HCFMSD

Thursday, 29 March 2018

The 2018 Winners' List

Young Musician of the Festival: Yuan Xu

Solo Acting: Age 12 & 13: Flossie Attwood, Knaresborough; Age 14 & 15: Emily Belcher, Knaresborough; Age 16 & over: Charlotte Barnard, Knaresborough; Solo Acting - Shakespeare: Age 16 & over: Harry Howells, Knaresborough; Acted Scene: Age 11 & under: Eloise Abraham and Luciana Raw, Harrogate; Age 13 & under: Scarlett Watson and Molly Metheringham, Knaresborough; Age 16 & over: Katherine Hooper and Caitlin McKenna, Knaresborough; Group Drama: Age 11 & under: ACTAcademy UK, Harrogate; Age 15 & under: ACTAcademy UK, Harrogate; Age 19 & under: KSSD Saturday Seniors, Knaresborough; Concerto Class: Year 13 & under: Ben Messenger, York; Chamber Class: Open: ‘Colin's Crew’ Woodwind Ensembler, Harrogate; Entertainment Class: Age 13 to 15: Molly Metheringham, Knaresborough; Age 16 & over: Vicky Graham, Knaresborough; Lever Harp Elementary: Grades 1-3: Naila Krisnamoorthy, Saltburn-by-the-Sea; Lever Harp: Grades 4 - 5: Nicole Stella Jessop, Holmfirth; Lever Harp Advanced: Grade 6& over: Iris Greaney, Cottingham; Pedal Harp: Grades 4-5: Nicole Stella Jessop, Holmfirth; Pedal Harp Advanced: Grade 6 & over: Megan Humphries, Nr. Ripon; Harp Duet: Open: Elspeth Cox and Hettie Cox, Cottingham; Harp Ensemble: Open: The Sharpists, Cottingham; Solo from a Show, Film or Musical: Year 8 - Boys & Girls: Flossie Attwood, Wetherby; Year 11 - Boys & Girls: Evangeline Barnby, Hull; Musical Theatre: Age 12 & under: ACTAcademy UK, Harrogate; Age 15 & under: ACTAcademy UK, Harrogate; Year 5 & under: Phoebe Burgess, York; Year 6 & under: Leon Zhuang, Harrogate; Year 7 & under: Krish Desha-Beerachee, Harrogate; Year 8 & under: Krish Desha-Beerachee, Harrogate; Year 9 & under: Robert Kidd, Harrogate; Year 9 & under: Tommy Sun, Harrogate; Year 10 & under: Emma Moore, Harrogate; Year 13 & under: Alexander Abrahams, Ripon; Open: Yuan Xu, Harrogate; Piano Solo Championship: play-off: Yuan Xu, Harrogate; Sonata Class: Open: Yuan Xu, Harrogate; Bach Prelude & Fugue Class: Open: Jennifer Edwards, Leeds; Chopin Class: Open: Emma Johnson, Leeds; Twentieth Century Class: Open: Tinker Chen, Harrogate; Piano Duet: Year 6 & under: Piper Golub and Aria Bradley, Harrogate; Year 9 & under: Krish Desha-Beerachee and Sanjitha Ganesh, Harrogate; Piano Trio: Year 6 & under: James Wood, George Rumsey and Edward Rumsey, Harrogate; Descant Recorder Solo: Year 6 & under: Gwen Hesford, Harrogate; Treble Recorder Solo: Year 6 & under: Annabel Baxter, Harrogate; Descant or Treble Recorder Solo: Grade 5 or 6: Annabel Baxter, Harrogate; Grade 7 or 8: Rosella Pinckney, York; Recorder Duet: Year 6 & under: Dynamic Duo!, Harrogate; Recorder Group: Year 6 & under: Starbeck School Recorder Group, Harrogate; Prepared Reading: Age 12 & 13: Aryan Girish, Leeds; Age 14 & 15: Annalisa Bergen, Leeds; Age 16 & over: Katherine Hooper, Knaresborough; A Talk on any subject: Age 11 & over: Izy Peat, Leeds; Performing Text: Age 13 & under: Kendra Dresser, Leeds; Speech & Drama Championship Class: : Vicky Graham, Knaresborough; String Solo: Grades 1 & 2: Phoebe Burgess, York; Grade 3: Sophia Rueschemeyer, York; Grades 4 & 5: Holly Clark, York; Grade 6: Yiyang Xu, York; Grades 7 & 8: Isabella Watson, York; Open: William Clark, York; String