OXFORD FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS
“The Arts are essential to humanity - something that Magdalen College School recognises in every aspect, and is the reason this festival was founded in 2008. Since then Oxford Festival of the Arts has grown in scope, duration and artistic ambition. It is my great privilege to have been directing this festival since 2019.“
#OFAvirtual
To say I am thrilled is an understatement. This is where the beautiful thing called camaraderie comes into its own. The enthusiasm and willingness to work together and try out new things has just been fantastic. I believe in relationships, partnership and creating marvellous things together; and I implicitly trust what has been my loyal friend, ally, refuge and companion, throughout my life - the Arts. I cannot thank my friends and colleagues enough. We have had endless hours of sparkling conversation to find ways to be with our brilliant audiences, in this “new reality” we are living in. There is a great sadness and uncertainty in the world right now. I hope #OFAvirtual will bring everyone joy, excitement, fascination, insight, “welling up” and fun. It was certainly an extraordinary ride to create this! And, I could not be prouder than to open the festival with my wonderful friend and compatriot with the molten gold voice, Joseph Calleja!
I have tried to capture all art forms usually represented within the Oxford Festival of the Arts and discussions ranging from politics to goddesses. I must once again thank the generosity and willingness of everyone to venture together into this new world. There has been a #ourworldwithout going round on social media. Could you ever imagine our world without the Arts? We are also eternally grateful to all our donors, sponsors and partners who have helped us financially or otherwise to support freelance artists and creatives and make #OFAvirtual possible, in particular Magdalen College School.
It has been a joy to create and curate this with you all! I should have said this will all be free to watch and listen to on various platforms. Please do follow us, share, retweet, comment, watch with us… let us try to go round the world by going digital.
Joseph Calleja
Blessed with a golden-age voice that routinely inspires comparisons to “legendary singers from earlier eras: Jussi Björling, Beniamino Gigli, even Enrico Caruso” (Associated Press), Maltese-born Joseph Calleja has quickly become one of the most acclaimed and sought-after tenors of today. His expansive discography and frequent appearances on the world’s leading opera and concert stages prompted NPR to hail him as “arguably today’s finest lyric tenor,” and led to his being voted Gramophone magazine’s 2012 Artist of the Year. A Grammy-nominated recording artist for Decca Classics, he has released five solo albums for the label. Joseph Calleja has recorded two arias especially for #OFAvirtual which will be combined with other previous aria performances.
ORA Singers - TALLIS: a Reflection
The award-winning vocal ensemble pays a modern-day tribute to perhaps the greatest English composer of Tudor times, Thomas Tallis.
ORA Singers celebrates his brilliance with a programme of some of his most sublime works, alongside the group’s trademark reflection pieces from modern composers.
Speakers included Suzi Digby, together with Sir James MacMillan, as well as composers Harry Escott and Richard Allain, discussing their contemporary reflections.
The evening culminated with an exclusive snippet from the group’s soon-to-be released recording of Thomas Tallis’ iconic Spem in alium, and the new 40-part commission - James MacMillan’s Vidi Aquam, as a reflection on Spem.
Dr Janina Ramirez
What Goddesses?: Rediscovering Divine Women of the Past
Dr Janina Ramirez is a cultural historian, broadcaster and author based at the University of Oxford and with a passion for communicating ideas about the past. As well as her teaching she is a regular contributor on television, radio, in publications and on new media.
Janina’s research began with a degree in English literature at Oxford, followed by an MA and PhD at the Centre for Medieval Studies in York on the art, literature and culture of Anglo-Saxon England. Her interests have constantly branched outwards in all directions embracing everything from classical architecture to the work of Tracey Emin.
Gabriella Swallow
a tribute to Jacqueline du Pré
Gabriella Swallow has emerged as one of the most versatile and exciting cellists of her generation. She studied at The Royal College of Music and was awarded the coveted Tagore Gold Medal. Gabriella performed Hugh Wood’s Cello Concerto in her final year after winning the concerto competition.
