Last November I was busy teaching unusual carols from the Bradford on Avon carols repertoire and also preparing the Bradford on Avon Carols Band ready for the three big carol singing sessions in December where I took my turn to MC and conduct the carols.
For the last year I’ve been attending Jazz Factory, a hands-on evening class to teach us to play jazz and to improvise in a jazz style, often in a pentatonic or blues scale. I play my English concertina which is seen as quite a novelty in jazz circles. At the end of each term they have a Showcase concert where we each take turns at some jazz improvisation.
In December Fiery Dragon Company played at the Christmas Tree Festival in the lovely Holy Trinity Church in Bradford on Avon.
In January Fiery Dragon Company played at a Tune at Noon at Wiltshire Rural Music School in Trowbridge. The leader of Hilperton Recorders heard us play and asked me to arrange some of my compositions for them to play and they are now practicing two of the pieces. A few days after that concert Fiery Dragon Company were playing again at Bradford Roots Festival.
On 25 January I had the pleasure of hearing Birch Tree Choir perform my Orchard Wassail song at the Hens’ Orchard Wassail.