CREATIVE PEEBLES FESTIVAL LECTURE-RECITAL 2022
Jointly Sponsored by the Tweeddale Society and Music in Peebles
Sunday, 4th September 2022
Eastgate Theatre, Peebles, 7.30 p.m.
Learmont Drysdale and his Music Rediscovered
Robert England
An event designed to bring Learmont Drysdale’s life and music back to life.
Learmont Drysdale was a young composer with roots in the Scottish Borders who composed a wide range of music during his short life; he died in 1909 at the age of 43 years and is buried in Peebles cemetery. There is a memorial to him on Damhead Rig, just south of Traquair.
The programme is jointly sponsored by the Tweeddale Society and Music in Peebles. It will feature an opening presentation by Robert England on Drysdale’s life and links to Tweeddale, followed by a performance of a selection of his music.
Drysdale’s original scores are lodged in the archives of the University of Glasgow. It will be the first performance of his music for many years.
On the right is a link to a recording of Learmont Drysdale’s orchestral Prelude ‘Thomas the Rhymer’, in a performance conducted by Eduard Artemyev.
Robert England spent his career working for the United Nations, living in nine different countries in Africa, Asia and its New York Headquarters. He and his wife, Sandra, retired to Tweeddale where they walk the hills and inspect memorials.
Robert is pictured on the right standing beside the memorial to Learmont Drysdale on the summit of Damhead Rig.
The Musicians
Gina McCormack (top left) is one of the UK’s foremost violinists, as a soloist, orchestral leader and chamber musician, having been leader of the renowned Sorrel, Maggini and Brodsky String Quartets. She is also Patron of Music in Peebles and we are delighted that she will play the violin pieces and piano trio in this concert.
Rebekah Lesan (top right) is a Slovak-American cellist currently studying at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. She has given concerts in the UK, USA and several European countries and performs music of all kinds from ancient to modern and from traditional to electronic.
Marianna Abrahamyan (middle) is a young Armenian pianist currently studying for a PhD at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. She has conducted research in the Learmont Drysdale archive of Glasgow University Library and has devised the programme of his music for this event. Marianna will play the piano solos and accompaniments at the concert.
Charlotte Bateman (bottom left), mezzo-soprano, was a choral scholar at St-Martin-in-the-Fields and sang professionally with St Martin’s Voices. She recently graduated from the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland with a MMus (Performance) and is continuing her studies at the Alexander Gibson Opera School at the RCS.
James McIntyre (bottom right) is a Scottish tenor who is in the second year of postgraduate studies at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. As well as performing with the RCS Opera School and appearing with Scottish Opera, James also has a particular interest in promoting the performance of music by Scottish composers.
The Music
Songs
A selection of songs and song settings, with piano accompaniment, with particular emphasis on texts by Borders writers, including Walter Scott, Robert Chambers, James Hogg (‘The Ettrick Shepherd’) and Lady Grizel Baillie (of Mellerstain).
Solo piano
Sonatina and ‘White Heather’ (Polka de Salon)
Violin and piano
Reverie and Ballade
Piano Trio
Trio in F for piano, violin and cello
