Workshop Testimonials

What would a year be without a week in January in Armidale, dedicated to playing recorder intensively with fellow recorder addicts at the wonderful Orpheus Recorder Boutique? Orpheus Recorder Boutiques are a very rich experience for so many of us, where we can immerse ourselves in the joys of learning, music-making and team-work, with like-minded people who quickly become lasting friends. Orpheus Music also sells a fabulous range of recorders of all sizes, to suit every pocket, and music from the earliest times to the ultra-modern, to suit recorder players at every level, whether playing solo or in a group of any conceivable size. A veritable treasure trove! Thanks so much to Zana, Peter and Alexandra for their expertise and patience in providing advice and help.

January 1998 was my first time in Armidale taking part at a ORPHEUS Recorder Summer School. May I introduce the most dedicated event organisers: Zana Clarke and Peter Biffin I have been to various Recorder courses every year since, including this year. This week-long work- shop and recorder paradise has become my yearly focus for intense playing (8am to 9pm), finding new and stocking up from a large range of special recorder sheet music. Orpheus have their own publications and carry an endless amount of Australian and international publications with music up to nine parts. Available as well is a wide range of recorders from different makers. They are a constant temptation as one can never have too many recorders. With so many recorder specialists at hand it is safe to find a recorder to match your needs. The week is dedicated to the recorder; from the Garklein to the very big. No cooking or housekeeping, just good tasty meals in interesting company among likeminded people. Over the years I have learned from and listened to dozens of highly qualified musicians and esteemed tutors from Australia and New Zealand, from Europe and the Americas. One of the biggest joys for me are the youngsters: their enthusiasm and energetic attitude are inspiring and a credit to Orpheus’ Recorder Courses.

Armidale? A place for an outstanding annual recorder workshop with first class tutors. The added bonus was the wide range of recorders and sheet music offered on site by Orpheus Music Publications. I was able to find a comprehensive manual on ornamentation called “A Baroque Ornamentation Tutor for Recorder" by Bali János. I plan to attend the workshop again as I have learnt so much in just one week!

What better way to spend a week in January than enjoying a Boutique Recorder Workshop in Armidale run by Orpheus Music. A group of recorder players of all abilities play wonderful music from all ages, guided by world class tutors who also give a world class concert such as would command high prices and high acclaim in any concert hall. Those who wish to can also perform for the group at evening blackboard concerts. It is an opportunity to try and buy recorders and to browse through the recorder music for sale. Music to be played at the course is available through the on-line shop prior to the course to allow for individual practice. The opportunity to play in large and small groups is enjoyed by recorder players from all around Australia and from New Zealand with the occasional overseas guest, is not to be missed for lovers of recorder music.

I have found Orpheus Music to be invaluable in my time as a music teacher, arranger, conductor and performer. Orpheus Music stocks the most comprehensive range of recorder music in Australia. They have also been more than willing to order music in upon request and are quick to post as soon as it is in stock. The annual Orpheus Recorder Boutique is a wonderful experience. Recorder players gather together in Armidale to improve their technique and benefit from the expertise of the tutors. The range of ensembles is particularly valuable for those in remote areas who do not have local recorder societies. It is a great opportunity to make or renew friendships with those who have a love of the recorder. Orpheus also offers the opportunity to try a range of recorders and make informed decisions when purchasing. It is a rare occurrence for me to leave Armidale without a new instrument ... and I always leave with new music, new knowledge and inspiration.

I really enjoy the quality of the tutors at the annual recorder courses. Their knowledge and how they pass this on is really appreciated by me. To immerse yourself totally in 6 to 8 days of recording playing and listening is a fantastic experience. There is something for everyone in the annual courses for the recorder. The recorder shop, at the annual courses, with the many recorders of different sizes in woods and plastic is great to browse through and to make up your mind what you would like to purchase. The same applies to the recorder accessories and the vast selection in printed music from recorder tutors to recorder orchestras and all the different consort combinations in between.

