Radford Charitable Trust Grant

We are delighted to share the news that Chapel Street Quartet has received funding from the Radford Charitable Trust to bring live chamber music into two Cornish primary schools this November.

The Quartet will visit Chacewater Community Primary School and Penpol School in Hayle, giving two concerts at each school. Through imaginative and interactive performances, the children will be introduced to the instruments of the string quartet and explore some of the different elements that bring music to life.

The concerts will encourage active listening and demonstrate how musicians communicate without words, respond to one another as they play, and work together through close cooperation and non-verbal communication.

We are very grateful to the Radford Charitable Trust for making these concerts possible and enabling us to share live music with children in their own schools. Katy and Danny are already teaching children at both schools, so the concerts will also engage with their young string players, and, we hope, inspire more children to begin learning an instrument!

Music in a Summer Rose Garden

Photo credits: Patrick Gale

In June, Chapel Street Quartet were delighted to perform a very special concert at Trevilley, the home of novelist Patrick Gale and his husband, sculptor Aidan Hicks.

The concert took place in Aidan’s studio, which had been transformed from a working space filled with tools and stone into an intimate setting for chamber music.

The programme began with one of Haydn’s late quartets and continued with William Grant Still’s Lyric Quartette; three musical portraits of friends entitled The Sentimental One, The Quiet One and The Jovial One. We concluded with Borodin’s Second String Quartet, written as a gift to his wife to mark their 25th wedding anniversary. The cello features prominently in the work, and our cellist, Danny Poznansky Jones, delighted us all with her beautiful playing. A family of owls also kept the quartet listening especially carefully, occasionally making themselves heard from their perch above the stage during the second half!

The audience had an opportunity to explore Trevilley’s stunning gardens, including the country’s westernmost walled rose garden. The combination of live music, Patrick’s incredible canapés and the beautiful surroundings made it a truly memorable evening. The concert formed part of Trevilley’s June opening in aid of the National Garden Scheme and its charities.

We are hugely grateful to Patrick and Aidan for their warmth and hospitality, and to everyone who joined us for this celebration of music and gardens. Patrick has already invited Chapel Street Quartet back for two concerts next summer on Thursday 24 June 2027: a 3.30 pm matinee and a 7.30 pm evening performance. We will let you know when tickets go on sale, as numbers will be limited!

Meet the Musicians - Nat Jones, First Violinist

Both Nat and his sister Danny, CSM's cellist, started music early at home and whilst their parents were not players themselves, they were very supportive of the siblings' musical talent.  Nat's first instrument was the piano, then along came his love for the violin.  He attended Chetham’s School of Music in Manchester and later graduated from the Royal College of Music.

Nat then worked as a freelance violinist based in London. During his time in the city, he played with the English Chamber Orchestra at the Royal Albert Hall, made recordings at Abbey Road and Air Studios, and toured with productions across the UK and Europe. He also took an overseas break teaching English in Asia.

Having been born in Cornwall, he was eventually drawn back to the county, partly to teaching with the Cornwall Music Service Trust from 2016 -2019. His work in Cornwall now includes leading the Chapel Street Ensemble and the Cornwall Quartet, playing with the Three Spires Orchestra and the Jopes Ensemble as well as touring with the Christmas Orchestra.  He enjoys freelance work both in and out of the county.  This summer he has been playing with Music on the Moor, the new music festival based in Bodmin, and, as a contrast, in the band supporting the production of “Anything Goes”  and “Dear Evan Hansen” at the Minack Theatre.

Among the works featuring in our Autumn 2026 series, Nat highlights a contemporary piece by the American composer and violinist, Caroline Shaw. Recipient of the Pulitzer Prize in Music, Shaw blends classical music with folk, pop and experimental sounds (fulfilling a request for more contemporary music was made at our coffee morning in February!) 

Nat is also looking forward to performing one of Borodin’s two Quartets. Borodin was one of Russia's most prominent composers of the 19th century and Nat is fascinated by how he found the time to compose his fine Romantic works alongside his principal job of teaching and research in the field of chemistry!