Duet, Trio or Quartet: Open: Yilin Xu and Yiyang Xu, York; Thomas Trophy Competition: : William Clark, York; Ukulele Solo: Year 10 & under: William Smith-McShee, Harrogate; Classical Guitar: Year 6 & under: Leo Mountain, Bradford; Year 9 & under: Tej Singh, Bradford; Open: Craig Bonnar, Bradford; Classical Guitar Ensemble: Year 13& under: Moorlands Duo, Bradford; Verse Speaking: Age 12 & 13: Scarlett Watson, Knaresborough; Age 14 & 15: Emily Belcher, Knaresborough; Age 16& over: Harry Howells, Knaresborough; Sonnet Class: Age 13 to 15: Leah Osborn, Knaresborough; Age 16 & over: Katherine Hooper, Knaresborough; Group Speaking: Age 14 & under: ACTAcademy UK, Harrogate; Age 19 & under: KSSD Tuesday New Seniors, Knaresborough; The Elizabeth Hopkins Trophy: Virtuoso Class: Olivia Robinson, York; Flute Solo: Grade 1 or 2: Sophie Rees, Harrogate; Grade 3 or 4: Megan Turner, Harrogate; Grade 5 or 6: Amelie Coyle, Harrogate; Grade 7 or 8: Katie Anderson, Harrogate; Oboe or Bassoon Solo: Grade 7 or 8: Isabelle Scott, Wetherby; Clarinet Solo: Grade 1 or 2: Krish Desha-Beerachee, Harrogate; Grade 5 or 6: Rachael Green, York; Saxophone Solo E flat and B flat: Grade 1 or 2: Stephanie Connell, Harrogate; Grade 5 or 6: Elliott Shaw, Wetherby; Saxophone Solo: Grade 7 or 8: Olivia Robinson, York; Novice Improvers Woodwind Class: Open - Grades 5-6: Heather Hart, Harrogate; Woodwind Solo: Open: Emily Watson-Breeze, York; Christopher Richmond Trophy Competition: : Rachael Green, York; Ernest Hopper Trophy Competition: : Olivia Robinson, York; Woodwind Duet, Trio or Quartet: Year 6 & under: Annabel Baxter and Amelie Coyle, Harrogate; Woodwind Duet, Trio or Quartet: Year 8 & under: Megan Turner and Beatrice Nolan, Harrogate; Year 10 & under: Allison Hennessy and Harriet Swift, Harrogate; Year 13 & under: Rossett School Saxophone Quartet, Harrogate; Woodwind Group: Year 10 & under: Harrogate Ladies'College Woodwind Ensemble, Harrogate; Year 13 & under: Rossett School Saxophonix, Harrogate;Novice Woodwind Ensemble: Open: Dragon Sunday Winds, Harrogate; Solo Acting: Age 11 & under: Jeannot Gantier-Houston, Knaresborough; Solo Acting - Shakespeare: Age 15 & under: Rhys Gannon, Leeds; Acted Scene: Age 15 & under: Hannah James and Lilia Langan-Green, Harrogate; Vocal Duet: Year 12 & over: Selina Pollard and Nicole Eastwood, Wetherby; Solo singing Musical Theatre: Year 5 - Boys & Girls: Amelia Taylor, Harrogate; Year 6 - Boys & Girls: Poppy Freeley, Harrogate; Solo from a Show, Film or Musical: Year 7 - Boys & Girls: Evie Tempest, Harrogate; Year 9 - Boys & Girls: Coco Cockcroft, York; Year 10: Oscar Gray, Harrogate; Year 12 & over - Boys & Girls: George Hayfield, Wetherby; Vocal Duet or Trio from a Show, Film or Musical: Year 11 & over: Selina Pollard and Nicole Eastwood, Wetherby; Musical Theatre: Age 7 & under: Theatrebox Infants A, Harrogate; Age 10 & under: Theatrebox Juniors B, Harrogate; Olde Tyme Music Hall Song: Open: Evangeline Barnby, Hull; Prepared Reading: Age 9 & under: Coco Bannister, Knaresborough; Age 9 & under: Piper Golub, Knaresborough; Age 10 & 11: Victor Johnson, Knaresborough; Performing Text: Age 10 & under: Georgina Laycock, Harrogate; Solo Singing: Boys & Girls - Year 3 & under: Tillie Sutton, Harrogate; Boys & Girls - Year 4: Beatrice Haddow, Harrogate; Girls - Year 5: Matilda Cadogan, York; Girls - Year 6: Elsa Gordon, Wetherby; Boys - Year 6 & under: James Brown, Harrogate; Girls - Year 7: AVA Bounds, Leeds; Boys - Year 7, 8 & 9 - Grades 2-5: Jeannot Gantier-Houston, Knaresborough; Boys & Girls - Year 10 & 11 - Grades 4-6: Evangeline Barnby, Hull; Northern Choristers' Championship: Girls & Boys - Year 6 & under: James Brown, Harrogate; Silver Rose Bowl Recital Class: Open: Victoria Coggon, Middlesbrough; Operatic Aria: Open: Victoria Coggon, Middlesbrough; Oratorio Class: Open: Victoria Coggon, Middlesbrough; British Composer Class: Open: Victoria Coggon, Middlesbrough; Folk Song Unaccompanied: Year 6 & under: Poppy Freeley, Harrogate; Year 7, 8 & 9: Natasha Stevenson, Harrogate; Year 10 & over: Oscar Gray, Harrogate; Lieder Class: Open: Victoria Coggon, Middlesbrough; Victorian or Edwardian Ballad Class: Open: Victoria Coggon, Middlesbrough; Verse Speaking: Age 5 & under: Non-competitive;Age 6: Sylvie Allen, Harrogate; Age 7: William Gawthorpe, Harrogate; Verse Speaking: Age 8: Mia Bottomley, Harrogate; Age 9: Rueben King, Knaresborough; Age 9: Ben Holt, Harrogate; Age 10: Freddie Raphael, Harrogate; Age 10: Victor Johnson, Knaresborough; Age 11: Caitlin Stott, Harrogate; Group Speaking: Age 8 & under: Ashville 3, Harrogate; Age 10 & under: Ashville 6, Harrogate; Brass Solo: Grades 1 & 2: Lydia Bousfield, Cawood; Grades 3 & 4: Lydia Bousfield, Cawood; Grades 5 & 6: Henry Porter, York; Grades 7 & 8: Isaac Bousfield, Cawood; Open: Isaac Bousfield, Cawood; Brass Championship: : Isaac Bousfield, Cawood; Brass / Concert Band Entertainment: Open: Foxhill Brass Band, Bradford; Novice Choir: Year 2 & under: Rossett Acre Choir, Harrogate; Year 6 & under: Oatlands Junior School Choir by Jack Brierley, Harrogate; Choir from smaller schools: Roll not to exceed 120: Follifoot CE Primary School Choir, Pannal; Choir: Year 6 & under: Moorlands School Choir, Leeds; Year 9 & under: HLC Gallery Choir, Harrogate; Chamber choir class: Open: HLC Chamber Choir, Harrogate; Year 13 & under: HLC Chapel Choir, Harrogate; Church Music - SS Choir: Open: HLC Chapel Choir, Harrogate; Church Music - SATB Choir: Open: Choir of St John the Baptist Church, Knaresborough; Open - Female, Male & Mixed over 16 members: Choral Challenge Class: Open: HLC Chapel Choir, Harrogate; Barbershop: Open: UNIQUE, Bradford; Vocal Duet: Year 6 & under: Lulu Raw and Poppy Freeley, Harrogate; Jazz Combo: Open: GSAL Jazz Ensemble, Leeds; Youth/School Orchestra: Year 6 & under: Highfield Prep School Orchestra, Harrogate; Percussion or Drum Kit: Year 6 & under: Joseph Lepine, Harrogate; Percussion: Year 8 & under: Victoria Alvarez, Follifoot; Drum Kit: Year 8 & under: Jack Littlewood, Leeds; Year 13 & under: Jack Littlewood, Leeds; Percussion and Drum Kit Championship: Year 13 & under: Jack Littlewood, Leeds; Percussion Ensemble: Year 8 & under: Starbeck School Djembe Drumming Team, Harrogate; Solo Singing: Girls - Year 8 & 9 - Grades 3 to 5: Daniella Granillo, Harrogate; Girls Year 13 & under: Niamh Robinson-Wakefield, Knaresborough; Boys Year 13 & under: Jeff Wong, Wetherby; Young Musician Singer Competition: Year 13 & under: Niamh Robinson-Wakefield, Knaresborough; Northern Choristers' Championship: Girls & Boys - Year 11 & under: Hannah Cole, Harrogate;