As a soloist Gabriella went on to make her South Bank debut with the London Sinfonietta in the world premiere of About Water by Mark-Anthony Turnage. In the same year she performed Paul Max Edlin’s Cello Concerto with the South Bank Sinfonia, which firmly launched her place as a leading performer of contemporary music. This has led her to commission and work with many of the major living composers of today.
Programme:
J. S. Bach Suite for unaccompanied violoncello No. 1 in G major, BWV 1007
Martin Bussey Soul Song from Mary Pieces (world premiere)
Alison Berry Takotsubo (world premiere)
Kaija Saariaho Spins and Spells
Alleyne Dance
Alleyne Dance was founded in 2014 by sisters Kristina and Sadé Alleyne. Their aesthetic reflects their diverse background of athleticism and dance training. AD blends African- Caribbean, Hip Hop, Kathak, Latin and Circus Skills within a contemporary dance context.
Their movement is fast-paced and dynamic with infusions of lyrical and fluid motion, with a focus on rhythms and textures. Over the past five years they have built and developed the company, striving for high quality and excellence as they deliver their two main objectives; performance and education work. In this video we will see excerpts from their works A Night’s Game and The Other Side of Me.
Powerful. Poignant. Intimate. Beautiful.
The Easy Rollers
Drop me off in Harlem
Taking you back to the roaring 20s, The Easy Rollers is a seven-piece jazz band specialising in music from the speakeasy bars of the Prohibition era. The show is a snapshot of The Jazz Age (1920-1933) and The Swing Era (1933–1947) with theatrical interludes, popular dance styles of the time and some of the finest jazz this side of the Atlantic. With the music as the main focus, it features a cabaret-style performance with songs strung together with theatrical, factual or musical segues, offering audiences an authentic underground speakeasy experience and the opportunity to discover more about the post-prohibition era and jazz during the Great Depression.
The line up: Dani Sicari – Voice; Alex Hill – Piano; Tom Sharp – Trumpet; Jamie Stockbridge – Saxophone & Clarinet; James Girling – Electric Guitar; Al Simpson – Double Bass
Emma Ridgway, Chief Curator at Modern Art Oxford
Citizen of the Universe is curated by Emma Ridgway (Modern Art Oxford) and Vibece Salthe (Stavanger Art Museum). The exhibition is organised in partnership with Stavanger Art Museum, Norway where it will be on display from 16 October 2020 – 31 January 2021. Ruth Asawa: Citizen of the Universe is made possible through support from the Terra Foundation for American Art. Primary research has been supported by a Jonathan Ruffer Curatorial Research Grant from Art Fund.
For the full credits and acknowledgments to accompany this talk please click here
Ruth Asawa: Citizen of the Universe
The first major exhibition of Asawa’s work outside the USA, Ruth Asawa: Citizen of the Universe takes a unique look at the visionary artist, educator and activist Ruth Asawa (b. 1926, Norwalk, CA – d. 2013, San Francisco, CA). Asawa called for an inclusive and revolutionary vision for art’s role in society. As a teenager, she lived in an internment camp due to the forced relocation and incarceration for some 120,000 Japanese-Americans by the US government on the eve of World War II. Despite the extreme conditions she learned artistic skills from professional artists and left in the firm belief that art can be life-changing and a positive force for social good. As a result of her experiences at Black Mountain College, Asawa recognised that people can choose to transcend race, class and nationalistic divisions.
Emma Ridgway has been leading the artistic programme of exhibitions and learning at the Modern Art Oxford since 2015. Previously she was a curator in London at the Barbican, The Royal Society of Arts, Serpentine Gallery, and Khoj International Artists Association, New Delhi. She has degrees in fine art, art history and curating contemporary art from Goldsmiths and The Royal College of Art in London and is a Clore Cultural Leadership Fellow.
