Dear All
Thank you (I think!) for appointing me as Chair and to Ann for persuading me / twisting my arm! The last time I took on the role it had been vacant for 18 months and then we were almost immediately locked down so it will be lovely to have a handover from Ann this time and to work with the orchestras and committee in more usual circumstances.
I won’t be playing unless needed and invited so won’t be at many rehearsals, but I will be there at the start this week to say hello and allow those who don’t know me to put a face to a name.
Looking forward to seeing many of you then…
Karen Mason
Chair
BSO Information:
Message from Bjorn:
REHEARSAL WEDNESDAY 15th October
19:30 Mussorgsky
20:00 till end Mendelssohn Midsummer complete
Sinfonia Information:
Malcolm Arnold Festival in Northampton
SINFONIA REHEARSALS THIS WEEK
October 14th and 16th
7.30-9.45pm
Location: Castle Newnham Polhill site
We wish Sinfonia all the best for their concert this coming weekend and the final rehearsals this week!
Message from Ian:
N.B. The Concert is in Northampton is on Sunday 19th Oct - please note there is a rehearsal before the morning concert. Full details have been distributed via the Concert Information sheet. Please collect a paper copy at the rehearsal.
Section Leaders: please ensure that all your Section have this information.
For those wishing to go to the concert, here’s the link to get your tickets: https://www.malcolmarnoldfestival.com/
Message from Ann for Publicity:
It’s full steam ahead now for selling tickets for the Season! I’m delighted to report that we have sold 18 full Season Tickets plus a number of single tickets for our BSO November concert. Our target is to sell 100 full Season tickets, which would give us a fabulous head start to the season! So we’re making good progress, with three weeks to go, let’s give it a final push!
Check it out for your family and friends here: https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/bedfordshire-orchestral-society
A couple of things to keep in mind:
- Please note that we are aiming to sell out in advance of our concerts this year and will not be advertising tickets for sale on the door. There may be one or two tickets available on the day, but we are intending for pre-paid to become the norm. Some paper tickets will be available to buy at rehearsals through Rupert Adams.
- 18 and under are free, but you still must “buy” a ticket to reserve the place!
Remember we expect each musician playing to sell 10 tickets per concert, so this is a great way to get ahead of the game!
Best wishes
Ann
PS to reply to me: [email protected]
Committee News:
Message from Jo, Treasurer:
Thank you so much to everyone who has paid their subscription to BOS for 25-26. Nearly all BSO members have paid or have arranged monthly payments and completed membership and gift aid forms so that we can increase their contribution by 25%. A huge thank you too to all those who were able to add an additional voluntary donation to BOS. Added together, it’s really making a difference to the Society’s financial viability. And thank you too to those who only play in Sinfonia but who have generously made a voluntary contribution to the Society.
It is very much appreciated and it means that we can be increasingly optimistic about the future of the orchestra.
We’ve also been the recipient of very generous gifts from our supporters and non-playing Members. We are very grateful for your support.
If you or someone you know would like to make a donation, you can either get in touch with me, Jo [email protected] so that she can send you our bank details and a gift aid form or you can make a donation via our website link: https://bedfordsymphony.com/sponsorship/
Possibly this is too much information, but I’m delighted to say that I managed to penetrate the labyrinth of HMRC and the Society has received £927 in Gift Aid for the 23-24 subscriptions. I hope to follow up with the 24-25 subscriptions soon!
If you haven’t yet joined the Society as a member or would like to make an additional donation, please feel free to contact me at [email protected] and I can supply the Society’s bank details and options for payment.
A heartfelt thanks to you all.
Jo
From our Friends:
Concerts at St Andrew’s: Carolyn Sampson and Joseph Middleton, Saturday 8th November 2025 at St Andrew’s Church
Carolyn, who is our soloist in May 2026, is performing in Bedford in November at a very special recital to commemorate that 20th anniversary of the Concerts At St Andrew's series.
Tickets are selling very quickly, as you'd expect...
The concert is going to be preceded at 6.45pm by a Q&A session, with Ian Smith leading the discussion and Carolyn, Joseph and the composer Deborah Pritchard contributing.
The performance will begin at 7.30pm. Sir Roger Wright will provide some introductions. The evening will include music by Bach, Britten, Poulenc and Purcell. Joseph will perform Erik Satie to show off the piano; the St Andrew's Church Choir will also sing. There will be the world premiere of a new song cycle by Deborah Pritchard, featuring settings of poems by John Clare, Siegfried Sassoon and Emily Dickinson among others.
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