Athlone Youth Orchestra hits the right note with Dublin performance
Most of us are familiar with the old joke “How do you get to Carnegie Hall?” and its punchline: “Practice, practice, practice!”
Replace Carnegie Hall with the National Concert Hall, Ireland's principal classical music venue, and there is one group of young Athlone musicians who would undoubtedly give you the same answer.
Just six years after its humble beginnings, and thanks to some serious hard work and dedication, Athlone Youth Orchestra were recently invited to perform at the 25th Festival of Youth Orchestras in the prestigious Dublin venue.
The Athlone ensemble was one of just eight acts on the bill on Saturday February 8, and the group were particularly proud to be the youngest orchestra chosen to take part.
Director of Athlone Youth Orchestra, Paul Hensey, says every single member has been focused on the event since they found out they would be performing.
“We applied last year and got word in September that we had been accepted, so we picked a programme and rehearsed twice a week for six weeks in a row,” explains Paul.
In preparation for the big event, the group also had two full rehearsal sessions with the head of RIAM (Royal Academy of Music) Connect, Brendan Breslin, and some additional members were invited to join the group from Clara Town Band and Ballinasloe Town Band.
“Including tutors, we had 74 people on stage in the National Concert Hall,” says Paul. “Our youngest was our trumpet player Kevin who is 7 and the eldest was Emily who's 16. Our clarinet player Clara flew back from Germany especially to perform.”
Athlone Youth Orchestra chose an eclectic mix of music for their performance in the 3pm concert: 'The Hall of the Mountain King' by Grieg, DvoÅ™ák's 'Largo from Symphony No.9', 'Shallow' from the film 'A Star is Born', 'Run' by Snow Patrol, and the theme from 'Avengers'. Members were then free to relax and enjoy a performance from the National Youth Orchestra of Ireland.
“We got a bus up and back together and the parents followed behind in various modes of transport. It was a wonderful experience,” says Paul.
“This was the biggest step we'd ever taken. They were very nervous going on but were totally focused once they started. The Concert Hall was full and they loved the idea of playing to such a huge audience.”
Athlone Youth Orchestra was founded in 2014 as a partnership with Music Generation Offaly/ Westmeath: “I approached Music Generation for help to start up the orchestra, and started to visit local schools with instruments. We started off witah ten pupils the first day, and in May 2015 we had our first performance. Now we have over 55 members,” explains Paul.
The ensemble, which includes woodwind, brass, string and percussion sections, rehearses in St Peter's NS Hall every Saturday from 2-4pm, and is always eager to welcome new members.
“We have Garda-vetted tutors who are ready to teach. Children come to lessons once a week – they don't have to be able to read music or play an instrument to join, though of course it is great if they can. There is a rental scheme available for instruments. We are particularly looking for larger instrument players at the moment – cello, double bass and tuba.
“It is a great experience for kids to perform as an ensemble and progress through the ranks,” says Paul.
He mentions a few members of whom he is particularly proud: Chris Rigney, who performed with the National Youth Orchestra on the same day, was one of Athlone Youth Orchestra's first clarinet players, while a number of flute players have also performed with James Galway. Other members took part in the 'Brass Off' event in Waterford last year.
The orchestra also performs in Athlone Library on Culture Night every year, and last year accompanied singer Sean Costello in concert.
While Paul says it will be difficult to top the high of the National Concert Hall experience, there are a number of events planned in the coming months, including a summer concert and a trip to one of Europe's large music festivals. They are also getting ready to welcome a visiting group from Athlone's twin town Châteaubriant.
“When we started out there was no music ensemble in Athlone, and in six years we have gone from nothing to playing in the National Concert Hall.
“The kids do their grades every year with the Royal Irish Academy of Music; we have 29 doing grades this year, the highest in Grade 8,” says Paul, whose children Jack and Aoife are both members of the orchestra.
Paul himself has been a member of the Garda Band for the last 19 years. He trained in the Army School of Music and RIAM, and is currently a tutor for Music Generation Offaly/Westmeath and Galway, as well as conductor of the Bower Orchestra.
Athlone Youth Orchestra welcomes new members between the ages of 7 and 18. Anyone who is interested in joining can get in touch via Facebook, or call Paul on 087 6022478.