Not another appeal! Unfortunately, yes this is just what this is. We have to raise an estimated £4000 to make our heating system fit for purpose. Only one of our 3 boilers is working. We need all 3 working to heat the church during winter concerts and services. The boilers have been in place for 10 years + and are still perfectly serviceable but the pipework is Victorian and corrosive residue from the inside of the pipes is blocked pumps and valves. Some of the pipes have corroded right through (see photograph below) and need replacing completely.
To prevent future problems, we need to change our open heating system to a closed system with a pressure vessel which will enable the system to be primed with anticorrosives to prevent further corrosion and sludge accumulation.
Even with our one boiler on night and day (which it is at the moment) the temperature seldom gets above 13 °C. There is an additional domestic boiler at the back of the church which heats the choir vestry and the toilets – and these you may have noticed are very warm – but this boiler cannot hope to heat the church.
We have young children and frail elderly people who use the church and all of us have felt the cold. We want to increase the use of the church further for outside groups and we need to make sure the church is warm and welcoming not just metaphorically but also physically.
Donations, large and small will all be welcome. The Church’s funds are already stretched. We must go ahead with the boiler repairs now but to do this we will need to borrow money from our depleted church reserves which must be repaid. Donations can be made by cheque (please make out to Richmond with Hudswell PCC and mark Boiler Appeal on the back) or by using Internet banking (Richmond with Hudswell PCC sort code 40 – 38 – 19 A/C 50701793 referencing the donation Boiler Appeal). If you are eligible please Gift Aid your donation which increases the value by 25% at no cost to you.
Please help keep our church warm! If you have any queries about donations or the boilers themselves please don’t hesitate to contact Peter Trewby (07885) 347736, Graham Barber or David Frankton.
Thank you

Little Rainbows meets EVERY THURSDAY IN TERM TIME.   Very friendly helpers and a great atmosphere.  Do come along and join us.  All are welcome.  

 

SPEND VALENTINE’S DAY IN THE COMPANY OF THE ROMANTICS – AND A LITTLE MOZART

St Mary’s Richmond is delighted to welcome the Schiehallion Horn Trio to Richmond on Friday 14 February at 7. 30 pm. Named after a Scottish mountain famed for its scientific importance in assisting the calculation of the earth (an experiment performed a century ago), the members of the trio are themselves equally celebrated.

Chris Griffiths - French horn
Chris has been a member of Royal Northern Sinfonia for over 20 years. He has now returned to the freelance world, still based in Tyneside, playing with orchestras and ensembles all over the UK.
After studying with the legendary Barry Tuckwell at the Royal Academy of Music for three years, Chris played alongside Michael Thompson in the BBC SSO for a further 3 years.
During his stay in Scotland, he was appointed Principal Horn with the SCO and played with every music ensemble and orchestra in Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen.

Chris has conducted many events in the concert calendar of Royal Northern Sinfonia’s associated amateur ‘Cobweb Orchestra’ – of which he was co-founder. In his Music Workshops, Chris has a huge collection of Belleplates (a type of hand bell), mini djembes, Turkish drums and his own French horn, to provide a unique formula.

Ten years ago Chris elected to undergo bi-lateral, below knee amputations to remedy crippling effects of the neurological disease CMT. He is now busier than ever, having benefited from working at Sage Gateshead, with its amazing accessibility, also with support from Musicians Benevolent Fund ("Help Musicians"), The Royal Society of Musicians, Motability and Access to Work.

Martin Hughes - violin
Martin Hughes studied the violin with Leonard Hirsch at the Royal College of Music as a Foundation and Leverhulme Scholar winning the Stoutzker Prize in memory of Albert Sammons, the College’s premier prize for the violin. He made his Wigmore Hall debut with duo partner Simon Nicholls and has given notable concerts and recitals at home and abroad. As a long-time member of Northern Sinfonia in Newcastle he was section principal and subsequently associate leader, partnering world famous violinists Wolfgang Schneiderhan, Vladimir Spivakov and Günther Pichler in the double and triple concertos of J S Bach, also featuring as soloist on CD, BBC Radio 3 and television.

As Head of Strings at the Royal Conservatoire of Scotland (RSAMD) in Glasgow, he presided over the renaissance of the Strings Department. At this time he was invited onto the ARD Munich International Competition jury.

In 2003 he was appointed Head of Strings at Bedford School, leading one of the finest departments in the UK.

Since moving back to Northumberland in 2016, Martin has become chairman of Hexham and District Music Society, joint artistic director of Hexham Abbey Festival and leader, artist and programme consultant of Lakeland Sinfonia in Kendal, Cumbria.

Martin plays amongst others, a particularly special William E Hill and Sons’ violin of 1892, thought to be the work of Charles François Langonet who moved from Villaume’s famous workshop in Paris to work for the Hill family in London in the late 19th century.

​David Murray - piano
David Murray has been recognised as one of the North East’s most acclaimed pianists, and is in constant demand as a soloist, accompanist and chamber music partner.
He has been a regular accompanist for David Haslam, Sir Thomas Allen, Ian Partridge, Bradley Creswick, and Alison Pearce, with whom he has appeared in recitals all over the world.

He is also well known as a choral trainer and conductor, and is permanent condu