BENEFIT RECITAL FOR SEVENOAKS WELCOMES REFUGEES
Giving a recital is a mark of maturity for most musicians . This often involves the performance of a whole sonata – which can itself contain multiple movements and last for over half an hour . Though it requires dedication and stamina , it is equally as rewarding ; the knowledge and understanding of the whole piece can only come about onstage .
When the time came and I found myself ready to give a recital , I chose two sonatas , Beethoven ’ s 7th and César Franck ’ s , which are widely – and personally – beloved staples of violin repertoire . I also took the decision to raise funds for Sevenoaks Welcomes Refugees . Their cause is one particularly dear to my heart – my mother and her siblings were asylum seekers themselves , who fled Vietnam and went to the US to escape the war in the mid-70s .
The organisation of the recital was a novel experience for me – and one which involved a lot of coordination – but the staff of The Space and school helped me promote it to the wider community , for which I am thankful . On the day , I was ( somewhat ) nervous . ( If I ’ m honest , I was half expecting a positive Covid home test or an impromptu bout of food poisoning to swoop in a few days before .) But fortunately , everything went according to plan , and the performance was one of the greatest , I think , I have ever shared with anyone . I took every liberty with interpretation , letting the energy of the pieces carry me through . I also managed to sneak in a beautiful movement of Bach ’ s solo sonata as an encore to finish the afternoon off .
My family has been a touchstone of support , and I was also grateful to have my friends and teachers present to share the experience with . However , I must give particular thanks to David Skinner , our guest speaker who has done incredible work with organisations such as Save the Children , who gave background on the pieces , the project and the charity . And of course , I must mention my gratitude to Maria Tarasewicz , my brilliant pianist who has been the better half of this team since its inception .
Lachlan Edwards , Lower Sixth
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