Harrow School may be all some people have ever known. Yet when Molly Harris, Olivia Jenkins and I travelled up there on Sunday to take part in the South East Schools Chamber Music Competition, accompanied by our dedicated Head of Music Mrs Cohen, we were in awe of the surreal, prehistoric lifestyle of those at Britain’s top public boarding schools.
Our bewilderment aside, this was a fantastic opportunity to perform a work that we all thoroughly enjoy, Mendelssohn’s first Konzertstüke for two clarinets and piano, in a room with spectacular acoustics.
However, the highlight was the masterclass following, where the adjudicators encouraged us to view each movement from a completely different angle and perspective from that which we had previously played. This was eye-opening, and I am looking forward to applying that to other musical areas.
What was also fascinating was to listen to the other performers. As expected, the standard was scarily high, but it was helping me to view Mendelssohn’s genius in a unique light that made this a truly special experience.
