our North Yorkshire hilltop, we're rather exposed to the weather and heavy snowfall means we're not always able to get to the office. We will always try to get here, even if we have to dig our way in and then dig ourselves out again to get home. If you call during office hours and get the answering machine, or email and don't hear from us as quickly as you would normally, it will probably be because of the weather.

Please be assured, though, that we will make every effort to keep June Emerson Wind Music running as smoothly as possible. Thank you for your patience and continued support!

Sax Day at the Royal Northern College of Music, Manchester - A Successful Day

2010-11-26T20:58:00.000-08:00

We have returned from the 10th annual RNCM Sax Day. It was a well-attended day with sax players of all ages and standards taking part in the workshops, masterclasses, talks, recitals and concerts. We took along all our saxophone music – 44 boxes of it! – much to the delight of our customers who got a rare chance to spend time browsing through it all, discovering all sorts of new and interesting titles.

JEWM trade stand - 6 tables worth of sheet music

For us it was an exhausting day, as always, but we thoroughly enjoy going every year and this event was no exception. It was lovely to see some familiar faces and also to meet customers we’ve known for years by name, but have never met in person! The excitement and enthusiasm of all the sax players was infectious, and credit must go to Rob Buckland and Andy Scott who organise it and make it such a success every year.

We’re looking forward to the next one in 2011…!

The perfect musical gift ideas for Christmas or birthday

2010-11-14T19:58:00.000-08:00

Great Musical Gift ideas for Christmas

Organic Cotton Music Bag

Sheet Music
Established in 1971, we now carry a stock of over 38,000 titles of music for wind instruments, ready for immediate despatch worldwide. We will happily list and sell any piece of music available in print that is scored for, or includes, a wind instrument (providing it falls within our given catalogue sections).

Organic Cotton Music Bag

Perfect for music or books
Longer length handles leave your hands free to wrestle with instrument cases, doors, parking meters, phones, lovers...
50p from the sale of each bag goes to our chosen charity

JEWM Gift Vouchers
Can be any amount, P&P free, please phone 01439 788324 to order.

10% Discount at the next June Emerson Wind Music Open Day

2010-10-12T22:27:00.000-07:00

June Emerson Wind Music Open Day
Saturday 8th January, 2011 (10.30am to 4.30pm)

Come and See Us - browse through hundreds of feet of wind music on our beautiful North Yorkshire hilltop, accompanied by regular rounds of tea, coffee and biscuits.

10% Discount - to make the day even better we're offering a 10% discount on everything bought or ordered by those present on the day.

Don’t Just Browse Through It, Play It! - we have an adjoining room where you can play through the music. Stands and an electric keyboard are available if required. Please contact us to book your hour-long slot.

June Emerson Wind Music, Windmill Farm, York

For contact information and directions, click here. We look forward to meeting you!

June Emerson Wind Music at the 10th annual RNCM Sax Day

2010-10-12T21:56:00.000-07:00

On 14th November 2010, we'll be taking all our saxophone music off the shelves and over to Manchester for the 10th annual Sax Day at the Royal Northern College of Music. With such a comprehensive stock of music available for you to look through and buy, you can't afford not to come and see us!

If you're going to be there and would like music put aside for you, please give as much notice as possible, as some things may be needed to be ordered in, which can take time. Visit our contact page for details on how to get hold of us.

If you haven't yet registered for this hugely popular event, please visit www.rncm.ac.uk for booking details.

Office Musician of the Year 2010 Winners Recital

2010-10-12T00:02:00.000-07:00

Chris Horril
accompanied by Tessa Marchington

Witold Lutoslawski - Dance Preludes

Jonathan Cooper - Gallimaufry (Premiere)

Francis Poulenc - Clarinet Sonata

St Olave’s Church Hart Street EC3R 7NB
Thursday 28th October 2010 at 1pm

Supported by

The BIG Double Reed Day - Sunday 10th October 2010

2010-10-06T16:24:00.000-07:00

We're proud to be associated with this exciting event which will be held at the Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

Activities will include:
Masterclasses, Reed Class, Try the Cor/Contra/Baroque Oboe/Baroque Bassoon, Solo Recital and Massed Double Reed Ensembles.

It will also be possible to try a whole range of instruments and to buy a variety of music and accessories.

Instrument technicians will be present for running repairs.

A cafeteria service will be open all day.

The cost is £20 for students and £35 for adults, including T-Shirt and goodie bag! Adult places are limited and are on a first come first served basis.

For more information, please visit: www.bigdoublereed.com

June Emerson Wind Music News

2010-09-30T22:33:00.000-07:00

Planning your Christmas Concert…?

