New Season launches, November 6th 2016
Exeter Phoenix

May 14th

We are looking forward to our final Earworms for this season.  We are back at Exeter Phoenix on May 14th when we are joined by the young singers from Devon County Junior Choir, directed by Rachel Smith and accompanied by Michael Graham.
The choir are planning a lovely selection of music and it's a great opportunity for families to come and hear young children singing, and perhaps even for some to be inspired to join the choir themselves.

You can read all about the choir here http://www.dcjc.org.uk/

Tickets are available from Exeter Phoenix box office (01392 667080) and will be available on the door subject to availability.  Tickets are selling well, so do book ahead if you would like to be sure of a seat.

2017 Earworms tickets now on sale

We are delighted to announce that our next event will take place on March 5th.  We are looking forward to welcoming the wonderful organist, David Davies and for this event we have moved to the Mary Harris Chapel on the Exeter University Campus.  The organ in the chapel offers a good view of the organ console, so the children will be able to fully experience this wonderful instrument.  We have always hoped to include some organ music in our Earworms programme and as you can see from David's biography below, we'll be enjoying some fabulous playing. 
Tickets are available from the Exeter Phoenix box office for this event - http://www.exeterphoenix.org.uk/events/earworms-with-david-davies/

Originally from North Wales, David Davies was educated at Eton College, at
Magdalen College, Oxford (where he was organ scholar), and at the Institute of
Sacred Music at Yale University. He studied organ with John Wellingham, Nicolas
Kynaston, Professor Thomas Murray and Dr Martin Jean.
David has held church organist positions on both sides of the Atlantic. In the USA he
served as Fellow in Church Music at Christ Church, New Haven, CT, and then as
Assistant Organist at St Philip’s Cathedral, Atlanta, GA, during which time he was
Artistic Director of Atlanta Schola Cantorum. Upon returning to the UK he was
appointed Sub Organist and Director of the Girls’ Choir at Guildford Cathedral, a
position he held for six years. During this time he was adjunct lecturer in music
theory at the University of Surrey, and Director of the Surrey Festival Choir that
was founded by Ralph Vaughan Williams during the Second World War. His
ongoing connections with the USA have enabled him to perform concerts in
California, Massachusetts, Washington DC, Florida, Alabama and New York. He is a commissioned composer both in this country and in the USA, where he studied with Ezra Laderman.
David lives in Devon and, having held the Assistant Director of Music position at
Exeter Cathedral, now pursues a freelance career as a keyboard player, lecturer and
writer.

Tickets are also now available for the May 14th event with Devon County Junior Choir.  This will be back at Exeter Phoenix, and more information to follow - but for now, here is the link for tickets.  http://www.exeterphoenix.org.uk/events/earworms-with-devon-county-junior-choir/


Earworms 2016/17

We are very pleased to be able to issue the dates for our 2016/17 season.

We kick off on November 6th with the fantastic swing band 'The Locked Horns'  Have a listen to them here http://www.thelockedhorns.com/music.  We hope for some great music and will make plenty of space for dancing at the Phoenix in November.

On March 5th Earworms will decamp to The Mary Harris Chapel on the Exeter University campus.
We have been hoping to offer an organ recital for some time and are delighted that the wonderful organist David Davies has agreed to play for us.  He will need little introduction to any of you who have been at services in Exeter Cathedral over the last few years, where he was until very recently, Assistant Director of Music.  He is also an experienced choral conductor and gives recitals all over the world.  It will be an Earworms not to be missed.

On May 14th, back at Exeter Phoenix,  we welcome Devon County Junior Choir.  Again, we have been looking for a suitable date for a while which would work for the choir and their conductor Rachel Smith.  The choir is made up of children aged between 6 - 13, singing a wide variety of repertoire to a fantastic standard.  Rachel conducts several choirs including the recently formed DCJC North, the RMB Chivenor Military Wives' Choir and one of the  National Children's Choirs of Great Britain.

We will have Mervyn Bedford with us for all three concerts.
Tickets are still priced at £6 adults, £4 children and £18 for a family of four.  For the March concert, there is an additional booking fee of £1   All tickets are available through the Exeter Phoenix box office 01392 667080


String Quartet around the world

Last Sunday's Earworms took us on a world tour with the wonderful Divertimento string quartet. Music by composers including Debussy, Grieg and Monti, herding horses in some chinese folk songs and a bit of a nod to the Queen's 90th with Crown Imperial.  The quartet were joined by the delightful Alice Dunn for some singing and beautiful dancing.
A great finale to our current season!
We are currently planning the next season, so do keep an eye out for news of future dates.

June Earworms

We're looking forward to the next Earworms on June 12th. We will be joined by the Divertimento String Quartet with an exciting programme of string quartet music. Here is what they say about their programme -

Join Divertimento Quartet on their whistle stop tour of the world! Hear the stories that they tell in the very varied music that they play from around the world.

The journey begins in the UK with its folk music tradition….in Europe hear about the connection between Beethoven and the French Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte….next the Northern land of trolls and the music of Grieg….In mid Europe a famous gypsy dance which Lady Gaga used in one of her albums….in Russia a dance by Shostakovich….South America brings Latin dances…. travel as far as China for some folk music from different parts of the country…..then back to England for a rousing finale by William Walton

April Earworms

This month's Earworms on April 17th, 2pm features top british (devon in fact) folk duo, Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman. Kathryn and Sean performed for us back in our early days and we are really looking forward to welcoming them back. With over 20 years of performing with many top folk artists, they are sure to be as brilliant and popular as they were when they performed for us in 2013.
Tickets (£6,£4,£18 family) are available from Exeter Phoenix box office https://www.exeterphoenix.org.uk/bookings/?webid=5153
We hope to see you there!

Earworms' jingle performed by La Vie en Rose

Here is the brilliant performance of our jingle by La Vie en Rose from the February 2016 concert: