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Aberdeen Sinfonietta was founded in 1987, originally as a small group of strings and harpsichord which played regularly in Aberdeen and also toured throughout Scotland. In 1997, at a time when the group was beginning to feel the need to expand its musical repertoire, they were given the exciting opportunity to expand considerably in order to perform as a chamber orchestra in the Music Hall with Roger Williams as conductor, and with the brilliant Russian pianist Mikhail Kazakevich as soloist. Since then the Sinfonietta has established itself as one of the foremost contributors to music-making in the north-east, and in addition to giving a regular series of concerts in the Music Hall, it provides the orchestra for prominent choral societies in and around Aberdeen, including Aberdeen Bach Choir and the Stonehaven Chorus. It also plays regularly with Haddo House Choral and Operatic Society and Haddo Youth Music Theatre.
- The first performance of John McLeod's Chronicle of St Machar, commissioned by Aberdeen Bach Choir (1999);
- The performance of the same work in Edinburgh, and the subsequent commissioning and performance by Aberdeen Sinfonietta of the orchestral suite Machar - Portrait of a Saint (2000);
- Elgar's Dream of Gerontius, conducted by James Loughran, as a tribute to Lady Aberdeen for her 90th birthday (2003);
- A Gala Concert with Aberdeen Bach Choir in its 50th anniversary season, conducted by James Lobban and Roger Williams, and with Mikhail Kazakevich as soloist in the Grieg Piano Concerto (2005);
- A performance of Bach's St Matthew Passion with Aberdeen Bach Choir in their 50th anniversary season (2006);
- A huge charity concert with Katherine Jenkins in the grounds of Balmoral Castle, celebrating the Queen's 80th birthday (2006);
- Rehearsing and performing the Elgar 'cello concerto with Rohan de Saram (2006)
- Verdi's Requiem, conducted by David Jones, to celebrate 60 years of Haddo House Choral and Operatic Society (2006);
- "Opera and Musical Nights" - a charity concert of music from opera and musicals, under the baton of the charismatic Marco Boemi (2007);
- A special anniversary concert featuring Aberdeen's distinguished soprano Lisa Milne, in operatic arias by Mozart and Dvorak (2007);
- A performance of the Strauss Oboe Concerto with Nicholas Daniel, in a concert conducted by Julian Clayton (2008)
The orchestra's education initiatives have included very successful children's concerts in association with Aberdeenshire Council, in Inverurie, Huntly and Aboyne, where we have had children participating in a variety of ways, from bringing along and playing their own instruments, to writing poems and producing images for back-projection, to illustrate the famous Carnival of the Animals. We have also organised master-classes with distinguished soloists, and we intend to continue to involve young people in ways which help to educate and inspire the musicians and the audiences of the future.
Bryan Dargie studied music at Aberdeen University, during which time he regularly travelled to Edinburgh for violin lessons with the then leader of the Edinburgh Quartet, Miles Baster. He was awarded a Sir James Caird scholarship to continue his studies at the Royal Academy of Music, where his teachers were Frederick Grinke for violin and Sidney Griller for chamber music. After a number of years of playing with leading London orchestras, including the Royal Philharmonic and the London Mozart Players, he returned to Aberdeen, where he has established himself as an influential violinist and violin teacher, with wide experience of solo playing, of leading orchestras, in particular Aberdeen Sinfonietta, and of chamber music playing. For many years he was a member of the Aberdeen Piano Trio, and he is currently the leading violinist with Aberdeen Chamber Players.
In November 2005 he received the honorary degree of Master of the University from the University of Aberdeen.
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