Programmes
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Sense & Musicality
‘Sense and Musicality’ we describe as the love story of Jane Austen and music. It explores the importance of music in her life, and her relationship with it. It includes music she played and sang herself (some being scores found in the Austen family music albums, often in her own hand) as well as music and composers mentioned or alluded to in her novels. Also included are pieces from the soundtracks of much loved screen adaptations, quotes from her writing, as well as extracts from letters between Jane and family members, most often her beloved sister Cassandra.
All programmes feature 'Ode to Pity’, a brand new composition by Donna McKevitt, commissioned especially for us. It is a musical setting of Austen’s teenage poem (1793) which appears to playfully mock the earnest grandeur of 18th century literary conventions.
Donna has been inspired by this and the folk music Jane would have heard at the time, to create a song the young author might have enjoyed singing herself. Musical settings of Austen’s poetry are extremely rare and there appear to be none currently performed or recorded in the English Song repertoire. This commission aims to change this in celebration of her 250th anniversary, and may also be the first contemporary music written especially for square piano. A series of videos on the making of this track are available to watch on YouTube shorts here.
A Musical Kind of Little Wilderness
By placing her writing desk by the window in Chawton Cottage, Jane puts herself at the border between two worlds: indoors and out. In this programme, we take a musical jaunt on the wild side, exploring Jane's use of the outdoors in her work, and her apparent preference for a little 'wilderness' in landscape, music and literature, particularly in Pride & Prejudice! Starting in the garden we journey north throughout the programme, to increasingly romantic and wild territory. Seamlessly blending scholarship with entertainment, this performance celebrates domestic music of the Regency and beyond, and focusses on Jane's love of folk music, particularly Scottish. Featuring voice, piano, flute and percussion, this varied programme includes some of Jane's favourite songs, our commission 'Ode to Pity', traditional tunes Jane might have heard, sung or danced to, poetry, extracts from her works and letters, and themes from TV/film.
Jane Austen's Christmas Gaiety
"This is quite the season indeed for friendly meetings!" This programme is a warm and festive hour of music, readings and merry making, to transport you back to a Regency drawing room at Christmas. We explore the landscape of a Regency era Christmas with poetry, diary entries, extracts from Janes' letters and novels, festive pieces from her family music collection and carols she would have known. This thoroughly researched programme is a Christmas gift for fans of music, history and literature! This programme may also be adapted to include audience carols!