Musical collaboration strikes a chord at Brentwood School

Brentwood School’s first Orchestral Outreach workshop, attracting more than 80 young musicians from the local area, proved a huge success raising the roof of the Wessex Auditorium.

The inaugural event, in collaboration with professional conductor Chloé van Soeterstède and members of her professional orchestra, the Arch Sinfonia, will hopefully be the first of many community partnerships.

Brentwood School’s Director of Music & Performing Arts, Mr Florian Cooper, explained: “We invited local young Orchestral musicians from other secondary schools and youth music organisations in Brentwood and were pleased that 20 external young musicians joined our school symphony orchestra of 60 students for a wonderful afternoon rehearsing the music of Dvorak and Williams.

“It was a fantastic opportunity to rehearse and perform in a professional setting and to experience playing in a large symphonic orchestra - the afternoon culminated in a performance to parents which was extremely well received.”

Chloé van Soeterstède is one of the most exciting young conductors on the professional scene and is enjoying huge international successes, most recently with her appointment as a Dudamel Fellow with the LA Philharmonic Orchestra.

Buoyed by the resounding success of yesterday’s workshop, Mr Cooper said he hoped the initiative would pave the way for future outreach collaborations which will be open to all local young musicians.