Rachel Scott brings Chamber Music to Life
Our wonderful, and now famous! Rachel Scott is an exceptional teacher and a fabulous musician…and we were extremely proud to see her appear in The Sydney Morning Herald this month!
In 2008, on one of her visits to teach at Hillston School in Western NSW, Rachel introduced her year 4 class to her sparkly purple cello for the first time. The majority of the class had never seen such an instrument, and they instantly loved it – the outrageous purple sparkles probably helped initially!
Playing in a large building with a resonant floor, Rachel realised that the children could not only hear the music she was playing, but they could also feel the vibrations through the floor.
“I got them to lie around me like spokes in a wheel and I played the Bach prelude. It was one of those moments where you think, ‘I’m going to remember this until the day i die’. Then this little boy put up his head and said, ‘Rachel, this is the most beautiful thing I have ever heard’.”
It was in that moment that Rachel knew she wanted to replicate that intense engagement she had found in the kids at Hillston, and present it to an adult audience back in Sydney.
Bach in the Dark was born. Today, Rachel has performed about 70 concerts in the series which has included cello with accordion, guitar, violin and voice, but always with Bach’s music as a focal point.
The setting of the crypt, under the Francis Greenway-designed St James’ in King Street creates an intimate atmosphere, with the whole performance taking place in the dark, to ensure the audience are “totally in the moment”.
For any of you who haven’t had the pleasure of seeing Rachel play the cello, book tickets to Bach in the Dark – It is magical!
To read the full article, please click here.
