Welcome

Spires Music is an organisation that exists to give Coventry, Warwickshire and the local region greater access to the riches of the classical repertoire from musicians performing at a professional level.

It was founded in 2005 by Colin Touchin, formerly Director of Music at Warwick University, as a means of fulfilling a desire to create the opportunity for professional and advanced non-professional musicians to work together to provide high quality choral and orchestral performances. It has given typically three or four concerts a year, usually in city centre locations that are convenient to access.

From 2005 to 2011 Spires Music comprised the Spires Philharmonic Orchestra (SPO) and the Spires Philharmonic Chorus (SPC). In 2011 a new venture, the Spires Youth Orchestra (SYO) was created, to allow young musicians between 11 and 21 to perform at the highest level possible in the region. The large catchment area ensures access to as many good young musicians as is practicable.

For further background detail see this page here, and for all other information about the organisation, please use the links at the top and bottom of each page.

Spires Youth Orchestra – inaugural concert

The Spires Youth Orchestra, leaders Isobel Williams & Lucinda Bourne, conductors Colin Touchin & John James, are celebrating their first concert appearance with a sparkling concert for the New Year. The first half of the programme is dedicated to popular classics such as Handel’s Water Music, the Blue Danube Waltz and Sousa’s Liberty Bell together with a couple of seasonal pieces – Delius’ Sleigh Ride and Taylor Coleridge’s Christmas Overture; and the second half is devoted to the Symphony in D minor by César Franck, which is always very popular with audiences.

The concert will be held in Leamington Spa Town Hall, the Parade, at 1.00pm. Full details of the programme and concert arrangements are available from the 3rd January concert page

Forthcoming concert dates

Date and programme details for the remainder of the 2011-2012 season are as follows:

Tuesday 3rd January 2012 – SYO Premiere, Christmas/New Year Concert, Leamington
Saturday 4th February 2012 – SPO Schools Concert, King Henry VIII School, Coventry
Saturday 7th April 2012 - SYO Concert
Saturday 14th April 2012 – SPO and SPC, Holy Trinity Coventry
Friday July 13 or Saturday July 14 2012 - SYO concerts   

Concert archives

An archive of all previous Spires concerts has now been prepared and can be accessed from the Concert Archives page.

Concert Review

For a review of the King Henry VIII concert on 31st October 2009 by Clive Peacock, published in the Leamington Courier, see this page here.

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