Oboes and bassoons gather for Sergeant Pepper’s 50th birthday party

press release:

Players of the bassoon and the oboe from all over the country gather in London on June 3 for a fun day marking the 50^th anniversary of the Sergeant Pepper album by playing music from The Vibrant Sixties. The event takes place in the Crypt of St-Martin-in-the-Fields, right in the heart of London. Starting at 10.00am, it will conclude at 5.30pm with a performance on the bandstand at St James’s Park, a few minutes’ walk away.

The occasion is organised by the British Double Reed Society (BDRS). Featuring a type of music not usually associated with bassoons and oboes, the light-hearted programme has been devised as the latest step in the organisation’s ongoing campaign to encourage interest and enthusiasm in these two instruments. Both the oboe and bassoon (both ‘double reed’ instruments) are often referred to as ‘endangered species’, as they currently have a low take-up among young musicians.