ADC

2018 HARROGATE COMPETITIVE FESTIVAL REPORT

I am delighted to report that against all the odds and despite the dreadful weather, the Harrogate Festival went ahead as planned and was a huge success! That said I cannot pretend that the Festival Committee did not have some very anxious moments the day before the event was due to begin! We even had a few contingency plans up our sleeves in case Adjudicators were unable to make it. However, they were all very determined people and braved the weather and arrived on time, which was a great relief to us all! Most of the Festival Stewards and Scribes also managed to turn up for duty, which was testament to the commitment and resilience of our wonderful team of volunteers in Harrogate. Our thanks also goes to the team of staff at Harrogate High School. It was our second year at this venue and they did their utmost to make the Festival run as smoothly as possible. The Caretakers worked so hard to ensure the car parks and entrances to the school were clear of snow and ice - thanks to them we had no accidents!

Entries were slightly up on last year, although there were a few 'no shows' from people who lived in more remote parts of Yorkshire where the snow was particularly bad. We were due a visit from our new Regional Rep (Jill Wright) but as she lives in Skipton (one of the worst hit areas,) it would not have been advisable for her to run the risk of getting stuck in the snow and in the end she cancelled.

On the Monday following the first weekend we ran our special needs class (formerly known as 'Music for Fun' but now renamed 'Music and Drama for Fun'). Henshaws School for the Blind entered a small group for the first time and regaled us all with various musical styles including a 'punk rock' song! Everyone thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

On the second weekend of the Festival we were given some respite from the appalling weather, but on the final weekend the snow returned again with a vengeance. Harrogate was lucky enough to escape the worst, but outlying areas were hit hard and Lindley Community Choir (after much agonizing) had to withdraw as they were 'snowed in' - it was a huge disappointment to them.

Our Final Concert took place on the last Sunday evening in the Main Hall of the school. Our two Adjudicators that weekend (Andrew Padmore and Jacqui Edwards) were joined by Marilynne Davies who all had the unenviable job of choosing the winner of The Young Musician of the Festival. In the end their decision was unanimous and it was the young pianist Yuan Xu (only twelve year old!) who gave an amazing performance. In the second half of the Final Concert Colin's Crew Woodwind Ensemble performed a medley of songs in memory of two recently deceased and well known teachers in Harrogate (Colin Mathews and Ian Peak) some of whom had been taught by them. Our Olde Tyme Music Hall Master of Ceremonies (Terry Harrison) for the first time hosted the entertainment section, but not before regaling us all with a witty Gilbert and Sullivan song, the lyrics of which were rearranged to reflect the present day political climate - I believe the word 'Brexit' was mentioned and it was all highly amusing! Rossett School Saxophonix closed the show by leaving the hall one by one still playing their piece 'Carnival' and the final young woman was carried out by her colleague to the thunderous applause of the amazed audience!