Find it all in one place in the June Emerson Wind Music Christmas Catalogue! Produced annually, it contains everything Christmassy from our four main distribution catalogues (from instrumental solos up to flexible ensembles for schools) extracted and put together in one booklet to make choosing easier. Free of charge to anyone who'd like one.

This year's catalogue will be available soon.

Serenades for Val – Sunday 19th September 2010

This summer, Valeria Watts died at the age of 67. She was, amongst many other things, a part-time member of staff at JEWM and a real character.

Valerie Watts

It was her wish to be sent off not with a funeral but with a concert and a tea party, paid for by her estate. This went so well! The Helmsley Festival Wind Ensemble, conducted by Geoffrey Emerson, got together in the morning to rehearse and then performed in the afternoon to 70 of Valerie’s friends and colleagues who’d come along to remember her. All the musicians were friends of hers that she’d played with over the years, many of whom hadn’t seen each other in a very long time, so it was a wonderful reunion.

Valerie Watts' Memorial Concert

The concert began with words specially written by Valerie to introduce the concert, which made everyone chuckle! The programme consisted of Gordon Jacob - Old Wine in New Bottles, Richard Strauss - Suite Op.4, Percy Whitlock - Homage to F.D. (Frederick Delius), Peter Warlock - Beethoven’s Binge, Glazunov – Concert Waltz, five short pieces by George Gershwin, Richard Strauss - Serenade Op.7 and a piece commissioned by Valerie and written by Geoffrey Emerson incorporating specially requested tunes that meant a lot to her.

The concert was followed by a buffet and drinks which Valerie had insisted on paying for from her estate. She really did us proud.

You can read her obituary that appeared in The Guardian here.

A thank you to loyal long-time staff

In October this year one of our staff members, Barbara Watson, who has a huge variety of responsibilities but is mainly the Accounts Dept assistant, will be celebrating 20 years at JEWM. She's done a wonderful job over the years and we're very lucky that she enjoys it here so much!

She's not the longest-serving, though - Tracy Battensby (Office Manager) has been here for
24 years and John Toll (Accounts Dept) has been here for 29!

A big thank you to them and all the staff at June Emerson Wind Music for all their hard work.

Open Day Success

2010-09-20T19:37:00.000-07:00

June Emerson Wind Music, Windmill Farm, York

It was a beautiful sunny open day, with friendly and interesting visitors - some regulars and some new, including a clarinet quartet who had travelled from quite a distance (one of them had set off from Gloucestershire at the crack of dawn!) and treated us to an hour or so of playing as they sorted out some new repertoire for their upcoming concerts.

Everyone enjoyed themselves, having the unrivalled opportunity to spend as long as they liked browsing through the extensive stock, discovering unexpected delights in the second-hand boxes and being plied regularly with tea, coffee and biscuits. All said they'd definitely come again and would keep an eye out for information on the next open day.....

...which will be Saturday 8th January 2011 (barring heavy snowfall, which
meant the cancellation of the January 2010 open day).

June Emerson Wind Music is Hosting an Open Day

2010-09-03T20:14:00.000-07:00

Saturday 4th September, 10.30am to 4.30pm

Browse

Come and browse through our unrivalled stock of wind music
Beautiful setting, peaceful atmosphere, warm welcome & refreshments

Play

An adjoining room is available for you to play through any of our music
Hour-long slots are bookable (in advance), chairs and stands provided

Save

All visitors will receive a 10% discount on everything bought or ordered on the day
Where to Stay brochures available on request

Let us know you’re coming & book your playing slot

Slots available: 10.30-11.30; 11.30-12.30; 12.30-1.30; 1.30-2.30; 2.30-3.30; 3.30-4.30

01439 788324
sales@juneemerson.co.uk

How To Find Us

From the A1 (west)

Leave the A1 on the A168 (to Thirsk) which then joins the A170 near Thirsk.
Approximately 3.5 miles from the top of Sutton Bank take the right turn,
Signposted to Ampleforth, and follow the road for a further 2 miles.
Windmill Farm (privately rented) is on your right, and the office is down the drive just before it.

From York (south)

Follow the B1363 which exits the north side of the York ring road.
Continue as far as Brandsby where you should turn left for Ampleforth village.
Turn right at the T-junction in the village, then take the first left up the hill (signposted to Helmsley).
At the top of the hill turn left - Windmill Farm is the first house on the left, approximately 500 yards from the junction.
The office is down the drive behind the house (privately rented).

