Well, another season comes to an end and we are delighted to welcome back Simon Coombs who will entertain us with the music of the Iberian peninsular.
It has been an excellent year with a wide range of topics (see previous posts) and although we call ourselves the ‘recorded’ music society, we have had a live performance this year and much greater use of the big screen now available in the Guides’ Centre. This has enabled us to explore some historic performances captured on film and broaden our experience of the music. We have been pleased to welcome several new members this year.
The programme is all but finalised for 2026/27 and will be published sometime in the summer – August probably. On we go …
Eccentric French composer the subject of this evening’s presentation
April 2026
If you said ‘strange’ or ‘eccentric’ in the context of a composer, like as not you would settle on the name of Erik Satie the subject of the penultimate presentation in the 2025/26 programme. Presented by Society member Tim Rowe with able assistance from Alan Doel, we heard a range of music from this composer.
Born Eric Satie in Honfleur northern France, his mother was English and his father French. He went to the Conservatoire in Paris but left without a diploma it was said because he was the ‘laziest student’ there. The first two tracks Tim played were extracts from the Gnossiennes numbers 1 and 5. Some of this music was incorporated into one of Peter Seller’s last films Being There. These pieces are very much in the Satie style.
Similarly the most famous and recognisable of his compositions Gymnopédie No 1, a solemn, sad and thoughtful piece instantly recognised as a Satie composition. First was the original piano version but then we heard an arrangement for trumpet and orchestra which ‘worked’ and gave it a different dimension. It is probably a reflection of the sparse style the composer had adopted that a different arrangement could be a success.
Satie was never it seemed what we would today call ‘worldly wise’ and lived most of his live in poor surroundings. Friends were never invited to his home. He was however a success as a cabaret performer which should have yielded a good income but spent his money as it came into his hands.
He had a second go at a musical education by entering the Schola Cantorum as a mature student and studied under Vincent D’Indy. He was influential in the musical circle which became known as Les Six which included fellow composers such a Poulenc and Milhaud. They were a reaction to the romanticism and adopted a more sparse style of composition.
Some of his compositions were extreme, one being Vexations an endless repeated theme which can last many hours, over 9 in fact. It is controversial to this day over a century after its composition. We heard just a few moments. Other unusual pieces included Musique d’Ameublement designed not to be listened to. Was Satie the inventor of musak, the curse of so many restaurants and cafes?
We watched a brief extract from a ballet Parade which premiered in 1917 in Paris. Conceived by Jean Cocteau and sets designed by Pablo Picasso, it resulted in audience uproar and has not had many performances since.
Satie was influential and paved the way for composers we now refer to as modernist. He seem to fall out with most of his friends at some point in his life. Clearly eccentric he never listened to the radio and never used a phone. We saw a brief extract from a silent in which he appears.
Tim (pictured) expanded our knowledge of this composer playing pieces which are seldom heard today. A fine evening in the tradition of the Society to inform its members about composers, in this case certainly not forgotten, but to an extent overlooked.
Peter Curbishley
The Playlist:
Gnossienne No.1 Ólafur Arnalds & Nils Frahm, Piano
Ogive No.1, Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano
Ogive No.4. Jean-Yves Thibaudet, piano
Gymnopedie No.1, Khatia Buniatishvili piano
Gymnopedie No.3 Alison Balsam, trumpet, with instrumental ensemble
Le Fils d’Etoiles incidental music – Prelude – Alexei Lubimov, piano
Modéré (1893) – Christina Agnano, piano
Prière (1895) Reinbert de Leeuw, piano
Pièces Froides Nos. 1 – 3 – Reinbert De Leeuw, piano
Je Te Veux. Chanson – Patricia Petibon, soprano; Susan Manoff, piano
Vexations 1893 (excerpt – live recording) Alexei Lubimov, piano
Messe des Pauvres- (Mass for the Poor) for piano, chorus & organ (1892-1895) – Kyrie Eleison: Choeur René Duclos conducted by Jean Laforge, with Gaston Litaize, organ
Désespoir Agréable – Pleasant Despair – Jean Yves Thibaudet, piano
Petite Sonata – Sladjana Gajić, piano
Parade – ballet (excerpt) – Europa Danse
Socrate, Symphonic Drama – Part 1 – Julia Cavallaro and Charles Blandy, piano
Furnishing Music (Musique d’ameublement) – Unknown ensemble
Nocturnes 2 and 3, from 5 Nocturnes – Pascal Rogé, piano
Tendrement – sung by Régine Crespin, with Philippe Entremont, piano
Our final meeting takes place on 11 May and will focus on Iberian music and we are pleased to be welcoming back Simon Coombs to present.
