Suz Elvey

suz.elvey@KRNmedia.co.uk

A QUARTET from Faversham will mark the start of Sittingbourne Music Society's seventh season with a classical performance.

Tanners Street Players will perform after the society's annual meeting, providing light, classical entertainment to launch the 2010/2011 programme.

Leading the four-piece, who have played together since 2006, is violinist Miles Attwell from Bapchild, who is also administrator at Sittingbourne Baptist Church.

Performing with him will be fellow violinist and Berlin University graduate Lisa Valder, founder-president of Oare String Orchestra Don Goodsell on cello and keyboard player Patti Whaley.

Patti, who studied music at the University of North Carolina in America now lives in Faversham and plays a Roland electronic keyboard. The impressive instrument can replicate a harpsichord, an 18th century fortepiano, or a chamber organ at the flick of a switch.

The programme of music for the forthcoming show has been selected to demonstrate the versatility of both Patti's instrument and the group.

The evening's repertoire will include an 18th century trio sonata – a musical form consisting of two solo melody parts and a bass part, composed by Pergolesi.

A piano trio by Haydn and movements from Dvorak's Bagatelles, originally written for strings and harmonium, will also feature.

Tanners Street Players took their name from the road in Faversham that Patti lives in and where they often practise.

Mr Goodsell said: "We are fairly versatile. We go back to 18th century, play 20th century music and even some from the 21st century, so it's quite a range. We started playing to enjoy music together but we've played for a few music clubs and at St Peter's Church in Oare. Any music lover can come along to the annual meeting and hopefully they will join the society and hear some great music."

Tanners Street Players will perform after the Sittingbourne Music Society's annual meeting, at The Avenue Theatre, Avenue of Remembrance, Sittingbourne, 7.30pm, Friday, September 10.

Sittingbourne Music Society's first show of the season will be a free concert at Kemsley village hall from 7.30pm on Friday, October 15. Fine Arts Brass, in association with Swale Council, marks the re-opening of the newly-refurbished hall and will feature popular classics and a selection of hits from the Golden Age of Broadway.