The Chalemie Summer School

On 12-17 August 2014, Chalemie will hold its 16th Summer School in Early Music, Dance, Period Costume Making and Commedia. Leading performers from the group will direct a series of workshops on 17th/18th century music, song, dance, commedia and costume making, with a particular emphasis on the English repertoire of this period.

The course this year will be held once more in the delightful surroundings of Headington School, in beautiful old buildings just a mile from the centre of Oxford and situated in 22 acres of parklands, gardens and woodland.

The Chalemie Summer School is for everyone interested in performing music, song, dance or commedia, or any combination of these, together with period costume making. While its focus is on the 17th/18th centuries, it is not restricted to this period alone.

Timetable

The course will be held over six days (five nights), beginning with registration at 12.00 noon on Tuesday 12 August (classes start at 2.00pm) and ending after lunch on Sunday 17 August. At 4.00 pm, there will be an end of course barbecue for anyone who can linger at Sara Stowe/Matthew Spring’s house which is just down the road from Headington School.

Mornings will start with a group class (which we hope all will want to attend!). This will be a warm-up session in which we will explore movement and presentational skills. In particular, the relationship between music and movement, along with the expression of music in physical form, should help both dancers and musicians to improve their performance. These sessions will be based partly around some of the fundamental routines and physical exercises that lie behind the ancient art of Commedia dell' Arte.

The timetable is intended to be fairly flexible in allowing participation in a variety of activities. Mornings (plus Monday pm) will be allocated to formal courses in the chosen primary study (a total of six 3-hour sessions). Afternoons are less formal and provide an opportunity to explore new areas as secondary studies, to continue with your primary study, or simply to do your own thing. Evenings are completely informal, but a variety of entertainments and activities have been arranged for all participants wishing to take part, including: a barn dance (on Tuesday evening), a lecture/performance by Chalemie and a party/concert.

To encourage students to think of performance in theatrical terms there will be a concert on the final evening with an opportunity to present short pieces worked on during the course.

More information