Tonight, Monday 27th April, we will now have, postponed from February, Tim Rowe and Alan Doel will present: “Eric Satie: Gymnopediste!” 7:30 start as usual.
Erik Satie was born May 17, 1866, Honfleur, Calvados, France and died July 1, 1925, Paris). He was a French composer whose spare, unconventional, often witty style exerted a major influence on 20th-century music, particularly in France.
Dual presentation explores the historical role of Black musicians and breaks new ground
April 2026
The title of the presentation was Black musicians in England 1500 – 1800 which might have led you to believe a presentation tending towards the esoteric. Well, not a bit of it and Society members Rosemary Pemberton and Jeremy Barlow broke new ground with a truly interesting presentation on this topic.
What was noteworthy as the evening wore on was the degree of scholarship and research which had gone into it. After all, the subject is a little off the beaten track and the treatment of Black people during the period in question does not show Britain in a favourable light. Black people were considered a lower form of life and the slave trade was at its height by the end of the chosen period.
Rosemary got the idea she said by noticing a piece of Chelsea pottery of a Black musician probably playing an early trombone. Other pictures from that era revealed black musicians often somewhat tucked away. One well known individual was John Blanke (variously spelled) who was a trumpeter in Tudor courts including that of Henry VIII. He was thought to be the first Black musician in Britain.
A Hogarth print showing a Black trumpeter was another example. Another character was Billy Walters who busked outside the Adelphi theatre for many years with a wooden leg. His real leg was strapped up behind we were told.
An interesting fact was the role these musicians played in the army where they were used for signalling. Different melodies or riffs were played to send an order or message. One musician was attached to each squadron. Evidently, they were dressed in ‘reverse’ colours to the rest of the soldiers which did rather mark them out for enemy fire.
The arrival of more Black people in 16th Century was resented then much as some are now, the increasing numbers arriving from captured Spanish galleons.
And not forgetting the music. There were 16 pieces played during the course of the evening. Many were to illustrate particular instruments current during the period including for example the cornu, a huge curved horn.
Jeremy had brought along an unusual instrument native to Spain called the flabiol and there was video of someone playing it. A lot of wind instruments have a hole underneath to allow a change of register. This has two with one open or closed with the little finger which makes it something of a rarity and difficult to play.
There were illustrations of Turkish influence which had a big effect on western music. The recognisable beat appears in the overture to the Die Entführung aus dem Serail by Mozart to illustrate the influence.
An extraordinary character was George Bridgetower a violinist (1791?-1860). The son of an Afro-Caribbean servant and a Polish mother at the Esterhazy palace, he was a student of composer Joseph Haydn and a friend of Beethoven. Beethoven dedicated a violin sonata to him, which was so hard to play many gave up. There was a falling out with Beethoven and the sonata became known as the Kreutzer Sonata. However, he never played it and there are moves to getting it renamed as it was originally.
It was something of a revelation that so many Black musicians were around during this period. It does not counter the appalling treatment that Africans experienced during the two centuries of the triangular trade and their fearful exploitation. But it does show that now and again, talented Black people were accepted into British society.
I cannot fail to mention that one of the pieces – La Volta by Byrd – was played by the Broadside Band, the creation of non other than one of the presenters, Jeremy Barlow, described as a ‘formidable presence’ by the Folk Music Journal.