Maureen Galea
Maureen Galea graduated from the University of Malta and was awarded a scholarship by the Italian Government, to further her studies at the Conservatorio ‘L. Cherubini’ in Florence. She has a PhD by Performance, her chosen area of research being performance and editing of music by Bohemian composers. During this time, she was under the guidance of renowned Czech specialist, Radoslav Kvapil. Maureen has been a prizewinner in several competitions and has performed in many concerts as a soloist, in chamber groups, and as accompanist. She is currently an associate piano tutor and accompanist at the University of Surrey and also teaches piano at the Royal Grammar School.
Programme (Beethoven250):
Sonata Op. 10 n. 1 in C minor
Sonata Pathétique Op. 13 in C minor
Fantasie Op. 77
Suzannah Lipscomb
Women, Sex and Power in the Sixteenth Century
Professor Suzannah Lipscomb historian, academic, author and broacaster presenting a live Zoom Chat to give fascinating insight into the life of women in Tudor times. Suzannah has written and presented extensively on Tudor England, with books including 1536: The Year that Changed Henry VIII and A Visitor’s Companion to Tudor England. She has appeared extensively on television, having written and presented 18 documentaries for the BBC, Channel 5, National Geographic and others. She currently holds a personal chair as Professor of History at the University of Roehampton.
Suzannah Lipscomb explored why many of the women who ever lived left no trace of their existence on the record of history. She delved into stories from the archives to reveal the details of real women’s lives, exploring how they navigated power in the sixteenth century.
Anneliese Dodds MP in conversation with Rob Watson BBC Political Correspondent
Discussing matters such as: COVID-19, the European Union, the future of the Arts, the future of education, equality and diversity, the future of the Creative Industries, and what might a new future under a Labour government look like.
The Living Room Gig: Zoë Gilby & Andy Champion
Winner of Parliamentary Jazz Awards Jazz Vocalist Of The Year 2019, Zoë Gilby has teamed up with her husband, the innovative and powerful double bassist Andy Champion for a voice and double bass duo coming directly from their home to yours! They’re calling it The Living Room Gig and they will be performing a set of contemporary covers and jazz standards with a twist, adapting their unique sound of just voice and double bass to fill the atmosphere with smooth jazz which you can enjoy wherever it suits you.
This exceptional pairing creates an electrifying soundscape breathing fresh life into the familiar, as well as heading off to the unchartered. Their approach is bold, hypnotic and mesmerizing, removing boundaries, exploring space and time with just voice and double bass.
Talking Tallis
A celebration of the work of Thomas Tallis including discussions and historical considerations of his place in the canon of Tudor composers.
Speakers included Tallis and Byrd scholar Kerry McCarthy (whose new book on Thomas Tallis will be out this summer), educator, composer and conductor, Peter Gritton (who will be sharing exciting architectural discoveries within the score), and insight from Sir James MacMillan himself, on his new work for 40 voices commission by ORA Singers, in conversation with ORA Singers artistic director, Suzi Digby.
The original conference convenors and some of the speakers in this "premiere" were there to answer questions.
Exclusive preview excerpts from ORA Singers’ latest album s Vidi Aquam – a new commission for 40 voices, as a reflection of Tallis’ monumental Spem in alium.
Creation Theatre explore the Henry VIII play
In Shakespeare and Fletcher’s play, Henry VIII, also known as All is True, the stars of Tudor history begin to fall, one by one. First Henry’s queen, Katherine of Aragon, tumbles from grace; then his beloved advisor, Cardinal Wolsey, loses his grasp on power. Will Henry himself be next?
A live hour-long exploration of this rarely staged history play, perhaps now best remembered as the play which was being performed when the Globe theatre caught fire in 1613. The live performance ended with a short Q&A session and discussion on Zoom; whilst the recording is accompanied by commentary from Laura Wright, Lecturer in English at Brasenose College, Oxford. The play may be called All is True but such a title only begs the question: is it?
