These once or twice monthly Friday afternoon sessions organised by Barry Millington have become seriously popular. They are at 2.30 and complimentary tea and biscuits follow. Admission is £2 for Fellowship Members and £4 for non Members. Current programme details as follows:
Friday 8th May 2.30pm
Bassoon and Contrabassoon side-by-side
Two experienced professional musicians present an exciting and diverse programme of works for bassoon and contrabassoon. The session features delightful and challenging solo repertoire for both instruments performed by Dr Francesca Carpos, accompanied on the piano by Alistair Young. It also offers fascinating insights into the roles of the bassoon and contrabassoon, and a rare opportunity to hear examples of the contrabassoon’s orchestral repertoire.
Dr Francesca Carpos
Dr Francesca Carpos is a professional bassoon player who has worked with leading national and international orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra, for over thirty years. She is the bassoonist on TV advertisements for Kellogg’s, Duracell Batteries, Boots the Chemist, Andrex, and Nicorette, and she has played in many musicals, including the world premiere of Dr Dolittle with Philip Schofield in the title role.
Francesca teaches the bassoon at UCS, South Hampstead High School, and at the Centre for Young Musicians. Her lifelong interest in practices that unfairly disadvantage classical musicians led to her doctoral research, and in 2017 she was awarded a PhD at University College London. In 2020, Francesca was invited to become a member of the Guildhall School of Music and Drama Institute for Social Impact Research in the Performing Arts, and to broaden her research Francesca subsequently trained as a barrister. In 2024 she was called to the Bar of Gray’s Inn.
Alistair Young
Alistair Young is an orchestral keyboard player (organ, piano, harpsichord, and celeste) who regularly performs with the Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Philharmonia Orchestra, BBC Concert Orchestra, BBC Symphony Orchestra, City of London Sinfonia, London Philharmonic Orchestra, and the London Symphony Orchestra.
Alistair has performed in film and commercial recordings, including appearances on Lesley Garrett’s TV show, and has featured regularly on Friday Night Is Music Night for BBC Radio 2, where he can be heard as both soloist and accompanist. As a continuo player, he works with the English Chamber Orchestra, the Oxford Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Mozart Festival Orchestra. As a recitalist and accompanist, he performs at Exeter, Peterborough, and Southwark Cathedrals, and at festivals in Salisbury, Lichfield, and the City of London.
As a vocal coach, Alistair is a professor at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, where he was awarded the Honorary Fellowship of Trinity Laban (FTCL) in recognition of his exceptional service to the institution.