Keyna
JazzFolk Concert Reviews
Geoff
Nichols and his Good Vibes Band
October
2009
This was our
first visit to a Keyna JazzFolk event. I say first, because
after such a delightful evening I’m sure we shall go again.
The venue, Camerton Hall, was easy to find and the car
parking more than adequate. We were warmly welcomed into
the hall which was informally set out with chairs around
tables. People were friendly and this friendliness extended
to offering free slices of cake during the interval. A bar
served alcoholic drinks, soft drinks and tea or coffee.
Variety was the keynote of the evening, with local group
“Three Piece Suite” opening proceedings. John Hooper
(keyboard), Helen James (guitar) and Ali Nourse (violin)
are highly entertaining and accomplished performers and
played to a hugely appreciative audience. They were
followed by Geoff Nichols and the Good Vibes Band and
indeed good vibes were produced with timeless classics such
as “Lady be good”, by George Gershwin, “Making Whoopee”,
and “Limehouse Blues”. Geoff Nichols proved to be a most
versatile musician, playing a vibraphone and several
trumpets and also singing. Again the audience roared its
approval. After the interval the tempo changed and we were
treated to 3 operatic songs, performed to a high standard
by Jennifer Rust accompanied by Kate Robey on the keyboard.
Another performance by “Three Piece Suite” followed with an
original composition by Helen James and some lively
traditional pieces. The enjoyable evening was rounded off
by further Jazz from Geoff Nichols and the Good Vibes Band.
Write up by
Mary O’Brien
Photos (with
permission) by Peter O’Brien
"H Club"
September
2009
A select group of singers from the outstanding Great
Western Chorus,
winners of the 2008 UK Barbershop
Awards.
"Off we went to Camerton
.....Drinks at the bar and a coffee for me and we sat
patiently as the hall filled with a good crowd. We were
rewarded with entertainment from eleven extremely talented
musicians, three with instruments and eight with just their
voices. Three Piece Suite gave us a superb selection of
English, Irish and even Russian folk songs and some
composed by the musicians themselves. H Club then gave us
wonderful renditions of a wide range of well known tunes.
An excellent evening!
Elemental Tumult
June
2009
A
combination of music from
Three Piece Suite,
complementing poetry and prose from
Megan Jones, Sibyl Mitchell
and Friends in a
celebration of the power of the elements. Young musician
spotlight: classical guitarist
Mikhail Asanovic
It was not until I saw the
chance of free tickets in the Show and Tell scheme that I
ever considered going to Camerton Community Hall, indeed I
have never been to Camerton! So, last Friday evening, armed
with an AA route, my daughter I went on an adventure in
what seemed to be deepest Somerset. It is not far!
Honestly! Camerton is nestled between Timsbury and Odd Down
and if you know the route, is probably about a 20 minute
drive from Keynsham.
Camerton Community Hall and is run by local volunteers and
has a licensed bar and performance space. We were warmly
welcomed at the door. The hall was laid out with tables,
nicely presented with cloths and candles and the reasonably
priced bar was open before the show. The £5 ticket also
includes free home made cake in the interval.
The show was entitled Elemental Tumult. It was a
combination of readings on the theme of Aristotle’s
elements of Earth, Fire, Air and Water with music provided
by the trio Three Piece Suite. The trio are John Hooper on
keyboards, Helen James on guitar and Ali Nourse on the
violin. Their repertoire ranged from gentle Irish folk
tunes through familiar classics and gentle jazz pieces. The
variety of genres that they were able to play meant that
everyone in the audience would have heard at least one
favourite melody, but will also have heard something which
they may not have otherwise listened to.
The audience were
very gracious and attentive for the whole show, even though
the readings were a little ambitious taking from the entire
canon of European Literature to illustrate the theme.
It seemed that many were regulars at the concerts hosted by
Three Piece Suite. This is no surprise, as the planned
concerts often include internationally acclaimed artists
and always have a “Young musician spotlight”. Mikhail
Asanovic,a guitarist based in Bathford, was the guest. He
played pieces by Villa Lobos and Django Reinhardt – this
alone was worth the entrance fee.
Check out the
website www.keyna.co.uk for the dates of future concerts
and either get out the OS map, switch on your SatNav, or
better still take a friend who knows where Camerton is and
give it a go.