Summer Concert 2022
Our Summer Concert was the first concert in the performance hall with all of our musicians since Summer 2019! The children definitely made up for lost time and performed absolutely astonishingly! The concert started with the Cleves Handbell Group who walked in playing their bells to a piece that Mr. Kilhams wrote for them. They then performed two more pieces for the first time in the concert. A special mention to Lucy and Izzy in Year 3 who were performing with the handbell group for their first time in a concert.
Following on from handbells saw the Lower School Choir perform a piece that Mr. Kilhams wrote especially for the choir a few years ago using words by a Year 6, Amelia Kinghorn. The words talk about climate change and how we can save our planet if we do the right thing. The choir sung the words extremely powerfully and moved several people in the audience to tears. A special mention to the wonderfully talented Izzy and Mischa for stepping out and soloing. It was a moving moment and Mr. Kilhams was really proud of the choir and grateful that we could finally perform it after three years. They then continued to move the audience with their rendition of True Colours.
The Cleves Orchestra is small but they make up for the size in their determination and musicianship. This was the first time we heard the school orchestra in concert for over four years. Although we will be saying goodbye to lots of Year 6s, Mr. Kilhams is hopeful that it will continue to grow and they’ll be performing in concert at Christmas. Following on from the orchestra saw four incredible Year 6 soloists take to the stage. Elizabeth Copperwheat, Eleanor Gilbert, George Martin and Nil Ada Simitchi. All performed with such perfection and as Mr Hodges said, “a way he could only dream of being able to do!” Mr. Kilhams was hugely impressed by all four soloists, it takes a lot of courage to stand up in front of all your friends and a full audience of parents and perform on their own so well done.
The last few years has been difficult for any performance to take place, understandably but one thing that did spring out of the pandemic was the Cleves ukulele group. A keen group of Year 4s came together socially distanced with Mr. Kilhams at lunchtime and learnt how to play the ukulele. Those children are at the end of Year 5 now and are still going strong. They performed two pieces, one about the three little pigs and then Scarborough Fair. Mr. Kilhams was so impressed with their performance that he is already thinking of the next songs to arrange for them! This was quickly followed by the Year 4, 5 and 6 Steel Bands under the new direction of Lizzie Gilbert. A huge well done to all three steel bands for their second performance of the year. There are spaces in the year 5 band if anyone would like to join please contact Lizzie on lizziegilbert@hotmail.com. Mr. Kilhams was also impressed with how they have learnt new repertoire so quickly, particularly La Bamba and Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho.
The concert finished with the Upper School Choir singing their hearts out for the second time in the same week! They proved to everyone that even if they have a massive concert on Monday that they can still come out and perform like they did on Thursday, no problem! They performed, with actions, Mambo Italiano, The Lion King Medley and Sing From Your Heart. All pieces from their Young Voices concert. Mr. Kilhams absolutely loved the enthusiasm in their performance and there was such a great energy. The audience were clearly impressed but the standing ovation came when they joined forces with the Lower School Choir for one last big finale, Power In Me. The room exploded with applause at the end and Mr. Hodges didn’t know if it was ever going to end.
Once again, a huge well done to all who performed.
You were all brilliant and should be immensely proud.