From Helmsley/Scarborough (east)

Follow the A170 out of Helmsley towards Thirsk.
After approximately a mile and a half turn left at Sproxton - this turning is on a right-hand bend and a large stone archway stands opposite.
After a mile, take the right-hand turn to Ampleforth uphill through the woods.
At the top of the hill turn right - Windmill Farm is the first house on the left, approximately 500 yards from the junction.
The office is down the drive behind the house (privately rented).

Contact Details:
June Emerson Wind Music
Windmill Farm
Ampleforth
York YO62 4HF

Tel: 01439 788324 - NOT answered on the day
Fax: 01439 788715
sales@juneemerson.co.uk
www.juneemerson.co.uk

Some people say the nicest things!

2010-08-20T23:05:00.000-07:00

"Whatever music you may need, if it's important go to Emerson. They are the most efficient and reliable in the business - and have been for years."

Ian Bousfield (Principal Trombone, Vienna Philharmonic Orchestra)

"The friendliest, most efficient and informed music buying service you will find anywhere. June Emerson Wind Music is always my first choice and has been for 30 years."

Bob Ashworth (Principal Horn, Opera North, UK)

" June Emerson Wind Music deliver an outstanding service. For any request or information they are prompt, helpful and totally reliable. I couldn't be without them."

Melinda Maxwell (Principal Oboe Birmingham Contemporary Music Group and Endymion, Consultant in Woodwind Studies RNCM)

"For first class, personal and really authoritative help on buying wind music you really couldn't find anywhere better in the world than June Emerson Wind Music"

Paul Harris (composer, arranger, author, teacher...)

June Emerson Wind Music 2010 Launchpad Prize

2010-08-20T07:20:00.000-07:00

We are absolutely thrilled and extremely proud to announce the winners of the 2010 June Emerson Wind Music (JEWM) Launchpad Prize.

They are:

Royal College of Music - Gelächter Wind Trio

Trinity College of Music - Meridian Brass

Royal Northern College of Music - Dolce Cinque

Royal Scottish Academy of Music & Drama - Pure Brass

Guildhall School of Music & Drama - Carter Quintet

Royal Academy of Music - Ellipsis Wind Quintet

Royal Welsh College of Music & Drama - not awarded this year

About the prize

The Launchpad Prize was an idea that began as a desire to help young musicians in some significant way. With our limited financial resources, it was difficult to come up with something that would make enough of a difference to make it worthwhile. The idea of sponsoring a prize at one of the UK music colleges was something we just couldn’t afford, and we also felt that we’d like to be able to offer something to more than just one college and be a little more ‘hands on’. We eventually decided that we would assist one young (predominantly) final year wind ensemble from each of the major UK music colleges to launch themselves onto the professional circuit.

The Launchpad Prize consists of practical help including:

a substantial JEWM music voucher; dedicated space on the JEWM website, with the opportunity to use it as a powerful marketing tool;
publicity in the printed JEWM catalogues;
editorial coverage wherever possible;
free advertising flyers in JEWM music orders in order to publicise themselves;
exclusive access to the JEWM shop with use of all music and facilities;
complimentary copies of any Emerson Edition titles which fit their instrumental line-up;
anything else we can think of.

We’d like to wish the 2009 winners all the very best for a successful future. Please support them by going to hear their performances - they’re all incredibly talented ensembles and you won’t be disappointed! They are:

June Emerson Wind Music is now on Twitter

2010-07-29T00:01:00.000-07:00

@JuneEmersonWM is the official username of June Emerson Wind Music.

About June Emerson Wind Music

June Emerson Wind Music was officially launched on May 1st 1971 from a house in St. Albans, Hertfordshire, England.

June had been an active freelance bassoon player and teacher until her children were born in 1967/68. This was just at the time when teaching of wind instruments in schools was beginning to take off in the UK. Many friends, who were also teachers, were finding it difficult to get music for their pupils as music shops kept very little repertoire.

To fill this need June decided to start a mail-order music business specifically for wind players. She had a starting capital of £11.23 and a great deal of enthusiasm, having developed a great love of handling printed music when librarian of the Edinburgh Rehearsal Orchestra (now The Rehearsal Orchestra).

Her first catalogue was compiled from lists of recommended music by friends who were teachers, and about 50 copies were mailed out. At this time she had no stock of music whatever. As soon as the orders started coming in she would buy in copies from the publishers for the customers and a spare copy of each title for the shelf. In this way the stock was built up, copy by copy, of music that customers really wanted. Now, in 2009, the stock now stands at almost 40,000 works, so the experiment was obviously a success.

Read more on the June Emerson Wind Music about page.