With thanks to TORCH (The Oxford Research Centre in the Humanities)
Patricia Lovett
Calligraphy
Patricia Lovett MBE is a world-renowned scribe and illuminator who has taught and lectured at many prestigious institutions in the UK and abroad including the British Library, the Fitzwilliam Museum, Harvard, the National Library of New Zealand, and London, Birmingham, and Durham Universities amongst others.
Patricia is master of beautiful illumination and intricate work, such as the exquisite illuminated replica she created of what is believed to be the Book of Common Prayer of Thomas Cromwell’s family for the BBC adaptation of Hilary Mantel’s Wolf Hall. She is author of many books, and her work was also exhibited in the extraordinary Anglo-Saxon exhibition at the British Library in 2019.
In this video Patricia will explain how she chooses the paper or vellum, the range of calligraphy pens and nibs and how to use them, inks and paint, the ‘three golden rules’, and focus on the italics script.
MCS Musical Moments
On the last day of term, we presented a selection of performances from staff and pupils of Magdalen College School to celebrate the end of Trinity Term. It includes a wide range of musical genres, styles, and interpretations, as well as new compositions, and shows off what happens in at a school like MCS, despite lockdown. It is a place where creativity flourishes, because it is at the core of the school’s ethos. A high-flying academic institution with a fully-rounded education based on experiencing all the world has to offer. A school resilient since 1480, with former pupils including scholars, war heroes, musicians, Olympians, a Nobel Prize laureate, a Hollywood film director, and a saint!
National Youth Jazz Orchestra
A partnership with the National Youth Jazz Orchestra (NYJO) for workshops in Jazz Fundamentals with their Associate Educator Vij Prakash. Vij is an experienced trombonist and composer and will be teaching elements including groove, playing by ear and improvisation.
Sessions in the morning for <16
Young Professionals (16-25) in the afternoon,
Tudor Cookery with Alexis Thompson
Strawberye: The original recipe from the Harley Manuscript 279 (from the feast section in the Boke of Kokery, c. 1430-40.
Cxxiij. Strawberye.—Take Strawberys, & waysshe hem in tyme of ȝere in gode red wyne; þan strayne þorwe a cloþe, & do hem in a potte with gode Almaunde mylke, a-lay it with Amyndoun oþer with þe flowre of Rys, & make it chargeaunt and lat it boyle, and do þer-in Roysonys of coraunce, Safroun, Pepir, Sugre grete plente, pouder Gyngere, Canel, Galyngale; poynte it with Vynegre, & a lytil whyte grece put þer-to; coloure it with Alkenade, & droppe it a-bowte, plante it with þe graynys of Pome-garnad, & þan serue it forth.
A Festival Blessing
Magdalen College Choir
It seemed appropriate to bring the festival to a close with a blessing together with our partners at Magdalen College Oxford.
The Choir of Magdalen College, Oxford marks the end of the year for the University and Magdalen College School with a presentation including extracts from their Virtual May Morning, which saw this 500-year-old Oxford tradition in a new digital format for 2020.
Mark Williams, Informator Choristarum will reflect on the changes and challenges for a choir accustomed to singing daily services, and the Dean of Divinity at Magdalen College will offer some prayers.
Today… in 1520. THE FIELD OF CLOTH OF GOLD
We could not have our Field Of Cloth of Gold lavish celebration on our own glorious grounds this year; but, we shall still be feasting with splendid events for 18 days, just as would have happened at Calais in 1520. Every day, Tudor scholar and FOCOG specialist Glenn Richardson, Professor of Early Modern History at St Mary’s University, London, explains what was happening 500 years ago as Henry VIII and Francis I met for this lavish international relations event.
