Last Sunday I visited Lasalle College of the Arts to work on some quartet material with Rick Smith, Stacey-Jane Douglas and James Heng. Even though I flirted with the idea of studying a Lasalle after my National Service, and subsequently taught several students who were interested in studying there, I had never actually visited the campus prior to this gathering.
It is a gorgeous and inspiring campus and I envy the students enrolled there.
I am very grateful to Stacey for organizing the get-together and I am also very thankful that we could find a time to meet in spite of my nightmarish schedule.
It was also nice to meet Rick Smith. I have always seen him around classical guitar events but we never formally cross paths or worked on any material together. He’s a really nice guy and an exceptional musician.
And as always, it was nice to work with my long-term partner in crime, James Heng. It just occurred to me that we’ve known each other for around 10 years now!
We worked on a variety of music together, but one of the most notable pieces we tried was a quartet arrangement of Quantock Prospect by Patrick Benham, which Patrick specially arranged for Stacey.
Lately, I’ve relished working with creative people again. Having started my career in creative industries, the creative professional and musician in me feels at home working with creative people in creative surroundings. The no-holds barred atmosphere of free expression and experimentation is a breath of fresh air.
I’m supposed to host and organise the next meeting and I’m looking forward to it!
Really lovely article!, the pics are great have just shared it with P. Benham
Thanks! Please thank him on our behalf too.
This really gives a great insight into your wonderful creative environment. Thanks too for the mention of my piece. It makes me feel part of the project despite being so far away!
Hi Patrick,
Thanks for sharing your wonderful music with us. We enjoyed it immensely. I’m looking forward to performing it with the rest of the group!