Following on from the live discussion between Peter Blackaby and Ruth Phillips for the London Cello Society on October 3, Ruth Phillips and Jane Fenton (who trained to become a yoga teacher with Peter) are delighted to finally be together again LIVE, through the European String Teachers' Association, sharing what they love best: The Breath! In this one-day workshop for string players, they will offer simple mindfulness and yoga-based practices that have completely transformed their own experience of practice and performance. Together they will invite you to explore the vital balance between tension and release, planning and the present moment, doing and non-doing, all through the window of this great and simple teacher within us – the inhale and the exhale. We hope you will leave the workshop feeling calmer, refreshed and more embodied, ready to re-enter your musical life with joy, ease and confidence.

The 3rd WALTHAM FOREST CELLO FEST 2021 in London You are invited to the 3rd WALTHAM FOREST CELLO FEST 2021 in London. As in previous years there will be WFCF Cello Concerts, Underground Lunchtime Recitals (in the historic Victoria Line carriage), Cello Weekend, Make Music Day and Cello Academy (all ages and abilities are welcome!). Events will be held mainly online in June 2021. Book your tickets now via Eventbrite here: https://WalthamForestCelloFest.eventbrite.com . The WFCF 2021 features cellists and young promising cello talents from Belgium, China, the Czech Republic, France, Israel, Italy, the UK and the USA. Including cellists Anna Brikciusová, František Brikcius, Yiqi Chen, Mira Kardan, Stijn Kuppens, Anna Shuttleworth (1927-2021) and George Wolfe-McGuire. Together with conductor Peter Askim, percussionist Brecht Claesen, violinist and philosopher Hugh Desmond, organist and composer Irena Kosíková, conductor Jan Talich, Talich Chamber Orchestra, soprano Nofar Yacobi and narrator Jan Židlický. WCFC begins with a CELLO WEEKEND (Saturday 5th - Sunday 6th June): INDIVIDUAL MASTER CLASSES, two CELLO WEBINARS, CELLO RECITAL - INNER CELLO, interactive online INTERPRETATION MASTERCLASS, three CELLO LAUREATES, introduction to THE CELLO MUSEUM - INNOVATIONS IN CELLO-MAKING MATERIALS, REMEMBERING ANNA SHUTTLEWORTH and music documentary film MAKANNA. Other events will include virtual poetry reading SAVE THE QUEEN (Saturday 12th June), CELLO RECITALS (Sunday 13th and Sunday 20th June), MUSICAL SOLIDARITY PROJECT (Saturday 19th June), MAKE MUSIC DAY (Monday 21st June) and ORGAN RECITAL (Saturday 26th June). WFCF is following in the tradition of previous UNDERGROUND LUNCHTIME RECITALS (Sunday 27th June) in the Walthamstow Pumphouse Museum's historic Victoria Line Carriage. For the second time Waltham Forest Cello Fest will hold a CELLO ACADEMY (26th July - 1st August) of online summer cello master classes. Most online events are followed by a Q&A. Please put your questions in the comments or an email. WALTHAM FOREST CELLO FEST was created in 2019 as a cello celebration of the communities in Waltham Forest the first ever Mayor’s London Borough of Culture. The WFCF is supported by Make It Happen - London Borough of Waltham Forest. For the latest news follow WFCF on Twitter (@WFCelloFest), Facebook and Instagram (@WalthamForestCelloFest) and visit https://www.Brikcius.com/WalthamForestCelloFest .

World renowned cellist Andrew Shulman performs Beethoven cello sonatas no. 4 and no. 5 with brilliant pianist Fabio Bidini. Andrew was principal cello with the Philharmonia, Academy of St. Martin's and Los Angeles Philharmonic, recorded 26 albums with the Britten Quartet and has played as soloist with the London Chamber Orchestra, LA Chamber Orchestra, LA Philharmonic and the Philharmonia Orchestra. Fabio Bidini has performed as concerto soloist with the LSO at the Barbican and the Philharmonia at the Royal Festival Hall. He is also a professor at the Colburn School, as is Andrew at USC. Andrew and Fabio also work together in Los Angeles Piano Trio. Hennessey Brown Music provides you with a chance to attend a virtual event from the comfort and safety of your own home. You can ask questions in a Zoom Room to the musicians before the concert. Then you will be given access to YouTube for a beautiful concert directly from Los Angeles. Andrew and Fabio perform Beethoven's last cello sonatas numbers 4 and 5. High quality audio and video guaranteed. You can watch the YouTube concert from 19.30 [GMT, UTC] and it's yours to keep.

