Conference 2021 - Gala Dinner Dance

On Saturday evening there will be a Gala Dinner Dance in the Metropole Hotel.  The evening will include a three-course silver service dinner.  The theme for the evening will be "The Speakeasy" and you are welcome to dress accordingly if you so wish - perhaps Peaky Blinders, The Great Gatsby, Gangster and Moll, Flapper, Lounge Lizard or even as Bertie Wooster and the Drone Club.

The cash bar will open at 18.30hrs and whilst you wait for your meal you will be entertained by harpists Heather and Fern Brooks.  

For a taste of their music, click here.

The meal will be served at 19.30hrs and to accompany the meal Francisco Garcia de Paredes will play background jazz guitar.  Listen to Francisco performing here.

After the meal The Whiskey Sours will take over the entertainment - a close harmony female trio (duo on this occasion), specialising in music from the 30's to the 70's.  For an idea of their style click here.

More about our artistes:

Heather Brooks - Heather started learning the harp aged 10 with Professor Daphne Boden. She was awarded a GMDS Scholarship to attend the Purcell School of Music in 2012 and is a beneficiary of the Robert Bouffler Music Trust. Having gained a Distinction in her Grade 8 exam, aged 15, Heather went on to win the Purcell School Student Showcase and she performed her programme at the Wigmore Hall. In her final year, Heather was Head Girl.   May 2015, representing Titsey and District Rotary Club Heather was awarded 3rd place in The National  Rotary Young Musician.  In July 2015 she was awarded the long-term loan of the “Charles Steer Promenaders’ Salvi Aurora Harp’’ by the Cherubim Music Trust. Heather was section leader of the National Youth Harp Orchestra who premiered her composition ‘’World Harp Symphony’’ at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle.  In 2018 Heather was awarded a scholarship to continue her music studies at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama with Imogen Barford. She is now in her final year, planning her Masters in performance. 

Fern Brooks - Fern started learning the harp aged 8 having been inspired by her sister Heather.  Fern was awarded a GMDS Scholarship to attend the Purcell School of Music in 2016 to study with Charlotte Seale. Fern also studies Piano and is working towards her grade 8 in both instruments. Fern is studying for her GCSE’s.  Fern is a beneficiary of the Robert Bouffler Music Trust. She has performed solos at Cadogan Hall and the Menuhin Hall and as a member of The National Harp Orchestra of GB. Fern also enjoys playing for residents at local care homes. Fern has competed in acrobatic gymnastics in the Regional Squad and she competed in trampolining at National level and was in the top 8 of the National finals 2017.

Francisco Garcia de Paredes is a young jazz guitarist from North London currently studying at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama. Francisco draws influence from musicians like Django Reinhardt, Wes Montgomery and Charlie Parker as well as more contemporary musicians such as Kurt Rosenwinkel, Mike Moreno and Mark Turner. His dedication to the tradition as well as the more contemporary side of jazz has allowed Francisco to develop his own sound and blend hard bop lines with contemporary vocabulary, voicings and harmony. Now studying at Conservatoire level, Francisco is already working around the country, regularly playing at venues such as The Southbank Centre, Vortex Jazz Club, Kansas Smitty’s and working with organisations such as the Royal Albert Hall Trust, BBC, Tomorrow’s Warriors, Arts Council and many others. He is continuing to broaden his musical range and develop his own unique voice in the music.