I fully recommend the Orpheus Recorder Boutique held in Armidale in January each year. It is professionally run and the tutors are talented professionals from within Australia and from overseas. It is residential and is a great opportunity to enjoy the company of like-minded musicians and to extend your skill in recorder playing. I enjoy the wide range of playing experiences it offers –technical work, playing in small and large ensembles and the opportunity to perform in blackboard concerts at night. Orpheus Music offers an extensive range of recorders and recorder music for sale, at the Orpheus Recorder Boutique and through their on-line catalogue.

I have attended the Orpheus Recorder Boutique in Armidale every January for the past 5 years. As a Graduate of Classical Performance (Recorder) from the Elder Conservatorium, the Boutique offers me an excellent standard of playing and teaching. The workshop is a chance for me to meet and play with people of a similar level, which is a wonderful experience and not as readily available in my home city of Adelaide. It's a busy, well-organised and fun-filled six days, attended by recorder players of all ages from all parts of Australia. We perform in duos, small groups and large ensembles. The instructors are extremely talented and experienced musicians from all over the world. They bring along their love of recorder, new ideas and lots of interesting music for us to play together. In the 2016 Boutique, for example, our tutor Ryan Williams showed us how he uses electronic equipment in conjunction with his recorder collection to produce and perform innovative contemporary music. It was a lot of fun. The Orpheus shop hosts a vast collection of recorders and music, and the staff, in particular, are world class players who are passionate about their love of recorder. I would highly recommend the Orpheus Recorder Boutique to recorder players of all levels and ages. 

I cannot thank you all at Orpheus enough for the experience of the 2018 recorder boutique. It was a huge learning experience, the tutors were talented and professional to a T and the massive range of sheet music, instruments, gifts and accessories available at the store and on line are truly impressive. I’ll be back!

Since 2006 I have attended at least ten of the Orpheus Summer Schools for recorders in Armidale. It is always a most enjoyable time for learning from the top class tutors, connecting and reconnecting with recorder players from all over Australia and sometimes beyond, having opportunities to play in small groups and perform at blackboard concerts if you wish. Since 2006 when I first attended, the numbers for the course have grown from the mid twenties to over ninety with several new players each year. Some stalwarts have been returning year after year. The tutors come from Australia and other parts of the world so there is a good mix of music, some of which takes time to adjust to, and varied approaches to playing. On most evenings there is a concert given by the groups that are divided into various abilities as much as possible, small groups that have come prepared, other groups that have formed during the six days and of course one of the highlights is hearing the tutors play together. This is a wonderful chance for them to get together with players of a similar standard and despite their exhaustion from tutoring all day they give very inspiring performances.

Another positive is having lunch and morning tea with other participants and sharing news and ideas from the various recorder societies around the country. Some individuals relish the time at Orpheus as they live in isolated places where no-one else plays the recorder. Although the age group is generally above forty there is a special program for younger people and many of them are commendable players and often exist in places where the recorder is not highly valued. They play at the concerts and sometimes entertain us at meal times. One hopes that they will continue playing the recorder for as we know it is not an instrument that the majority of people have heard played in consort or realise can sound so appealing.  Despite the public perception those of us who play the recorder greatly value the time we spend together in our own home towns and cities.

Another very valuable, although hard on the pocket temptation, is the huge array of recorder music, recorder paraphernalia and recorders that are for sale in the shop. Although you go into the shop with the determination not to spend any money, that resolve disappears when you find music, (which I find much easier to buy once you have seen it) and most people either buy music or recorders that take their fancy. Zana’s husband Peter is also very helpful in repairing problems with recorders, which is of enormous benefit. The final concert is often held in the New England Art Gallery, followed by a dinner at a local hotel.

It is a tiring week of concentration, but I recommend it to anyone who wants to play all day and enjoy the techniques that are given in the morning sessions and the opportunity to gather with likeminded enthusiasts. The Orpheus website is also a useful place to recommend to people who want music or recorders.

Orpheus Music is a unique Australian recorder-related entity which concentrates both in publishing its own editions and in delivering a wide range of existing publications, products and instruments. OM is a web shop, but has also a physical location situated in Armidale, Australia.