OXFORD FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS 2020
inspired by the Field of Cloth of Gold
As I am writing this, a cloud of uncertainly hangs over all of us. We are ploughing ahead – and everything is in place for a festival that was set to be our richest, most engaging yet. The arts, and culture in general, have this glorious way of interceding in times like these. I am writing this from home, excitement perhaps waning… but positivity remaining strong. I am writing this to you all just underneath a tapestry that hangs over my piano, which I love so much – The Lady and the Unicorn (‘Hearing’). Isn’t it beautiful that alongside the five ‘Sense’ tapestries, the sixth tapestry in this exquisite series of mediaeval tapestries is dedicated to desire? What would we all desire for now? Woven over 500 years ago, these works of art are yet another example of how Art remains strong when everything else around us fails. Art somehow manages to speak differently and collectively to each and every one of us, has done so throughout history – and still does. One need only mention the Christmas Truce which brought ceasefire and peace, if only for Christmas Eve, in the First World War; the incredible Baltic Chain for Freedom when two million people in the Baltic created a human 675 kilometre chain of people holding hands and singing across the borders of Latvia, Estonia and Lithuania; or, the West-Eastern Divan orchestra which, to date, still brings Palestine and Israel together, defying fierce political divides in the Middle East, creating a “space” where all differences are forgotten and something new and beautiful is created by making music together. We cannot hold hands today, but we shall tomorrow; and we will most certainly share the richness and beauty of the arts evermore.
500 years ago was also when the magnificent feast of the Field of Cloth of Gold took place. This was the inspiration behind this year’s festival: lavish manifestations of grandeur, feasting and splendour, everything Tudor, historical richness, significant anniversaries, international relations, peace, and gold! For this momentous anniversary, it had seemed appropriate to fully embrace our wonderful city of Oxford and all its historical connections with the city’s festival of the arts becoming a colourful canvas for its greatest celebration to date.
The arts will remain alive. There are a thousand golden threads woven through this year’s programme and we will find a way of sharing this. I shall sign off by saying once more that the Arts are essential to humanity. Magdalen College School, Oxford recognises this in every aspect, which is why the festival is an integral part of its fabric. It is a delight and an absolute privilege to be part of the MCS family; and I promise the festival will do its utmost to still reach you in different ways, no matter what.
OXFORD FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS 2019
CONNECTIONS: ACROSS THE ARTS | WITH THE PAST | BETWEEN CULTURES
“Learn how to see. Realise that everythingconnects to everything else.” Leonardo da Vinci
I am very proud to unveil Oxford Festival of the Arts 2019: CONNECTIONS – a kaleidoscopic whirlwind of events, performances and experiences in this marvellous city in summer. From an orchestra appearing in the streets to immersive opera, and the spectacular Ronnie Scott’s Big Band to improv on a bus, there is literally something for everyone. Speakers range from extraordinary artistic designer Tom Piper, to the glitz and glamour of Anton du Beke! A phenomenal array of exquisite music performances includes some of the world’s foremost exponents of classical music as well as a world première based on the diaries of Frida Kahlo.
Artefacts and displays contextualise the events, exciting collaborations enrich the programme, whilst MCS performances pepper the Festival throughout. Learning and participation activities as well as events for the family underpin the ethos of the Festival. The Festival is also delving into different artforms and embracing a couple of “let your hair down” evenings. Our everpopular outdoor “bring a picnic and a blanket” film screenings will once again be taking place on the field, and I strongly recommend buying your tickets early for the fantastic lineup for this year’s Comedy Night!
Art is not simply a commentator. I believe that artists have a duty and responsibility to be proactive about what is happening in the world. The Festival therefore does not shy away from unforgiving realities, as shown in Child Migrant Stories, for example.
I invite you to browse through our brochure with your pens and diaries and join us on this thrilling journey, discovering connections across the arts, with the past and between cultures. Finally, a massive thank you to sponsors and funders, as well as our partners and collaborators, without whom the programme would not have been so rich and exciting – or so much fun to create! Let us enjoy the sun with afternoon teas and champagne in the gorgeous Rose Garden at the Festival Hub at Magdalen College School. I look forward to welcoming you to #OFA2019!