Tag Archives: music

Music and dancing for Queen Elizabeth

We’re just reaching the end of the merry month of May, and about to embark on a weekend of celebrations for the Platinum Anniversary of Queen Elizabeth II’s accession to the throne. Events, many of them outdoors, will be taking … Continue reading

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“This is the day!” Garrick’s Jubilee at 250

250 years ago today, on Weds 6 September 1769, David Garrick’s Shakespeare Jubilee began in Stratford-upon-Avon, the first Festival celebrating Shakespeare in the world. Even before it started there were many critics of the whole idea who were ready to … Continue reading

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Memories of Guy Woolfenden

I’ve just heard the sad news that the great Guy Woolfenden died on 15 April. For anyone who attended the Royal Shakespeare Company’s productions from the 1960s to the 1990s Guy’s music was very often the soundtrack to the play. … Continue reading

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Shakespeare at Holy Trinity Church 2016

Now we’re into April and events relating to the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare’s death are beginning in earnest. Holy Trinity Church is always a focus during the Birthday Celebrations, since Shakespeare’s grave is the final destination for everyone who joins … Continue reading

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Music and musicians at the RSC

According to the Royal Shakespeare Company’s website, Shakespeare made over 2,000 references to music, included over 400 separate musical terms, and wrote around 100 songs to be performed in his plays. Music has been an essential component of performances at … Continue reading

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“These late eclipses”: the moon, A Midsummer Night’s Dream, and happiness

On the morning of Friday 20 March the UK will experience a near-total eclipse of the sun. Even where skies are not clear, the sky will darken and we will experience a sort of twilight. The birds will fall silent until … Continue reading

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Setting Tudor-fans hearts a-fluttering: Wolf Hall and Shakespeare again

On 21 January 2015 the BBC’s 6-part adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Man Booker Prize-winning novels about Thomas Cromwell, Wolf Hall and Bring up the Bodies, begins. Jane Garvey, in Woman’s Hour, said it had “set Tudor-fans hearts a-fluttering”, and publishers … Continue reading

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Shakespeare’s marvellous sweet music

Shakespeare’s own use of music, and the many ways in which Shakespeare’s works have inspired composers in the centuries since he wrote them, are among the most recurrent subjects for this blog. And in the next few weeks there are … Continue reading

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If music be the food of love, play on! Music Notes at the RSC

Music and theatre have always been closely associated. You might not always be aware of it when you visit a theatre, but it is often created live by a team of largely unseen musicians.  The RSC, after its formation, insisted … Continue reading

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Stratford, the Shakespeare Revival and World War 1

I have on my shelves a book entitled The Shakespeare Revival: the Stratford-upon-Avon Movement, probably acquired by my father in a second-hand shop years ago.  It’s always puzzled me. The book was published in 1911, and seems to expect the … Continue reading

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