As an equally important item OM organises each January an intensive yearly week-long course for amateur players concentrating in small and large ensemble playing. In addition, an extra course for a smaller number of advanced participants is arranged in the end of the week to work on more demanding repertoire one-to-a-part. The number of participants varies between 50-100, and mainly consists of ensemble music of 3 to 8 parts in all styles from medieval to contemporary music. Three sessions including one technique session are included in the daily program, as well as a final concert and daily open evening concerts for keen voluntary performers.

I find the course of OM an excellent platform for the participants to enjoy, sustain and develop one's recorder playing skills in recorders of all sizes. The spirit in the course encourages both the participants and the tutors to keep an enjoyable yet demanding atmosphere, and OM lead by Zana Clarke ensures a very high international tutoring standard - being a recorder professional herself. Still, up to 5 different categories of skill and experience levels have been created to secure a suitable group for each participant. The technique class is also wisely restricted to a group not too big in order to enable thorough attention for everyone.

I took part as a tutor in the 2018 course, and an especially pleasant memory remained from the technique class I was teaching. A group of 10 players with more or less experience had prepared the suite BWV 997 and Meditation by Ryohei Hirose. In the beginning the participants had high prejudices or little faith in ever being able to execute the modern work nor the double of the gigue in BWV 997, but we managed to open up the works line by line over the course of the week, making them practically completely accessible for nearly everyone. Equally satisfying was to combine dynamically demanding musically speaking instrumental elements of Bach with the rudiments of fine-tuned technical aspects, having everyone in their turn -multiple times the week- take part as a soloist and otherwise in an accompanying or observing role. In this fashion everyone was occupied actively.

The course is very well paced and packaged with substantial breaks, including breakfast, small breaks, lunch and dinner, arranged with a comfortable lodging on demand within the course area. A good number of practising rooms are also available all day long for participants to work on their lines.

All in all, OM course offers a great balance of simply playing, more demanding concentration at will, learning, recorder repair services, a vast music library, instruments and accessories for sale, and social free time with good schedule margins in an all-included package.

A word of thanks to Orpheus Music...

I would like to express my thanks to Zana and Peter, for the immense gift they’ve given to the recorder playing scene in Australia. The ‘tyranny of distance’ has always affected things in this country, and music education has suffered in the same way it seems. Zana saw the depth of interest amongst players widely spread out across the country, and has pulled out all stops to provide us with the best possible teaching and learning opportunities - for the past several decades no less!!

The annual summer schools, in particular, have been hugely valuable for me as a serious amateur player:

• Small classes with the best teachers from Australasia and Europe.
• It’s an unmatched opportunity to boost our skills, refine our musicality – and with individual attention...
• It’s also very encouraging to explore new types of repertoire with experienced teachers.
• Large ensembles, with players of a similar standard, provide another special treat.
• It’s a superb opportunity to play “orchestral” scale works with fine musicians from across the country. 

• The huge range of sheet music and recorders on display at the Orpheus Summer School is just incredible.
• Browsing through music is enriching – new pieces, new genres, new composers to explore with friends.
• And the staggering variety of instruments to try out over the week is incredibly helpful too.
• Choosing which maker, which design, and which type of wood, is a rich experience and just takes time.
• I suspect that “Try Before You Buy” at this large scale, just isn’t available anywhere else in the country.

You've always done an amazing job to make the greatest, best opportunities for us mortals, and it clearly is making a difference. In fact, I think the overall musicianship standard keeps rising from year to year as we gain more skills, more confidence, and more solid grasp of the various musical styles that we play. And that can only happen with very good guidance!!

So, here’s my heartfelt thanks to Orpheus Music for incredible efforts with “all things recorder”:

• initiating.........
• creating..........
• sustaining.......
• resourcing......
• exploring........
• guiding...........
• encouraging...
• enthusing.......

For the past 6? Years, a week in early January, Orpheus Recorder intensive in Armidale is my home.

