Sweet Music Chamber Music Group

Sweet Music logo
Takashi Kikuchi, viola Kate Osborne, flute James Risdon, recorder and clarinet


Kate Osborne flute
James Risdon recorder and clarinet
Takashi Kikuchi viola
with Fergus Black piano

Sweet Music offers delightful programmes of mainly 18th and 19th century chamber music for combinations of flute, viola, recorder, clarinet and piano. Repertoire includes Mozart’s trio inspired by a bowling alley, a Trio Sonata by Frederick the Great’s private flute teacher and music by the ‘Paganini of the Recorder’ as well as much much more...

Sample Programme

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756 – 1791)
‘Kegelstatt’ Trio K.498 for clarinet, viola and piano
Andante • Menuetto and Trio • Rondeaux

Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714 – 1788)
Hamburger Sonata for flute and guitar [piano]
Allegretto • Rondo (Presto)

William Wolstenholme (1865 – 1931)
Canzona Op. 12 No. 1 for organ arranged by Lionel Tertis for viola and piano

Edward Elgar (1857 – 1934)
Chanson de Matin Op. 15, No. 2 for violin and piano
arranged by Paul Wright for flute, clarinet, viola and piano

Johann Joachim Quantz (1697 – 1773)
Trio [Sonata in C major] QV 2, Anh. 3 a flauto traversiero, flauto dolce e basso
Affettuoso • Alla breve • Larghetto • Vivace

Ernest Krahmer (1795 – 1837)
Rondeau Hongrois Op.28 for recorder and piano

Henri Vieuxtemps (1820 – 1881)
Capriccio for solo viola Op. posth., No. 9

Jehan Alain (1911 – 1940)
Trois Mouvements for flute and piano

Dvorak (1841 – 1904)
Humoresque Op. 101, No. 7 for piano
arranged by Paul Wright for flute, clarinet, viola and piano

Biographies

Kate Osborne is a flautist and teacher based near Peterborough. She has performed widely throughout the area with Fergus Black, harpist Eleanor Turner and with her own flute trio. She has recently performed recitals with Fergus Black at Belvoir Castle and for the Treasury Music Society, and appeared as soloist in Pergolesi’s Flute Concerto in Stamford in a concert to mark the composer’s 300th anniversary. Her extensive repertoire spans the Baroque to the 20th century with a particular specialism on the French Romantic works.

Takashi Kikuchi is an experienced recitalist, chamber musician and teacher. He received his Doctor of Musical Arts from the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in Tokyo in 2003. As part of his research into 20th century English viola repertoire, he spent three years studying at the Royal Academy of Music in London with Professor John White. He has performed widely in London, including for the Treasury Music Society, Victoria and Albert Museum and Queen Elizabeth Hall. He was a recipient of the 2000 Lawson Award from the Royal Academy of Music and the 2005 Anglo-Japan Foundation Award.

James Risdon began the recorder aged eight and the clarinet a year later. He studied with Alan Davis in Birmingham and continues his studies with Rebecca Miles in London. He has performed as soloist with the Prague Chamber Orchestra, London Musici alongside Piers Adams and Devon Baroque. With his ensemble PanStrad, he has performed at the Great Hall, Dartington, The Handel House Museum in London, and the Tin Hut in Huntly. His interests span the Middle Ages to the 21st century and he has worked with pianists, organists and even an accordion player to explore the diverse musical possibilities for this most basic instrument.

Fergus Black was born in Scotland in 1958. After taking his degree at St. Andrews University, Fergus studied music in the USA at the University of Pennsylvania and at UCLA, before returning to the UK. He works as a musician, performing and teaching – piano, organ and singing, both privately and in schools. He is the President of Peterborough Young Singers, and conducts Burghley Voices and St Martin’s Singers. He lives in Peterborough with his wife, Helen. His web site is at www.fergusblack.com