In at the deep end – 2003
Cat found the house in Ferreirola, which has become AMS, in January 2003, and together with partner Steve owned it by March. In her eyes the house, situated in the village square and built on three levels, showed great potential providing everything she was looking for: space for a recital room, a music room and an Alexander class room; balconies overlooking the square; a large dining room for big groups and entertaining; and stunning views of the mountains.
In order for AMS to really offer all these facilities, the house would need some work, but before Cat was prepared to embark on a building project, she wanted to know exactly how the house could work to its fullest potential. There was nothing for it but to start running small courses to find this out. Visitors to AMS have offered useful suggestions and some of their ideas will be incorporated. David’s idea of putting the dishwasher upstairs in the dining room was a stroke of genius.
The first two courses in 2003 were really very much a learning curve. Cat was confident about what courses would involve, having attended so many over the past 25 years, but starting her own, in an almost unknown building, in a village where the neighbours are unused to visitors and speak a different language was quite a challenge.
For the first course Cat invited Manoli Garcia to join her in teaching on an Alexander Technique course. Manoli, who trained alongside Cat at Misha Magidov’s school in North London, brought with her two fellow Spaniards, David and Luis, who treated everyone to the most amazing Spanish cuisine, and played the roles of host and entertainer. Cat realised that, with three Spanish friends at AMS, it was the ideal opportunity to inform the village as to what was going on, and so the last night party became a house-warming that the whole village were invited to. Luis and David spread the word around the village at the daily gathering around the bread van, and in the evening they brought tables into the square, with drinks and tapas laid out. A line of women assembled, dressed up for the evening, and stood opposite the tables, but refused every offer of food and drink. Luis and David were confused and puzzled, until eventually David remembered an old custom in Spain, where the lady of the house must have the first drink. So, Cat was ceremoniously offered a drink, and after that everyone came forward, including the men who had been watching from the other end of the square.
“The myth of Ferreirola”
A few months ago, a member of the village told Cat the following story: some tourists had come to Ferreirola recently, because they were intrigued by a story a few friends of theirs had related about what happened there. These friends had been walking in the river gorge below Ferreirola and as they came up the steps into the square, they came upon the whole village feasting and drinking in the square, and they were invited to join in. On asking if this happened every night in Ferreirola, they understood the answer to be “yes”.
So, their friends came to Ferreirola to see for themselves what happens in this extraordinary little mountain village at the end of the road.
Although in reality it doesn’t happen every night, it’s not impossible to come across Ferreirola folk feasting together from time to time in the village square.
Alexander Technique at AMS
The peace and quiet of Ferreirola is proving to be a perfect environment for Alexander Technique. All of the teachers so far - Manoli, Anthony, Anne and Cat - have shown very different styles and approaches to the work, with each course creating its own identity and being a tremendous success. Teachers and participants alike find there is just the right balance of tranquillity versus excitement in the local environment. This both inspires and re-invigorates, as well as giving people time to think and reflect. Familiar old habits can be challenged, having opportunities to experiment with new ways of reacting, away from the pressures of the usual routine.
Manoli and Cat chose a theme from one of Alexander’s books to discuss with the class each morning, and then explore what this meant in practical exploration. Every afternoon the class went on a trip together, and in the evening relaxed together in different restaurants and bars. The last trip was a horse-riding session in the mountains above Trevelez. The members of the group arrived a bit apprehensive to the class that morning, so it was obvious that the best thing to do was to base the morning session on fear and reaction, so people could start to understand what they did to themselves in situations where they felt unsure, and how this led to high levels of clenching and bracing that affected their balance and confidence. On horseback later that day, people seemed confident and relaxed, and afterwards everyone agreed that it had made a difference to explore and discuss in the morning session what their habitual reactions would have been in this situation; thus, they could occasionally remind themselves of this in the real scenario, and enjoy it more.
Anthony’s workshops have been a mixture of group work in addition to individual sessions. One of the participants, Tom, came to AMS shortly before he started student life at Oxford University. Cat saw Tom several months later, and asked how it was going. Tom instantly described how much Anthony’s course had transformed his first few weeks at Oxford. On the course he had learnt a great deal about himself, his confidence in new social situations and the patterns he went into to disguise his insecurities. Having experimented on the course with what happened if he didn’t resort to these patterns, he felt ready by the time he arrived at Oxford to put it to the test. He was thrilled and excited at what he had learnt.
Anne, a keen botanist and birdwatcher, was in heaven in the Alpujarras. John, from the village of Capilerilla, very generously gave up some of his afternoons in order to pass on his local knowledge of the area to show Anne the best places to find rare species of plants and wild herbs, and where beautiful and unusual birds could be seen. In the classroom Anne quickly promoted an atmosphere of calm and trust, which enabled qualified teachers and interested students to learn and develop alongside each other. She also found that she had a family connection in the next village of Fondales, through the author Gerald Brennan. Anne spent a long afternoon catching up on distant family members, as well as giving Alexander lessons to some of the residents of Fondales.