This was an exceptional evening which illuminated and brought into the light the role played, sometimes in the shadows, by Black musicians in England at that time. The evening also illustrated that learning about the history and background of music and musicians is something the Society can do which is unique locally. The presenters made great use of prints and paintings from the time to illustrate their points.
The chair of the Society, Peter Horwood, in thanking both Rosemary and Jeremy for their work and research in their presentation, noted that Black people have a prominent roles in Jazz and popular music but were less evident in the classical world. Clearly there is work still to be done. He also thanked Robin for juggling discs, YouTube clips and PowerPoint to enable the evening to go smoothly.
Peter Curbishley
The presentersRosemary and Jeremy. Jeremy is holding the flabiol in his left hand.Picture: Salisbury RMS
Our next meeting will tomorrow Monday 13th April when Rosemary Pemberton will present, with slides, a talk entitled ‘Black Musicians in Scenes of English Life, 1500-1850’. Jeremy Barlow will provide the music, with commentary.
Unfortunately our next scheduled speaker is unwell, so we will be amending the rest of this season’s programme as follows:
On Monday 27th April, we will now have, postponed from February, Tim Rowe and Alan Doel will present: “Eric Satie: Gymnopediste!”
Then our final session this season, on 11th May, we will welcome Simon Coombs who will present: “Music from the Iberian Peninsula”
We hope you had a good Easter break and that we shall see you at one or preferably more, of these evenings.
Female composers get a raw deal and few of their compositions get an airing in a musical world which until recently was very male dominated and to an extent, is still so. The Society was delighted to welcome Catherine Wilmers to give a presentation of a selection of such works and not only that, but works for the cello. She brought a cello along with her and played two of the pieces in a live performance.
Catherine (pictured) has a distinguished history having studied at the Royal Academy of Music and subsequently in Vienna. For a quarter of a century she played for the London Philharmonic Orchestra only the second woman to do so in the cello section. She has made many recordings.
Such was the prejudice against women composers that many published using only initials instead of their full name. This actually makes it harder for subsequent generations since finding out if ‘A’ Smith for example is Alexander Smith or Alexandra Smith is difficult. Detective work is often needed therefore.
Fanny Mendelssohn is well known but some of her works were published under her husband’s name. Is that plagiarism I wonder? Since a husband at that time owned his wife’s property then probably not – I digress. We heard her Fantasy in G minor written when she was 24 a quite brilliant work. Despite being a brilliant player she was not allowed to perform.
Some women did make it into the public realm one being Susan Spain-Dunk who conducted at the Proms at the time of Henry Wood only the second woman to do so.
Another interesting vignette of history was May Muckle who was the first to play the cello not ‘side-saddle’ no doubt because it was considered ‘unseemly’ to do so. We heard her Hamadryad.
The conductor Hans von Bülow was another man of that era who opposed female emancipation saying ‘women’s emancipation is hateful to me’. He did do a lot however, to promote the careers of composers like Brahms and Wagner. At that time was another famous female composer Dame Ethyl Smyth who was imprisoned for her campaigning for suffrage and was a friend of Emmeline Pankhurst . We heard an extract from her Sonata in A minor.
Altogether we listened to 14 pieces* from a range of women some of whom are sadly almost forgotten. We were extremely grateful for her presentation, the live performance of two pieces and the range of background material and anecdotes she had been able to find out about many of women she highlighted.
Peter Curbishley
Next meeting in 3 weeks on 13 April and is on black musicians in the period 1500 – 1800.
*I can scan the full list for anyone who would like it.
We are delighted to welcome the ‘cellist Catherine Wilmers to the next meeting on Monday 23 March starting at 7:30 as usual. Catherine is a professional musician and played for many years with the LPO. You can read about her on her extensive website which will also give you a flavour of the evening’s presentation.
She will focus on female composers who all too rarely appear on programmes
and in performances. It seems that Dr Johnson’s disparaging comment is still true when told about a woman preaching at a Quaker event: ‘Sir, a woman’s preaching is like a dog walking in his hind legs. It is not done well but one is surprised to see it done at all’ (Boswell).