LINDA WILSON

Thursday, 8 March 2018

Harrogate Competitive Festival for Music, Speech and Drama – First Weekend

The first weekend of the Festival went really well despite very adverse weather conditions. The Festival Committee and its Trustees considered the situation at great length on Thursday but concluded that, if appropriate warnings were given to performers and volunteers beforehand they could make their own decisions about whether or not to travel. Although some chose to give it a miss, most of those scheduled to perform did actually do so. The Harrogate High School caretaking staff did a sterling job of clearing paths and car parks at short notice. We couldn’t have done it without them.

Almost 100 classes were held, commencing on Friday evening with the Open Novice Woodwind Ensemble (winners the Dragon Sunday Winds) and in a different room the Acted Scene for age 16 & over (winners Katherine Hooper & Caitlin McKenna). Some of the finalists in the Young Musician of the Festival Competition have been identified: Saxophonist Olivia Robinson (winner of the Ernest Hopper Trophy) , pianist Yuan Xu (winner of the Piano Solo Championship) and violinist William Clarke (winner of the String Solo competition).

Over 350 certificates were prepared and handed out including 4 to Year 6 & under performer Annabel Baxter, who, performing possibly well after her usual bedtime, very ably demonstrated what an expert can do on a treble recorder. More good stuff to come next week.

The weekend’s results are:

Thursday, 1 March 2018

2018 Festival going ahead!!!!

Well the weather has tried to put a spanner in the works but we think we have risen above it.

The Trustees have spent the day deliberating about whether or not we should cancel or somehow circumscribe the first weekend of this year's Festival but they have decided that there is no need now to do so. It will commence as planned at 6pm on Friday 2nd March.

The main roads in Harrogate are generally clear and the High School intends to clear and grit paths and car parks. The adjudicators are prepared to travel and we have put in place contingency plans should that not work out for some reason.

We hope performers and their teachers/ families etc will bear with us if things are not as super-efficient as usual.

You need to make your own decisions as to whether or not to travel but if you do, we are looking forward to welcoming you and to providing an exciting Festival experience.

Follow us on Twitter and Facebook - @HCFMSD and online at www.hcfmsd.co.uk

Thursday, 15 February 2018

The 2018 Programme

The 2018 Programme is now available at Music House, 18 Cheltenham Parade, Harrogate, HG1 1DB price £2:00.
Performers have been sent the details of where and when they will be on at this year's Festival and the Programme lists all the classes, adjudicators and Festival entrants. It is well worth also having a look at the Rules!!

On the 24th (10:30 am) we will be holding the usual coffee morning for volunteers, at the High School. This is a great way to meet fellow volunteers before things commence, especially if this is your first year. There will also be guided school tours for those who would like to familiarise themselves with the facilities (which are excellent!!) before the Festival starts on the 2nd March.

Don't forget, you can follow us on Twitter NEWS@HCFMSD and on Facebook @HCFMSD

Tuesday, 2 January 2018

It's the second day of the New Year. That means you have 10 days left to enter the 2018 Festival.

We wish all of our competitors a Happy New Year.

There are just 10 days left to complete online entries for the 2018 Festival. The system closes on 12th January. If you experience any problems with the online system, please contact me, Derek Starling, by email at webmaster@hcfmsd.co.uk or starlingnest@gmail.com and I will help you.

We look forward to seeing you again this year.

Derek

Monday, 19 June 2017

The Annual General Meeting

The HCFMSD Annual General Meeting was held on Saturday 17th June. The accounts for the year were approved and our Chairman, Paul Dutton gave his report, edited extracts from which are as follows:

"It gives me great pleasure in presenting this annual report as Chairman of the Harrogate Competitive Festival. I would like to thank everyone for being here today and all those people who have supported me throughout the year again and made it a hugely enjoyable and rewarding experience. In particular I thank the Committee for their continued support of the Festival and all that goes into making it the success that it is. I would especially like to thank all those people who worked tirelessly over the months leading up to the festival to make sure that we had a smooth transition into our new ‘home’ of Harrogate High School. It was, in the end, undoubtedly a fantastic success.

