1. Jig
2. Ostinato
3. Intermezzo
4. Finale (The Dargason)

The British composer Gustav Holst is known today mainly for his massive suite The Planets – one of the most performed of all orchestral works.  He also wrote smaller pieces, not least among them being the cheerful St. Paul’s Suite, which was completed shortly before the outbreak of the First World War.

As well as having a busy career as a performer (on the trombone), composer and conductor, Holst was a great believer in teaching, and he had a long-standing relationship with St Paul’s Girls School in Hammersmith.  This Suite and a companion piece, the Brook Green Suite were both written for the pupils at St Paul’s, and he had previously also composed for the girls of James Allen’s School in Dulwich.  Holst took pains not to write down for his intended young performers, and these works are full of delightful intricacies.  The St. Paul’s Suite is in four movements, whose titles are self-explanatory; Holst used a number of familiar folk tunes, combined with his own original material, and the work as the whole comes to a grand climax at the end of the lively Dargason.

Born in 1928, the Italian composer Ennio Morricone has composed hundreds of film scores since transitioning from a jazz trumpet career in the 1940s.
Some notable scores include Cinema Paradiso, Bertolucci’s 1900, Franco Zeferilli’s Hamlet (with Mel Gibson), Warren Beatty’s Bulworth, and In the Line of Fire with Clint Eastwood and John Malkovich. The Mission was a 1986 film starring Jeremy Irons and Robert De Niro, scored by Morricone.

With a background of the conflict between European conquest in 1700s South America, the young priest Father Gabriel (Irons) is sent to replace the recently martyred missionary, the denouement of which was being thrown, tied to a crucifix, over a massive waterfall.

In the jungle, perilously surrounded by hidden warriors, Father Gabriel begins to play the oboe he has brought with him. Haltingly at first, a musical theme emerges and now known to concert audiences as Gabriel’s Oboe. Despite Father Gabriel’s gentle hearts and minds approach to the tribe, the film is ultimately a tragedy.

Commercially speaking, The Mission was not exceptionally successful, but it has continued to resonate, and its score was widely recognised – it was nominated for an Oscar and awarded a BAFTA award for Best Film Music in 1987. Morricone’s output also includes music for the concert hall, including chamber music – it is possible to see the two sides of the output informing each other.

Violin 1
Simon Blendis
Nicoline Kraamwinkel
Martin Smith
Julia Loucks
Ed Bale

Violin 2
Gemma Sharples
Ann Criscuolo
Jeremy Metcalfe
Jayne Spencer

Viola
Judith Busbridge
Oliver Wilson
Joe Ichinose

Cello
Ella Rundle
Sarah Butcher

Double Bass
Catherine Elliott

Oboe
Gareth Hulse
Katie Clemmow

Horn
Jonathan Williams
Martin Grainger

Simon joined LMP as leader in 2014. He was a member of the Schubert Ensemble for twenty-three years, from 1995 until the group retired in 2018, leaving a legacy of over 80 commissions, 25 CD recordings and a large library of live performances on YouTube.

Simon is in demand as a guest-leader and has appeared in this role with most of the UK‘s major orchestras. He has also appeared as a guest-director with orchestras such as the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Scottish Ensemble. Since 1999 he has shared the position of leader of Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa in Japan, with whom he has recorded Vivaldi‘s Four Seasons for the Warner label. As a soloist he has appeared with orchestras including the Philharmonia Orchestra, the RPO and the CBSO.

During the Coronavirus lockdowns Simon spent time researching the light music legacy of legendary violinist Max Jaffa. The resulting CD of 25 lost or forgotten gems from this archive, entitled Love is Like a Violin, was released in July 2022 to critical acclaim, and has already garnered over 4 million streams.

Increasingly sought after as a teacher, Simon is a professor of violin at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama.

Simon joined LMP as leader in 2014. He was a member of the Schubert Ensemble for twenty-three years, from 1995 until the group retired in 2018, leaving a legacy of over 80 commissions, 25 CD recordings and a large library of live performances on YouTube.

Simon is in demand as a guest-leader and has appeared in this role with most of the UK‘s major orchestras. He has also appeared as a guest-director with orchestras such as the Academy of St. Martin-in-the-Fields, the English Chamber Orchestra and the Scottish Ensemble. Since 1999 he has shared the position of leader of Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa in Japan, with whom he has recorded Vivaldi‘s Four Seasons for the Warner label. As a soloist he has appeared with orchestras including the Philharmonia Orchestra, the RPO and the CBSO.