Young Grittleton: Osian aged 11

My experience at the Young Grittleton Chamber Music Course 2019 was possibly the best
week of my life! I am very grateful to Hidersine for making it possible for me to attend.
All the staff were so welcoming and kind which gave me a comfortable environment to relax
in while also learn about my instrument; the viola.
At the start of the week I was extremely nervous simply because I didn't have much
experience with the viola, especially playing in such small groups, and I wasn't sure how I
would get on but I can say for a fact that by the end of the week I had already made so many
friends and I was so pleased with my progress on the viola playing and mastering the alto
clef! In fact, I made such progress that my viola teacher thought I should take my viola exam
earlier than planned!
The coaches were really knowledgeable and helped us to learn to work together, listening to
others in our group and knowing when to alter the dynamics to bring out a solo role or be
supportive when others had the leading line. We examined the overall shape of a piece of
music in dynamics and how this would help tell a story for the audience and draw them in to
the performance.
It was great fun to meet musicians from different backgrounds and learn about their
experiences and favourite pieces of music. I loved learning new music and playing with and
learning from other musicians. The performance at the end of the course was nerve
wracking but exciting and the response of the audience was so positive I gained in
confidence for my next performance.
My chamber group worked on the Michael Haydn Quintet in C and the String Quartet
No3 in G Major, K. 156 by Mozart and we did some fun pieces in the orchestra. For
Tico-Tico no Fuba by Zequinha De Abreu, we spun our instruments around in time to
the Latin beat and it gave us a chance to really perform!
I am so thrilled with my experience on the course and all the great techniques I've learned
and I would like to say a big thank you to all the coaches who taught me in the week
Osian (11)