Acclaimed musician Jo Arnott, who plays seven types of recorder, will perform in Gloucester and host a workshop

GLOUCESTER recorder group, the Currawong Consort, will host Gloucester’s first recorder workshop and soiree, an event initiated by the Consort in partnership with Arts Gloucester and with support from the School of Arts.

Internationally acclaimed recorder player and teacher Jo Arnott will facilitate the workshop and play at the Recorder Soiree on Saturday 29 August at 6pm.

“A few of our group attended the Australasian Recorder Festival in Armidale earlier this year and proposed the idea of a workshop in Gloucester to Jo Arnott; it grew from there,” said Jenny Lindsay, a Currawong member.

Twenty five recorder players are attending the workshop, with musicians coming from Newcastle and Sydney.

Arnott loves playing the recorder and has been performing and teaching for more than 20 years.

“I love the sound,” Arnott said. “I also love the flexibility and variety of possibilities, given that recorder players always play many different sizes and types of recorders.”

Arnott plays seven types of recorders: a Garklein, Sopranino, Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass and Contrabass Paetzold.

“I’ll be playing a few different alto recorders, three of which are tuned to different pitches. I will also play the tenor and bass, and one little piece on a soprano recorder so you know it can sound good!” Arnott told News Of The Area.

The Soiree will also include performances by the Currawong Consort and some workshop participants travelling from Sydney who will play deep-pitched recorders.

“One of the hardest aspects of playing the recorder is the lack of respect it often receives as an instrument in its own right,” Arnott said.

“It can be very discouraging hearing the things people say about recorders, and I hope to change this narrative and give the Gloucester audience some new stories to tell about recorders and their (fantastic) capabilities!”

Sydney recorder player Sandra Harrison is looking forward to the Gloucester workshop.

“Having the chance to play with other musicians is always exciting,” Harrison said.

“Sydney has an enthusiastic recorder scene and combining with other players of all levels under Jo’s leadership is an excellent way of developing skills.”

Arnott explains that facilitating a workshop is always a delicate process, as many variables can’t be known until the workshop begins.

“I love finding repertoire and looking for ways to create joy in people’s day and I love when, despite my nerves and all of the variables, people walk away having had a good time or maybe they felt inspired to play more or to join an ensemble, or they learned something new, or surprised themselves with how well they did in an unfamiliar situation,” she said.

The Recorder Soiree will be held at the CWA Hall on Saturday 29 August at 6pm and the workshop on Sunday 30 August.

For more information, go to the Arts Gloucester website www.artsgloucester.org.

By Wendy BUSWELL