Dear All
I’m hoping to be able to come along to the Wednesday rehearsals and hear how things are progressing in the run up to 15th November. If anyone would like to talk to me about anything, please feel free to catch me before or in the interval. I will have been teaching (A-level law) all day so I might not manage to stay until the very end of the evening!
Karen Mason
Chair
BSO Information:
*N.B. Further to last week’s newsletter, the venue of the extra BSO rehearsal on Friday 14th November has been confirmed:
Friday 14th Nov
7.30-9pm
Bedford Greenacre Independent School
Please note the slightly earlier finishing time to allow people to get home early. There won't be a break.
The Concert Information sheet for Nov 15th is now available. Please click the link to access it and ensure to read it carefully: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1fjGOBlWOwQtLdx748l83yv7dwX2ljOqt/view?usp=sharing
PAPER TICKETS will be available to buy from Rupert at rehearsals. Thanks so Rupert for organising and collecting them for us.
Sinfonia Information:
Message from Ian:
Rehearsals start tomorrow 4 November at Castle Newnham North Site 7.30pm.
Then 11 and 13 November also Castle Newnham North Site
Brass (trombones) will be with us for Monday 17 November. Please remember this rehearsal is at Biddenham International School at 7.15pm. This rehearsal will start with the Pehkonen.
Rehearsal order on concert day is Pehkonen, McDowall, Mendelssohn.
Unfortunately ticket sales for this concert (22 November) are DIRE. We have the composer (Cecilia McDowall) coming so it would be really good for her to see a decent audience. I know the music is not ‘familiar’ but it is all very accessible so any help players can give selling tickets would be gratefully received!
Tickets may be purchased through the choir from [email protected] or from this link www.wegottickets.com or from the Box Office.
Message from Ann for Publicity:
TICKET SALES!
With a fabulous concert planned, which is designed to appeal to all ages, this is our showcase concert to kick off the BSO season!
Except we have a problem.
We’ve only sold 140 tickets so far for 15th November - that is just over half of the tiered area in the Corn Exchange.
I need YOU to sell 10 tickets as a priority please this week, so that I don’t get any more grey hairs!
Please remind your "clients" that children go FREE - we've had very few children's tickets "sold". This is unusual - we need to make sure that people know about it.
I really want to give away Terry’s Chocolate Oranges next week. Sell 10 tickets and you’ll get one!
Book tickets here:
We can do this!
With many thanks and best wishes
Ann
PS to reply to me: [email protected]
Committee News:
Message from Jo, Treasurer:
Dear All
I’m delighted to announce that BOS has been awarded a grant of £6120 by A428 National Highways Community Fund for the purchase of two (second-hand) timpani and lids.
These will be added to the two timpani which the Society bought in the 1970’s and which are still going strong. It means that the BSO weekly rehearsals can include full timpani with our wonderful new timpanist member of the orchestra, Leo. With Leo joining the orchestra in September, having two timpani for the 2025 autumn term has really enlivened rehearsals and enriched the sound of the orchestra, so it’s very exciting to think what a difference having four timpani will make!
I also want to extend The Society’s very grateful thanks and appreciation to another wonderful friend to the Society, Chris Ridley, who is kindly searching out and advising us on suitable purchases.
In addition, I need to thank the following too:
· Danny Basford (Timpani and percussion) who was so helpful in the early stages of preparing the bid
· Tony Ploszajski who compiled and submitted the bid to Cambridgeshire Community Foundation on behalf of the Society,
· A huge thank you too to Bedford Greenacre School for very generously housing the four timpani.
We are still awaiting the outcome of another grant application to Wixamtree and I keep my fingers crossed that we will be successful in that one too.
Best wishes to all
Jo
Hon Treasurer
From Tony Ploszajski, BSO Chief Steward
Request for additional volunteer stewards for 15th November concert
We would like to recruit two more volunteer stewards for the next BSO concert. The role is very straightforward: simply being able to welcome and guide audience members to their seats as they arrive. Being a steward means that you will have free entry to the concert, but you need to be at the Corn Exchange at 6.45pm on the night for a briefing from Corn Exchange staff about safety etc, This is an ideal way for family, friends or neighbours to contribute to the success of concert nights.
If you know someone who is able to help, please could you ask them to contact Tony Ploszajski via [email protected]
From our Friends:
Concerts at St Andrew’s: Carolyn Sampson and Joseph Middleton, Saturday 8th November 2025 at St Andrew’s Church
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; as you know 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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