She will focus on works for the ‘cello and piano by women composers. No doubt she will show it can be done well.
Free if it is your first visit then £5 if you come again. The next meeting is on 13 April. We are at the rear of St Ann St in the Guides Centre with free parking. Access from Carmalite Way. We finish at 9:30.
Tonight’s meeting will be on Monday 9th March at 7.30 when Peter Curbishley will be presenting “My Musical Journey – Half a century of listening””
At the following meeting on Monday 23rd March we will welcome Catherine Wilmers who will present “Works for ‘cello and piano by British women composers”
At our previous members’ evening several members expressed interest in having a copy of the play list, and of the final two YouTubes. If you would like me to send these to you, please would you respond ‘Yes please’, to this email.
We hope to welcome you to one or both of these evenings.
Our first meeting in 2026 will be on Monday 26th January at 7.30 when Ed Tinline will be presenting “With few strings attached” – a programme of music for wind ensemble.
At the following meeting on 9th February 2026, Tim Rowe and Alan Doel will be presenting “Erik Satie – Gymnopediste!”
Look forward to seeing you there. For non-members it is £5 but the first visit is free. Happy New Year to you all.
You cannot say we do not ring the changes with our presentations: the final meeting of the autumn season was no exception. Called ‘Are you sitting comfortably?’ David Davies played a range of theme tunes to favourite TV and radio programmes.
Most were familiar although trying to match the music to the programme was not always easy especially those which are no longer broadcast. Fauré for example provided the music to ‘Listen with Mother’ (and the title for the presentation) and the programme lasted from 1950 to 1982.
William Walton provided the theme for Cat & Dog and another English composer, Elgar’s Chanson de Matin for Norman and Henry Bones which ran for around 20 years on Children’s Hour and starred Charles Hawtry.
Bach was featured on another popular radio classic ‘Animal, Vegetable or Mineral’ on the radio. Surprisingly, it didn’t run for that long, only 7 years, but one of its starts was Mortimer Wheeler who did a lot to bring archaeology into the limelight.
Many may remember ‘Top of the Form’ which ran for many years. Initially, only between boys’ schools but girls came later. Sign of the times eh. Several themes were used including one by Debussy.
An extremely memorable theme, played on trumpets, is that for the Open University which introduced many lectures in the early years. Few might know it was composed by Leonard Salzedo who despite his name is another English composer albeit of Spanish descent. For those of us who were OU students at that time, it is an extremely evocative and a reminder of watching a lecture on physics say at 1 o’clock in the morning. A reminder.
Other extremely popular and familiar themes include those for the Eurovision Song Contest – in the news recently concerning Israel’s entry into the contest. Few will be able to name the composer who is in fact Charpentier and it is an extract from one of his settings of Te Deum.
Mozart provided the theme for the Horse of the Year Show another long-running favourite starting in 1949 no less. Talking of sport, ‘Nessum Dorma’ was much in evidence in the 1990 World Cup of course.
Most programmes seem to use existing music but from time to time new works are commissioned. An example is the music for Pride and Prejudice. Howard Goodall was mentioned who has a long range of credit to his name including ‘Mr Bean’ and ‘Not the Nine O’clock News’.
It is noteworthy that many themes were composed by established classical composers and it is difficult to think of much popular music used in this way. Sopranos is an exception as are some of the themes to Scandi Noir series like ‘The Bridge’.
It is almost certainly true to say that many people’s first experience of classical music is through theme tunes. Producers have gone to some trouble to select something that matches the drama and which is memorable to the viewers. Unfortunately, if you want to know who the composer was, the credits often will not mention the actual composer but whoever it was who arranged it or added incidental music. The music for ‘Tom and Jerry’ cat and mouse capers for example were heavily influenced by Bartok and Schoenberg but their names never appeared on the credits, rather Scott Bradley.
An entertaining evening and the last of the first half of our programme. We resume on 26 January 2026.
Salisbury Recorded Music Society 