The constant rain throughout last Friday did not prevent the members and friends of the Shipston-on-Stour Music Society from travelling to the Methodist Church in the evening for the first recital of 2026 featuring local soprano Robyn Pullen accompanied by pianist Charles Matthews. In her introduction Robyn emphasised the need to introduce new music to audiences but to balance this with the well-known pieces. “Getting to know you” from “The King and I” was an appropriate choice to begin and immediately one was impressed by the rich tone quality of Robyn’s voice. The first part of her programme continued with well-known songs from “The King and I”, “The Wizard of Oz”, “South Pacific” and “Mary Poppins” ending with a medley from “The Sound of Music”. After a break for refreshments the second part of Robyn’s programme was a mixed bag of well-known operatic arias beginning with “O mio babbino caro” by Puccini and ending with “Show me” and “I could have danced all night” from “My Fair Lady” (Lerner and Loewe) and “Think of me” from “Phantom of the Opera” (Andrew Lloyd Webber).

Throughout the evening Robyn’s love of singing to an audience was the main feature of her performance. Her powerful voice filled the church to the rafters and softer, expressive passages with clear diction could also be heard by all. For each song she has a natural ability to create the required mood with facial expressions and hand movements to captivate her audience. However she would be the first to admit that as a singer one is very dependent on having a good accompanist. Charles Matthews is an excellent pianist but also a superb accompanist which is an additional skill - as is his ability to make the electric piano sound like a Steinway! Finally Robyn convinced the assembled gathering that it was time for them to sing! The result was interesting but lacked a certain “je ne sais quoi”! However, it was all good fun and an excellent evening so, after three curtain calls, we allowed our performers to retire.