We, who love and play throughout the year and we who are passionate beginners, young and old, from far and wide on our earth are given, in groups of similar standard, the teaching by the best selected tutors to play the music of the masters. These are from early centuries of European history to our present day composers:

Dance music from the courts  or countryside,  folk song arrangements, or simple Bach & other tunes for those progressing fast. Details of style, ornamentation, are for daily tutorials, the music for which we prepare before, to be ready for the teaching. This is the most wonderful start to each day. 

Exhausted and happy, fresh baked morning tea gives energy for the rest of the day’s diverse groups to attend and play. 

Important is the care, on site accommodation, and very good food needs based catering, in the school refectory, where we meet, eat with tutors and everyone.

Every night we provide a concert. The wonderful tutors open the first night. Each concert is a rich selection of solo or group or often humor & fun.

The final concert in the beautiful Art Gallery includes everyone, the joyful young teens - and younger-, the best piece of each group, and finally all participants in a wonderful double choir grand work.

Music making is wonderful food for soul, body, socially-be there.

Orpheus Music grand recorder events in Armidale NSW branch out in my memory like a vast spiralling galaxy in space-time. 

1998. A master class on Bach flute sonatas, reading/transposing flute music for alto recorder, thunderstorm and mass group photo of participants are grainy black and white recollections.

2000 at NEGGS. Call of the Four Winds Festival. Playing Brazilian and original pieces in the World Music concert. Improvising with Linsey Pollak was a sensational experience. It was always great to meet up with international guests and the amazing band of gifted Australian teachers/players and the forever enthusiastic recorder and early music fraternity. We performed Australian contemporary music in a church to the haunting nocturnal sonic backdrop of disturbed, lowing cattle and burbling cicadas. With impeccable timing, Zana gave birth to her first child, Shah, on the Wednesday, the Festival day-off! One of my class student performances began in the gymnasium, then paraded to the swimming pool, students jumped in the water and walked from the shallow to the deep end until completely submerged - playing continuously (plastic recorders only)!

2005 was my opportunity to run/co-ordinate the children’s section of the Festival. I worked with a group of incredible tutors, including clown and entertainer extraordinaire, Terry Cole. I was fortunate to be part of the opening Festival concert, devised and directed by Linsey Pollack. Five of us came to Armidale a week early to rehearse. 

2011 at PLC was my first Recorder Boutique. A family of prominent Boobook owls joined us in a shaded tree on the PLC campus. Daily work on Technique and Repertoire was grist for the mill, with many well attended blackboard concerts. Hard working and enthused students soaked it all in. Playing jazz with Marion Lustig and others was fun. My Beach Boy arrangements for large ensemble were popular. 

2017 Boutique was a week of warm weather, and again, very diligent and committed students. A joy to work with keen adults and lively youth group. Loved jamming on the electric recorders with Ryan Williams. Tutors performed the wonderful Boismortier voice flute quintet (announced by me mistakenly as by Loeillet; diplomatically corrected by Ruth Wilkinson) on Morgan recorders. 

Armidale is such a beautiful semi-rural city. Being part of the Orpheus Recorder Boutiques, and many Orpheus recorder extravaganzas over time, has always been enriching and exciting. It’s an excellent way for all performers, students and teachers, to reflect, learn and network. The Boutiques are inspiring, superbly planned and well organised. I recommend booking for the 2019 experience.

In 2017 I attended my first ORB. I wondered if I should be going and felt some doubt.

After a wobbly start I settled down and found that it was exactly where I should be. Along with other like minded people furthering their knowledge and abilities. I had a wonderful time and stepped up to the challenge and hurdled the bounderies. The best part was returning home and realising the leap in my skills. I was playing better and in my mind I had the tutors voices echo the advice of the course.

I have now attended my second ORB and in two weeks will register my third. Don't doubt yourself, do it for yourself.

A huge thank you to you both for the smooth running of what for me was a stand-out Orpheus.  I loved all my classes and all my tutors.  I have written to each of them to thank them personally for their efforts and their generosity and professionalism. 

Ruth and Kamala are such reliable, wonderful resources and always run great classes with terrific music selections. 

Antonio’s Byrd small ensemble was a real stand-out for me, with his holistic approach to everything we needed to know to interpret and successfully perform our Byrd Fantasia #2. 

