Notting Hill & Ealing Celebrates 150th Anniversary with Concert
World premiere of new piece performed by pupils at Cadogan Hall
Former pupil Angellica Bell compered the evening. Picture: Steve Gregson
March 21, 2024
The programme of events to celebrate the 150th anniversary of Notting Hill and Ealing High School continued earlier this month with a concert at Cadogan Hall.
The venue in Sloane Square saw the world premiere of ‘Shooting Stars’, a specially commissioned modern classical piece by composer Kerry Andrew, which was performed by 140 students from the Senior and Junior School choirs and orchestra.
Other performances included Beethoven’s Symphony No 1; Chopin’s Concerto No 2 with Year 13 Student Ariella as soloist; ‘Vois sur ton Chemin by Bruno Coulais; Faure’s Requiem, and ‘Fever’ with soloists Salem and Lewhat from Year 12 and 13.
Concert ticket sales will support the school’s 150th Anniversary Bursary Campaign, which aims to raise enough to fund three new places.
TV presenter and 150th Bursary Appeal Ambassador, Angellica Bell hosted the concert and spoke of her own school days, how her bursary award was a lifeline and how the belief of her teachers and support of her friends gave her the confidence she has today.
“I was blessed to have been awarded a bursary at NHEHS – the drive the other students gave me, the belief teachers had in me, and since then the opportunities that have opened doors for me. It gave me an insight into what could be achieved – everyone should have that chance,” said Ms Bell.
Notting Hill and Ealing High School students performing at Cadogan Hall. Picture: Steve Gregson
Headmaster Matthew Shoults added, “Monday’s concert at Cadogan Hall was a spectacular evening, and I was so proud of all 140 musicians for their singing and playing. Kerry Andrew’s commission for us, ‘Shooting Stars’ adds a new, brilliant piece to the choral repertoire, and is a wonderful way to mark our 150th birthday. The range of ensembles and the outstanding performances reflect NHEHS’s musical heritage and continuing ambitions.”
390 individual music lessons take place each week at the school , and students rehearse in 22 different ensembles.
There have been a series of celebrations during the school’s 150th anniversary this year, with a focus on fundraising, including a book of 150 years in memories, a collection of incidents and memories from the school’s history. January saw the official opening of the new Junior School and Sixth Form space and February marked the anniversary of the move to Ealing day (from the original site in Notting Hill in 1931). The NHEHS Parents’ Guild Anniversary Ball will be held on 23 March 2024 to support the Bursary Appeal.
Like Reading Articles Like This? Help Us Produce More This site remains committed to providing local community news and public interest journalism. Articles such as the one above are integral to what we do. We aim to feature as much as possible on local societies, charities based in the area, fundraising efforts by residents, community-based initiatives and even helping people find missing pets. We’ve always done that and won’t be changing, in fact we’d like to do more. However, the readership that these stories generates is often below that needed to cover the cost of producing them. Our financial resources are limited and the local media environment is intensely competitive so there is a constraint on what we can do. We are therefore asking our readers to consider offering financial support to these efforts. Any money given will help support community and public interest news and the expansion of our coverage in this area. A suggested monthly payment is £8 but we would be grateful for any amount for instance if you think this site offers the equivalent value of a subscription to a daily printed newspaper you may wish to consider £20 per month. If neither of these amounts is suitable for you then contact info@neighbournet.com and we can set up an alternative. All payments are made through a secure web site. One-off donations are also appreciated. Choose The Amount You Wish To Contribute. If you do support us in this way we’d be interested to hear what kind of articles you would like to see more of on the site – send your suggestions to the editor. For businesses we offer the chance to be a corporate sponsor of community content on the site. For £30 plus VAT per month you will be the designated sponsor of at least one article a month with your logo appearing if supplied. If there is a specific community group or initiative you’d like to support we can make sure your sponsorship is featured on related content for a one off payment of £50 plus VAT. All payments are made through a secure web site. |