Thanks at this stage must go to all those at the school who enabled the Festival to run so smoothly, in particular Ms Ann Francis, the Academy Head, Catherine Wright the Lettings Officer and her great team of site staff, Helen Mills, Music Technician at the school and of course our own Richard Thomas whose suggestion it was that we try to make this our new venue.
Within the Festival family my thanks go to:
Alan Connell who did a wonderful job to promote the festival and organise all the new banners and signage for us;
Maureen Greenberg for ensuring there were enough stewards each day (a difficult task when 4 rooms were running consecutively);
Mike Greenberg for all the many jobs he does and ensuring all the Adjudicators were paid on time;
Derek Starling for spending huge amounts of time scheduling all the classes in an untried venue and for the tweets and twitters and all that is technological! The on-line entry system continues to flourish under his wing;
Mavis Gibson for organising a competent team of people to sell tickets at the door;
Sue Chicken for organising the catering;
Jean Burton and her scribes for adapting so quickly to the new venue;
The committee team for choosing and organising the music and the speech and drama materials and to Sally for her minutes;
Also to Frank Gilchrist and particularly Christine Ward Campbell for the collection and collation of all the trophies.
We continue to look for a venue for when the trophies have to be returned;
And finally, of course to Linda Wilson our magnificent Secretary for all that she does and continues to do for the Festival despite it not being the most wonderful of years for her.
In terms of the Festival itself, entries were down on last year, which was unsurprising since we had to limit the numbers and size of the choirs. The seating in the massive Sports Hall was non-existent and we were also concerned that there was nothing to dampen the sound which would have had a detrimental effect on the singing. One of the choirs from this year actually went into the Sports Hall to test the acoustics and I am pleased to say that we should be able to use this space next year to maximise the number of entries up and hopefully beyond our usual capacity by then.
The main building worked well as it was compact, which meant less running around for some of our elderly stewards. The sound proofing was excellent, although some of the rooms were disappointingly small for the larger groups but careful programming next year should resolve this issue too. Catering was good but we are looking into how we can improve this further next year.
We had very few complaints this year, apart from a couple from parents of speech and drama performers who were not happy with their adjudications.
Our Music for Fun class took place again at Christ Church Hall on the Monday following the first weekend of the festival. Unfortunately entries were low and we are now thinking of making it a Music and Drama for Fun class in an attempt to increase entries
As usual we were treated to a feast of talent at our Final Concert which took place in the main hall of the school, a lovely sized room with tiered seating, on the last Sunday evening. We were privileged to have 3 very experienced adjudicators, Marilynne Davies, Ann Lampard and Christina Thomson. The winner of the Young Musician of the Festival was a percussionist, Theo Pedley. We were all spellbound by the wonderful performances from each of these young finalists but his stood out as an exceptional performance. He will now go on to perform in the Regional Championships in September.
As a foot-note to this evening, The Mayor of the Borough of Harrogate, Councillor Nick Brown, who was in attendance, commented that he had thoroughly enjoyed the Final Concert and praised the organisation of the Festival.
I am sure that Mike (our Treasurer) will give you more details about the financial side of the Festival shortly but we will continue to seek funding wherever we can for the Festival and we will also continue to apply for funding to the Borough Council. We did receive a welcome grant of £500 from the Spooner Trust.
The Festival Committee continues to forge links with other local organisations including the Ripon Cathedral Concert Society who donate free tickets to the Final Concert performers and their families in return for a free advert in our programme each year. For the first time last year, winners of our Young Musician Competition were invited to perform at the Harrogate International Festival as part of their Young Musician events. Maria Marshall, the brilliant young cellist who won our title in 2016, is performing on Thursday 6^th July at St James’ Church, Birstwith.
Whilst competition remains at the heart of all we do, continuing to support, nurture and provide new opportunities for our young and not so young musicians is critically important if we are to develop and grow further.
In conclusion, I would like to say how honoured I am to be working with such a dedicated and committed group of people all of whom are volunteers! They are totally devoted to the cause and for that I thank each and every one of them once more. We all look forward to another successful and stimulating year ahead. Thank you. "

Planning for 2018 is going ahead now full-steam and the Syllabus will be published in September. Watch this space!!