We were honoured at the end of the term to have a visit from musical Savant Derek Paravicini.
Derek is the most incredible musician; he has absolute pitch and can play a piece of music having only heard it once. He came along with his official biographer, Adam Ockelford, who wrote “In the Key of Genius: The Extraordinary Life of Derek Paravicini”. Adam is Professor of Music and Director of the Applied Music Research Centre at the University of Roehampton and is also the Founder and Trustee of The Amber Trust, a UK-wide charity that supports blind and partially sighted children and young people in their pursuit of music.
Many, many NCW students have benefited from the generosity of The Amber Trust over the years, receiving funding for instruments and
instrumental lessons. Before the concert Derek and Adam were able to meet some current NCW students who are benefiting from the Trust.
The chapel was packed with students and staff enjoying the concert, marvelling at Derek’s breath-taking talent and the speed and accuracy of his playing. After playing several incredible pieces on the piano, Derek and Adam invited requests from students and staff. Unbelievable if Derek didn’t know the piece of music, he was able to hear just a mere few bars of the music online and then play the entire piece! It is a skill that students and staff had never seen before and they were were quite literally blown away! The requests varied from Greenday, Billie Eilish to the Sound of Music…you name it, he could play it!
As part of the concert, Adam asked students for three notes. These three notes became of the starting point for a completely improvised piece of music that Derek played there and then. The piece was called the “NCW blues.” It was a real crowd pleaser and had everyone tapping their feet!
Listen below to the “NCW Blues” – we love it!
"The NCW Blues" by Derek Paravicini
Post concert, various students stayed in the chapel for impromptu duets with Derek. A once in a life time opportunity to duet with a musical Savant and one that they will not forget. Check out some of the videos below!
It was a magical morning, thank you so much to Derek and Adam for coming along and for the continued support for students from The
Amber Trust.
Photo credit: Derek Paravicini