One of the highlights for Anne herself was the visit to the Alhambra, more beautiful than she had imagined; the adventures that happened with Spanish teacher Ramon in Granada still cause everyone to break down into fits of laughter.
Carlos’ “103” brandy was a feature of Anne’s week, a very good accompaniment to a delightful recital of mandolin and guitar.
David Quigley, “Rising star”
Pianist David Quigley came to visit AMS in July 2004 with the Tempest String Quartet. At three days notice David very generously offered to play a solo recital in the Cueva de La Mora Luna, Carlos’ piano bar in Mecina.
Carlos himself couldn’t believe that David, a finalist in the BBC Young Musician of the Year, and more usually seen playing concerts in venues such as the Wigmore Hall and Carnegie Hall, was really going to play in his humble bar. Carlos introduced the evening very eloquently with a speech before David treated the audience to works including Scarlatti, Debussy and Villa-Lobos. The bar was packed to capacity, and the audience were overflowing into the street outside, mesmerized by his virtuosic and sensitive playing. David himself said afterwards that the sense of involvement he received from the audience was incredible, even suggesting that it was “possibly my favourite concert ever”. David’s playing is still the subject of conversation as the local people - olive growers, shepherds, builders and the women - go about their daily lives in La Taha.
For more information about David Quigley visit www.makingmusic.org.uk
CSYO
Cat Jary has been a tutor of the orchestra since 1990, accompanying them on many of their foreign tours, and it gave her great pleasure to invite them to the Alpujarras for their summer tour 2004. Whilst AMS was not a suitable venue to host the 90 members of CSYO, Cat Jary and School Manager Barbara Lynch were instrumental in helping the tour take shape. Most of the orchestra, aged between 13-21 are at school or studying at Music College or University. The vast majority had not been to Spain before, and many of the parents took the opportunity to combine a holiday in the region with seeing the orchestra on tour. In between concerts and rehearsals, the orchestra had sufficient free time to enjoy both the beauty of Las Alpujarras, and the glories of Granada’s Alhambra. The last night concert of their tour was a beautiful occasion. As the local coach drivers drove them into the square, Pitres was already buzzing with excitement and anticipation.
The Town Hall had done an excellent publicity drive, and CSYO were promoted in the newspapers in Granada and at the coast, and on local radio and Spanish television. The orchestra played to their largest ever audience, about 700 people, although the local newspaper reported an audience of almost 900. People had travelled long distances to be at the event, and many in the audience had tears in their eyes as they watched the youngsters play. After the standing ovation and fireworks, most of the orchestra were overwhelmed with the occasion and the reception they had received. For all of them it will be an unforgettable experience, and for some of the older members it will be the last time they play in the orchestra. The City of Sheffield Youth Orchestra is the first full sized Symphony Orchestra to play in the Alpujarras.
CSYO also played in the Centro Cultural Manuel de Falla in Granada as part of the VII International Masterclass and Piano Festival with Cuban Pianist, Leonel Morales.
For further information about CSYO please visit www.csyo.org.uk
“The Tempest in La Taha”
The Tempest String Quartet was the first chamber music ensemble Cat invited to AMS. They played a series of five informal concerts in five different venues throughout La Taha, selecting movements to play at the concerts from a variety of composers including Dvorak, Mendelssohn, Mozart, Tippett and Piazzolla.
The first evening’s concert in the square in Pitres was temporarily halted when the mist rolled in, known locally as ‘the sea of Pitres’. It was very atmospheric hearing the music wafting through the cloud, which leaves Pitres floating above the valley below.
It was not expected that the concert in the tiny hamlet of Capilerilla the following night would draw a crowd. John Ward, who had only just moved into his house overlooking the threshing circle, was looking forward to a private performance, when suddenly, minutes before the concert was due to begin, a steady stream of vehicles started climbing up the steep narrow lane, unloading children, dogs and picnics. John ended up sharing the performance with an audience of 100. By the third night in Atalbeitar the concerts were attracting a regular following of local people and tourists, all keen to hear the Quartet in yet another unusual but beautiful location. AMS knew that the quiet village of Atalbeitar would show it’s level of appreciation for the Quartet on the basis of whether the villagers opened the bar or not. Normally only important football matches and the annual village fiesta warranted such an occasion. Sure enough, a short while before the Quartet started setting up, the bar opened. At one point when the music was exciting and frantic, two local cats seemed to act out the music, chasing each other over the instrument cases and leaping and weaving through the Quartet. As soon as the music changed, the cats returned to their vantage points.
