During lockdown I had the idea of organising a natural trumpet course, when restrictions would allow, to ‘blow out the cobwebs’ after these many months of isolation.

Finally, in September, I was able to invite a hand-picked selection of amateur, semi-professional and professional natural trumpet players to two venues in Bedfordshire where we would play natural trumpets (without finger holes) as an ensemble, focusing on quality and refined playing as part of an educational and practical course.

I spent a long time organising the course, writing risk assessments (particularly for Covid-19 safety) and compiling course booklets and handouts. Every player had their own 54-page booklet of music to play from, which enabled suitable (2.2m+) social distancing, and we enjoyed a chronological array of repertoire and treatises from before 1598 to as late as 1891. The handout contained a list of all the pieces that we played over the weekend and a piece to play at home.

The course began on Saturday in Stewartby and the first day culminated with an intentionally audience-less and informal performance at an open-air church in a nearby village. We played a few favourite pieces from the first day of the course; music by Monteverdi, Schmeltzer, Riedl, and Dauverné resounded in the Bedfordshire countryside. There was a fantastic atmosphere and sense of achievement felt by all at the end of the first day, especially as this, for many, marked the end of a musical silence of six months or more.