A big thank you.

Last Thursday was an eventful day. Note the word eventful. I organised an event and it happened last Thursday.

A few years ago, I was approached by someone to help in the Polish Underground Movement Study Trust’s archives (more about them later) and while there I was asked what I could do.  I had just stopped teaching and had been librarian for a year, so I thought I would be able to help in their library. I also casually mentioned that I’d done a bit of fundraising in the past, mainly for St John Ambulance, when the lovely director of the Study Trust leapt at the idea and asked me if I could do some for the Trust. I blithely agreed to organise a concert, and then was totally stymied.

 Lockdown. I could neither work in the library or enter documents on a database (which is what I actually ended up doing) nor organise anything which involved gathering people together.

But thankfully all that is in the past now, and earlier this year a friend of mine and I decide to organise a concert for a completely different purpose.  That didn’t work out, but then I remembered my erstwhile promise.  And I set to work.

The spring concert was to have been in Leighton House.  So, all the groundwork had been done. I hired it for the evening of St Andrew’s day.  I thought that would be a great date for all the Andrews I knew. They could come and celebrate with me. How wrong could I be? In the end, only my son agreed to spend his namesday here. Never mind.  He brought lots of his friends, so that was good.

Then I had to hire a musician.  Again, not as easy as I had imagined. I didn’t want a straightforward piano concert; I needed something different. In the past I had booked Michael Law, of the Piccadilly Dance Orchestra, who had done a wonderful Cole Porter cabaret for me at the Polish Embassy, but he informed me that he had retired. Retired – and not to be persuaded to do a Sinatra.

But then I remembered the wonderful and charming JP Ekins. He plays beautifully, but his USP is that he talks.  He tells stories, about the music, interspersed with anecdotes about himself. Absolutely delightful. Luckily, he agreed and we were set.

So far so good.  But then we had to sell tickets.  To make it all worthwhile it was agreed they would be £50 each. Aargh. 

But I persevered.  I managed to work out how to use Eventbrite. Other people did it. Why not me? After about two days I wished I’d never started, but eventually I overcame my reluctance to talk to a chatbot and finally got through to a human being. Who, with great politeness and patience, talked me through the whole process in words of one syllable. What a sense of achievement!

Sending out the invitations was the next big hurdle.  Hundreds of emails. I should have done them by post but the price of stamps!! I had hoped for some sponsorship before the show, one person did offer, and then suddenly withdrew, another couple of individuals suggested something and did not follow up, disappointingly, and finally one person offered to pay for the expenses of the programme.  That was a relief, to say the least. (On the day of the show some people suggested I apply to them for larger donations which was wonderful.)

But for a few weeks ticket sales were low. One or two a day.  I only had room for a hundred people, but luckily my friends and family rallied round. Some even came from other parts of England and Wales. On the morning of the day itself I had a sold approximately 65 tickets.  I had broken even, but the profits were not going to make a huge splash. Yet by the time the doors were opened there were about 15 more people, some queuing to buy tickets there and then.  I am so used to being in a family who plans things well in advance, I think I found this last-minute spontaneity it quite surprising. But very refreshing. And gratifying.

Maybe they had only heard about it at the last moment, thanks to the kind intervention of the British Poles Portal, which advertised it for a few days beforehand.

All this preamble of course gives you no idea about the concert itself.

As people entered, they could look at Leighton House itself.  It is such a beautiful, extraordinary place. Pictures, peacocks, peculiarities.

 Once we had all taken our seats, JP approached the grand piano, and the atmosphere was palpably electric. Flamboyant, eccentrically dressed, tuxedo top and unmatching trousers, and the most beautiful, shiniest patent leather shoes, which stood him in good stead as he worked those pedals hard.

For two hours we were spellbound. Here is the programme.

Mozart – Sonata in Bb, K.333

I Allegro
II Andante cantabile
III Allegretto grazioso
Liszt – Ballade No.2 in B Minor (

Chopin – Nocturne in C# Minor, Op.27/1
Chopin – Scherzo in C# Minor, Op.39
Debussy – Clair de Lune (
Addinsell – Warsaw Concerto

I had especially asked him for the Warsaw concerto as it is one of the most immediate pieces of music I have heard. I know that not everyone who came to the concert would have known it, but I was (and am) convinced that everyone who heard it would understand it. JP’s commentary ensured that anyway.

He played beautifully, giving it his absolute all.  I think all the middle-aged ladies in the audience felt quite concerned at one point as he seemed to be utterly emotionally drained and exhausted.  Magnificent. His charisma enveloped us all.

After the concert everyone was enthusing about how JP made them hear the music so differently, so colourfully. Enchanting.

In the end I was absolutely thrilled with the turnout and the reception he received.

Initially this concert was intended to commemorate the many volunteers who devoted a vast amount of their retirement
years to working in the archives. especially Mrs Marzenna Schejbal, whoeven at the age of 97 came regularly to Leopold Road and was well-known and immensely popular in Polish circles. Others may have known her from her regular attendance at the Cenotaph and the many interviews she gave about her experiences in the Warsaw
Uprising and her horrific time in Oberlangen Prisoner of War Camp. I have written about her before on this blog.

JP, I cannot thank you enough for the atmosphere you created, in the beautiful confines of the gallery hall of Leighton House. Everyone was thrilled with the total sensory impact of the evening. Sublime surroundings. Sublime music.

I would like to include sublime refreshments in the interval, but they were serviceable rather than extraordinary.

But I was immensely impressed with the staff at Leighton House.  I was not expecting the welcome they gave me and my guests, nor their practical help with the serving of the wine and pretzels. Thank you, Sam and Renata and all the staff – you were really special.

Thank you to everyone who came, and to those of you who didn’t come but donated, and to those who have offered more.

Thank you to all of you who helped in practical ways and encouraged me to persevere.

I was on such a high on Thursday night and for the whole of Friday, that by Saturday I just lay on the sofa and succumbed. 

So, this blog post is my big thank you to everyone.

If you would like to know more then please let me know.
Donations may be made directly to PUMST HSBC BANK SORT CODE: 40-22-26 A/C NO: 44 13 50 32

Thank you.

Basia

JP Ekins http: //www.jpekinspianist.com/

Leighton House https://www.rbkc.gov.uk/museums/

Media Partner https://www.britishpoles.uk/en/

Sponsors: http://www.apkmuk.co.uk/

https://www.hallgrove.co.uk/

Donors: https://fundacjalanckoronskich.org/en/the-second-foundation/

The Relief Society for Poles