Ferreirola’s concert was always going to be special, on the threshing circle of the home village of AMS. The local neighbours kept asking all day why it couldn’t just be in the square, because they were sure no outsiders would come, and felt that putting out 60 chairs lent by the Town Hall was rather unnecessary. The day was spent making sure the arrangements were ready. Juan the shepherd had agreed to move the sheep earlier than usual that night so the dust would have settled and the bells wouldn’t interfere with the Quartet’s music. A notice board was erected explaining that the chairs were propped against the tree for audience members to take one to the threshing circle, and bring it back afterwards. Tim, the chef for the week, was busy preparing a barbeque for the entire village after the concert. Shopping at the market in Pitres in the morning, he came across Ishii and John busily preparing too, because Ishii had very kindly offered his house for the party, with all its beautiful terraces and amazing facilities.
Close to 8 o’clock, the residents of Ferreirola started taking their chairs to the circle, still grumbling slightly because it wasn’t in the square, when people started pouring into Ferreirola. There was a rush for chairs, which disappeared very quickly, although some people had brought blankets and cushions to sit on, and the rest sat in trees and on the rocks. That night close to 200 people shared a very special version of Dvorak’s ‘American’, and the music still remains in the minds of those who were there.
The party afterwards was a true celebration, and the audience, consisting of villagers, people who had travelled from miles around and tourists, were delighted to be invited to meet the Quartet and enjoy Ishii’s hospitality and Tim’s cooking. When Cat left at 3am, Juan was still singing flamenco, accompanied by Rojellio on his guitar.
The “Last Night” was a more formal concert in the Hotel in Mecina. Victor, the proprietor, had sponsored the publicity for the week and provided the venue for the last concert. After all the outdoor concerts, hearing the Quartet play indoors seemed strange and unnatural. This did not detract from their playing, and The Tempest received an enthusiastic standing ovation at the end. The Quartet truly caused a ‘tempest’ in La Taha.
John Shayler: the Alpujarras’ answer to Paganini
Cat has known John since she was nine years old, when “Mr Shayler” used to visit Bedfordshire County Youth’s Fourth Orchestra rehearsals, and terrify its young members just by sitting in on a rehearsal. Everyone was aware that “Mr Shayler” would play some role in their progress throughout Beds Youth Music. As Cat grew older, “Mr Shayler” became known as John, and Cat learnt about orchestral and chamber music under his guidance. It was only several years later, when Cat started conducting junior orchestras and coaching CSYO that she became truly aware of how much she had learnt from John’s teaching and inspiration.
Cat occasionally saw John on courses or in ‘The Cricketers’ in Bedford, and kept in touch. At an ESTA event at The Royal Academy of Music, over lunch Cat told John about the beginnings of AMS, and asked if he would be interested in coming to coach a chamber music course. John’s passion for travel, curiosity about the Alpujarras and love of music formed his answer there and then.
In order to get to AMS, John drove through France and Spain, gradually easing himself into the pace of life that he would find in Ferreirola. While Cat was wandering through Ferreirola on John’s first morning, she heard his violin all over the village. The neighbours started asking what was happening at AMS this week, and Cat explained that John and some postgraduate students from Trinity College of Music and Madrid were coming for ten days of chamber music and Alexander Technique.
John and the students worked hard throughout the course, discussing string related topics and techniques whilst rehearsing repertoire, and partied hard afterwards, visiting the bars, and accepting invitations to Indian voice training classes, all night dances and lunches. By the end of the course everyone was feeling well and truly a part of the local scene, and John felt particularly welcomed one night when, after a lift home with Antonio and Sebastian from Carlos’ bar, he was invited to sit on the village bench in Ferreirola, putting the world to rights. John’s Spanish is elementary and their English is non-existent, but at times like this, language seems no obstacle to communication.
The concerts at the end of the week in the school in Pitres and Carlos’ Bar in Mecina were very well attended, and special mention must be given to Maria and Hannah for their superb performances of Brahms and Shostakovich. As soon as the concert was over in Carlos’, a group from the audience went outside and brought in a variety of drums and instruments, and started playing flamenco rhythms that developed into tunes. Quickly everyone in the bar started joining in the most amazing jamming session, people using (empty) ashtrays and spoons and anything they could find to use as instruments. Andy, Ferreirola’s guitar maker was enjoying it, Carlos started dancing on the tables, and the party quickly spilled out into the street. All the musicians from AMS felt very privileged to receive such a response to their concert.
As the course progressed, all the musicians agreed that it would be nice to have a private evening just for the residents of Ferreirola. The music room in AMS, with a balcony opening onto the square is perfect for solo recitals, and the village listened amazed to John, as he treated everyone to a variety of violin showpieces, even performing some of them on the viola!
As thoughts of returning home inevitably started, John mused that perhaps ‘The Cricketers’ could start serving complimentary tapas with their pints!
John is now a legend in La Taha, both for his playing and his insatiable appetite for socialising. Carlos has asked for plenty of warning for John’s next visit, so he has ‘enough time to prepare’. |