It was an enormous privilege for me to be part of each of their classes, but particularly Antonio’s.  I do hope you bring him back again for a future Orpheus.

I am enjoying playing in my new bass and sampling my new music…. My Hervey Bay Tootlers group will undoubtedly benefit from my experience and purchases!

I have thoroughly enjoyed the two Orpheus Boutiques I have attended and have come home feeling enriched and highly motivated to put into practice the many tips and skills provided by my most able and talented Recorder Tutors.  I am looking forward with great anticipation to the Boutique of 2020.  I would not miss it for the world and I recommend the experience to anyone interested in Recorder playing.  I assure you, you will not be disappointed!

A wonderful course, very friendly and well organised into groups of similar experience so I felt I fitted in straight away. World class tutors ensured that I learned lots about both technique and repertoire.  Three different groups a day meant that I got to experience different size ensembles, and lots of music that I hadn't played before. I loved the evening concerts and the tutor concert alone is worth coming for.  Great to have the shop to browse a huge amount of music, and to try out new instruments. I love it, and will definitely be back!

There are two amazing things about this course: the quality of the tutors, who come from all over the world and are really top of their game; and the organisers who are very approachable, responsive and extremely competent. It all adds up to a great week of learning and playing in a lovely atmosphere and a lovely setting. 

I would like to say how much I enjoyed ORB 2019.

This was my first time in Australia - 3 weeks staying with family and friends, the middle week of which was at the Orpheus Recorder Boutique in Armidale - an amazing experience! I am only sorry that I wasn't able to avail myself of the extended days after the course.

I was made to feel very welcome by all, and needn't have worried about being out of my depth in the group. Tuition was top notch - offering moments of great insight and also great hilarity; and the enthusiasm and support of all present was very catching!  Music was in every little corner of the school - impromptu pop-up concerts, blackboard concerts and just people practicing or playing in informal groups,  there were just not enough hours in the day to do all the playing I wanted! 

The course was very well organised, and I was especially appreciative of the shuttle to PLC from the local airport. The shop was very well stocked,  the only downside was my luggage weight limit for the journey home!

I would highly recommend this course to any  recorder player in Australia or even those who wish to travel from further afield! Would I do it again (?)- finances permitting - most definitely!

I really enjoyed the Orpheus Recorder Boutique (ORB) held in Armidale this year; an intense week of learning, playing and listening.  The tutors were all fantastic recorder players and educators, who were gracious in their teaching and encouragement, no matter our level of playing ability.  The week was very well organised, in fact Zana kept me up to date from the moment I signed up until arrival.  The range of sheet music on sale at the Boutique was the largest I had ever seen, and an extremely successful temptation for me.  There was also a large number of instruments and accessories for sale.  Orpheus, thank you for organising such an inspiring event.  I would highly recommend the ORB to anyone who is crazy about the recorder and wishes to improve on their technique, be motivated and to meet like-minded people.

Orpheus not only seems to be THE yearly meeting point for recorder players of all ages and from all over Australia (and far beyond!), but also nurtures the next generation of recorder players and music lovers at the same time: during my first teaching experience at the Recorder Boutique I got to meet talented young players, enthusiastic and inexhaustible (!) grown-ups and a group of the most lovely and supportive tutors, excellently guided by Zana. 

During the daily sessions and by participating in big ensembles everyone receives a great deal of input and walks home with a bag full of new ideas (participants and tutors alike). The focus on sharing, music-making and helping each other throughout all levels and groups I have taught was impressive and heartwarming.

Go there, if you get the chance!

Just to let you know that I thoroughly enjoyed myself at the 2020 ORB in Armidale. The music my tutors had chosen was great. The people in my groups were all very pleasant. All in all a very successful week.

Orpheus 2020

This was my third Orpheus experience and I found it invigorating, challenging, highly educative and thoroughly enjoyable!  The groups to which I was assigned were led by very competent tutors from whom I gleaned many useful ideas and techniques to implement when reading the music and playing the recorder.  The nightly performances were outstanding and most entertaining!  Many thanks!

This January, my daughter Bonnie and I attended our first Orpheus Recorder Boutique. One of the things I love most about music is how it brings people together. I loved spending the week with so many friendly, supportive and encouraging people (tutors, organisers and participants included). Hearing everyone play in the many concerts was a real highlight for me. Performing in them was also an absolute treat. It was great to hear and play such a huge variety of repertoire for the recorder. I particularly enjoyed the very creative interpretations of Yoshimine’s ‘Mudai’ by the Under 18s and the improvisations by the Under 12s in their pop-up concert.

A huge thank you to the tutors for their endless kindness, patience, humour, and expertise of course! Even with the heat and busy schedules, they were always very approachable and happy to help with any queries, questions, musical problems, etc. I learnt a great deal from all of them.

Coming in at the 25-year mark, Bonnie and I got to experience a course run like a well-oiled machine. I thought the combination of small and large chamber ensembles and technique classes worked really well. As the Mum of a younger player, I would also like to add how fantastic I thought the youth stream was. Bonnies’ tutors were all wonderfully skilled at challenging her to try new things without it seeming hard. She had a lot of fun whilst learning a lot! Thank you, Orpheus Music Team.

So, in preparation for next time, I will practice:

•          The set works…even more
•          Getting MUCH quicker at putting multiple instruments together and packing them up again, so that I have more than 5 minutes for morning tea! (Being a flute player is so much easier)
•          Exercising restraint when in the shop! Maybe the trickiest of all of the above!

This has by far been one of the best recorder experiences ever!!!!

Everybody in the recorder world here is so nice.

I loved the fact that the Blackboard concerts were so inclusive and basically everybody played in at least one.

Thank you so much for having us. We really enjoyed it.

Ps. we want to come back every single year from now on.

This year's post-course was a wonderful experience. I went into it feeling exhausted from the ORB20 week but am very glad I stayed. We played one-to-a-part so all the players were capable musicians. Joris chose pieces that were both complex to work on and a joy to play. We were given the parts in advance so everyone had time to prepare and we worked on the fine details with Joris all weekend. I felt very fortunate to be able to benefit further from his experience as a recorder player and ensemble director. The final performances were extremely satisfying and we are hoping to play one of the pieces in the first blackboard concert next year.
(About the post-course with Joris van Goethem)

This year was my second time at Orpheus.

Firstly, I was incredibly lucky to be there because of the devastating bush fires which were occurring at the time on the south coast. Remarkably I made it all the way from Merimbula to Armidale by public transport. On arrival at PLC I was greeted and supported by friends (new and old) who ably assisted me to settle in. A big thank you to you all.

I enjoyed all the sessions and gained so much from the tutors who were extremely good. We covered all the set material and I can honestly say I can now play them so much better! The opportunity to play in the Chamber ensemble was also a highlight.

Congratulations to Zana and her team for organising such a marvellous event. I felt very much part of the “recorder family”.

Kay Scrivener, 27 January 2020

Jan 2020

Here is a huge vote of thanks to Joris van Goethem, for all he achieved with us in the extra weekend course after ORB. This was one of the most valuable classes I've ever been in!

It was such a high level of music-making, where the superbly insightful teaching just picked us all up, and carried us along to levels that I think surprised us all!!

More specifically, I want to say thanks for helping us to imagine more exciting, grander, and emotionally powerful ways to hear the music in our heads, and then actually play it....

That was a wonderful gift that you brought to all our works Joris - trusting your emotional instinct about the character, the mood, the emotional intent of each section, and then precisely directing the articulation, dynamics, contrasts and voicing, to make sure those musical ideas became so audible/tangible to everyone in the room....

That was really a new door opening for me - very exciting and empowering!!

And finally, a further thanks to the Orpheus Music Team, for their dedication in organising these summer schools. The experience provides the best tuition and the richest music-making of the year for many of us - perhaps most of us....

Thanks Zana and Peter for all the amazing organisational and inspirational work you have done for the 2020 Orpheus Boutique and all the gatherings / courses over the past 25 years. Much appreciated!!!!

Rod