Downside has been fortunate to have received the most extraordinary gift of 16 new pianos, providing an uplift and enhancement of its facilities for aspiring and developing pianists.
George Bevan, Head of Academic Music shares the impact this donation has made for pupils and staff.
I have always believed that if the keys go down (and up again!), then a piano is useful for practising on, certainly as far as note learning is concerned. However, there is no question that while many of the old pianos were still functional, quite a few were very tired, some having served for well over 100 years!
We have not just received one, but 16 new pianos. The first installment arrived in the latter months of 2022 and the final delivery took place in early 2023. The icing on the cake is a Steinway Model B grand piano, which now sits on stage in the Fleischner Theatre. This piano is considered the ‘industry standard’ recital piano, and any concert artist in the world would be delighted to play on it. The fact that our pupils now have access to such a remarkable instrument of this calibre is truly fantastic. They can learn from an early stage that the piano involves so much more than just pushing down the keys (see above). They will also be able to discover the wide variety of tonal colours available on such an instrument, as well as playing in such a stunning venue.
Additionally, we have five brand new Yamaha grand pianos. These can be found in the Ludlow Room (a large practice room in the Tambling Wing of the music department), the Martin recital room, the Gasquet, the Petre Cloister (where the Schola Cantorum now rehearse) and the Main Hall. Again, all of these pianos are readily available to anyone who wishes to play them and we are accustomed to frequently hearing a tune or two being played from any one of these locations throughout the day.
We have also replaced a good number of the old pianos in music department practice rooms, as well as adding rehearsal pianos in the auditorium, one of our classrooms, the Old Chapel, and the Petre Cloister; the last of these is on castors, which will allow easy movement between locations such as the Weld Café, Butler Room and Refectory as required, thus expanding the possibilities of use.
The new piano suite has also enabled us to relocate some of the better old stock elsewhere throughout the school, most notably in each Boarding House, meaning each House now has its own piano in a common room for pupils to use.
The addition of so many new pianos in so many places is set to transform the musical life of the School in numerous ways, and many of these changes are already very evident. In January we launched a new series of lunchtime concerts, known as Cloister Concerts, which have proved very popular with pupils, staff, parents and members of the local community, and when the Petre Cloister has been out of commission during exams, the Old Chapel has proved to be a very welcoming concert venue. The Petre Cloister has also proved to be an excellent venue for ABRSM exams, and indeed an inspiring one for external candidates.
The new ‘song school’ upright piano (very small so that you can see over it when you are playing) is perfect for accompanying rehearsals for the newly founded Downside Choral Society, again with staff and people from the local community who come to the Fleischner Theatre every Monday for two hours of rehearsal.
The Martin Recital Hall finally has a decent piano (the old Bluthner grand piano was made in the 1890s) and our recent diploma exams, in singing saxophone, were doubtlessly enhanced by happy accompanists (external as well as our own staff) playing a fine instrument.
Not least, the pupils are loving having pianos in their House Common Rooms. This is where so much good learning takes place, with pupils teaching each other their favourite tunes, gaining confidence in playing to each other, and simply enjoying down time at the piano have really come to fruition.
Our music department is strong, but this initiative has allowed us to do so much more in taking music into the main school, offering pupils every opportunity to play, listen to and enjoy piano music.
We are immensely grateful to all who have supported Downside over the years and who continue to do so, enabling us to enhance our facilities, as with the piano suite to better support and develop skills and passions within the School. Thank you from all at Downside.
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