Building on her praised debut album 'Long Story Short', Shirley extends her trio to a sextet, and presents a new programme drawing on the evocative world of Middle Eastern melodies, dance grooves and jazz improvisation. Acknowledged as one of the UK's most versatile and creative cellists, Shirley Smart is equally at home and well versed in jazz, folk, Middle Eastern and World Music. Building on her acclaimed debut album 'Long Story Short', she now extends her trio to a sextet, and presents a new programme drawing on the evocative world of Middle Eastern melodies, dance grooves and jazz improvisation. Long influenced by Israeli bassist Omer Avital, her music aims to bring these two worlds together and explore the world between. She is joined by a line-up of some of London’s leading jazz musicians, all of whom also have shared interests in music from around the world, and their intersections with jazz. Promo Video : https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=84Ib6gGEH-g LINE - UP Shirley Smart – Cello Tim Quicke – Trumpet James Arben – Tenor Sax/Flute John Crawford – Piano Liran Donin – Bass Demi Garcia Sabat – Drums/Percussion Originally trained under Raphael Wallfisch at the Guildhall School of Music and Janos Starker in Paris. Shirley subsequently moved to Jerusalem where she where she studied and performed and absorbed the rich and overlapping worlds of North African, Arabic, Turkish and Balkan music as well as jazz, working with some of the regions leading artists, including Avishai Cohen, Omer Avital, Khaled Jubran, Sabreen and Yasmin Levy. She has worked with many leading jazz and World Music artists, including Antonio Forcione, Mulato Astatke, Gilad Atzmon, Issie Barratt’s ‘Interchange’, Neil Cowley, Robert Mitchell and Alice Zawadzki. Her debut album ‘Long Story Short’, released in 2018, was critically acclaimed, and she has since performed at festivals around the UK and Europe, including the London Jazz Festival, and Vivacello, Moscow. Highlights in 2020 included Biennale Festival at Bimhuis, Amsterdam, Birmingham Jazz Festival and a UK tour.

Make your way to the mountains near Granada for an unforgettable week of music-making in the company of other cellists. Your tutors will be Bernard Gregor Smith, founder member of the Lindsay String Quartet, and co-teacher Helen Downham. This week will be ideal for you if you play the cello to Grade 8 + standard, and would like to work on technique, specific repertoire and interpretation in an inspiring environment. The week’s programme will include individual tuition, masterclasses, practice time, cello ensemble playing, rehearsing with an accompanist and even music-making in the local bar. And of course, a concert by students and teachers with a party on the final evening. In addition there will be time to explore the Alpujarra and to visit the historic city of Granada. The Cello School is based at Casa Ana, a guest house and creative retreat centre in the peaceful Alpujarra village of Ferreirola. Casa Ana is known for its stylish and comfortable accommodation, fabulous cooking and stunning views of the Trevelez river gorge and the mountains beyond.

Jenny Curtis once again introduces cellists to works transcribed or originally written for cellos in anything from three to eight parts. There’ll be the usual gentle encouragement and enjoyment, and we’ll work hard together in order to improve technique and gain insight into issues of interpretation. Jenny will specify the music and allocate the parts - suitable to your level of playing - well in advance, so we advise you to apply as early as possible so that you arrive well prepared. Resident: £420 Non-Resident: £320

Jenny will lead the course in such a way as to encourage cellists to gain confidence in performing in front of the other members of the course. We will explore technical issues together with appropriate exercises and we will practise strategies and techniques of performance with an accompanist. The atmosphere of the course will be one of support and encouragement. It will be a great opportunity to spend more time on the demands of solo performing, how to prepare for exams and how to manage the psychology of performing. Resident: £420 Non-Resident: £320