The Medieval Manuscript the 'Chronicles of Mann and Sudreys' mentions various locations, including the Isle of Man, Wales, Scotland, Ireland and even places as far away as Norway and Brittany.
Russell Gilmour (trumpet) and David Kilgallon (organ) use melodies from these countries and they merge and fuse these ideas together with their own to create unique compositions for trumpet and organ. The idea behind their musical collaboration is to explore traditional music from these countries and to adapt the music, interpret it and explore it. Chronicles' musical format is slightly unusual in that it combines trumpet and organ - not the instruments you may initially associate with folk music - but it is an approach that has sparked a lot of interest.
Their limited edition EP "Prologue" is a sample of things to come, as the production of a full album is underway. The full album will be Chronicles' musical impression of the Isle of Man's influences and rich history - as documented in the Chronicles of Mann.
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writing on music, photography, travel and life as a freelance professional musician.
Purcell - King Arthur - Vox Luminis - Valletta Baroque Festival
%PM, %Europe/London %b %2024, %RI first visited Malta in January 2013, stepping in at very short notice to perform Bach’s Brandenburg Concerto No. 2 [BWV 1047] in the Valletta Baroque Festival. (Incidentally, one of the violinists in that orchestra recalled that I could ‘jump in’ at short notice on that notorious piece, and she put my name forward to record that iconic concerto at very short notice as part of the Ansbach Bach Festival).
After my first visit to Malta in January 2013, I had the pleasure to return in January 2015 to perform Handel’s Messiah, and I returned again twice in March 2018 for a varied programme of music for natural trumpet and cornetto with the Valletta International Baroque Ensemble.
It was great to perform Purcell’s King Arthur in Valletta in January 2024 with Vox Luminis; this was a revival of the very first project I ever participated in with Vox Luminis (Snape Maltings, June 2017), and it was again narrated by Simon Robson (I used to teach his son the trumpet). I also had the pleasure of recording this piece with Vox Luminis in Antwerp in 2017, and the rest, as they say, is history!
Also, to add to all these links, I met some people from Ramsey Music Society, from the Isle of Man (where I grew up), on the flight to Malta! I performed in their concert series in December 2018, and they were visiting Malta to attend the festival.
The performance of Purcell’s King Arthur took place at the Teatru Manoel (Manuel Theatre) on Sunday 14 January 2024. It was exciting and vibrant, with many lovely touches. The singers of Vox Luminis brought Simon Robson’s flawless and elegantly-rendered narration to life. One of the singers pulled out a box of Cisk (local beer) and handed out cans during the drinking song ‘Your hay it is mow’d’, even passing one up to the high balcony above the stage where Will Russell (second trumpet) and I were situated. A nice touch! It was wonderful to play with our friend Koen Plaetinck (timpani and percussion) again after our Christmas Oratorio tour in Belgium last December.
I love visiting Malta at this time of year. It makes for a lovely break from the cold weather at home (it was roughly 10°C warmer in Malta than in the UK) and it was great to go out without a coat, and feel the warmth of the sunshine on your arms in the middle of winter! I hope to visit this lovely island again soon.
There’s still so much to come this month: I’m hoping to finish the first edit of my book, and print a preliminary copy to check it through before going to Paris next week, where I will begin a month-long Mozart opera residency at the Théâtre du Châtelet.
Festival, Natural Trumpet, Purcell, Vox LuminisAfter my first visit to Malta in January 2013, I had the pleasure to return in January 2015 to perform Handel’s Messiah, and I returned again twice in March 2018 for a varied programme of music for natural trumpet and cornetto with the Valletta International Baroque Ensemble.
It was great to perform Purcell’s King Arthur in Valletta in January 2024 with Vox Luminis; this was a revival of the very first project I ever participated in with Vox Luminis (Snape Maltings, June 2017), and it was again narrated by Simon Robson (I used to teach his son the trumpet). I also had the pleasure of recording this piece with Vox Luminis in Antwerp in 2017, and the rest, as they say, is history!
Also, to add to all these links, I met some people from Ramsey Music Society, from the Isle of Man (where I grew up), on the flight to Malta! I performed in their concert series in December 2018, and they were visiting Malta to attend the festival.
The performance of Purcell’s King Arthur took place at the Teatru Manoel (Manuel Theatre) on Sunday 14 January 2024. It was exciting and vibrant, with many lovely touches. The singers of Vox Luminis brought Simon Robson’s flawless and elegantly-rendered narration to life. One of the singers pulled out a box of Cisk (local beer) and handed out cans during the drinking song ‘Your hay it is mow’d’, even passing one up to the high balcony above the stage where Will Russell (second trumpet) and I were situated. A nice touch! It was wonderful to play with our friend Koen Plaetinck (timpani and percussion) again after our Christmas Oratorio tour in Belgium last December.
I love visiting Malta at this time of year. It makes for a lovely break from the cold weather at home (it was roughly 10°C warmer in Malta than in the UK) and it was great to go out without a coat, and feel the warmth of the sunshine on your arms in the middle of winter! I hope to visit this lovely island again soon.
There’s still so much to come this month: I’m hoping to finish the first edit of my book, and print a preliminary copy to check it through before going to Paris next week, where I will begin a month-long Mozart opera residency at the Théâtre du Châtelet.