Music Stand

THE PAUL FERGUSON WORKSHOP

FINE WOOD CARVING & GILDING Ltd

A Music Stand/Lectern: ‘Solar Flare’,

Designed and Created by Paul Ferguson MBE

In 2018 the Master Carvers Association (MCA) celebrated the tercentenary of
Thomas Chippendale Snr’s birth. To exhibit the skills of the carving craft today and at the suggestion of Luke Hughes (Luke Hughes Co Ltd), seven music stands were designed and made by members and affiliates of the Association for display and recitals.

This is the story of one of them.

Solar Flare, a music stand designed and carved by Paul Ferguson

Throughout the history of design nature has been the inspiration for decoration by designers and craftsmen alike. From flora, fauna and human forms the world around us has been the resource drawn upon for harmonious creations. In this spirit I decided to use natural references that have only become available in recent times; in this case close-up images of solar flares and rocketing plasma.

Examples of typical resource material

The design sketch; the base and platen are composed of plasma streams following lines of a magnetic field. The central ribbed section, which allows the tray to be adjusted to the required height, may be interpreted as an interference pattern or an allusion to a fret board on a musical instrument. The top is the rocketing plasma reaching its zenith.

Production

For strength, durability and sound ecological ethics English Walnut was chosen for the manufacture.

The cad drawing, used to develop the design details for the rise and fall mechanism and printed full size to use as templates for manufacture

The mock-up in pine wood to prove the viability of the mechanism to raise and lower the platen on the shaft

The construction; partly carved and machined and the blocking of the base

The ‘plasma reaching its zenith’

The ‘plasma streams following the magnetic field lines’, roughed out and ready for finishing

The mechanism to tilt the platen

Photograph by Alan Marsh alanmarsh.com

The finished music stand

The Celebrations for the Tercentenary of the birth of

Thomas Chippendale Snr

1718 - 2018

With the title Matching Patron & Maker the MCA presented a series of events curated by Lennox Cato (Lennox Cato Antiques) a contributor to the BBC 1 Antiques Roadshow and generously supported by Dino Tomasso and Raffaello Tomasso (Tomasso Brothers Fine Art), Luke Hughes (Luke Hughes Co Ltd) and Matthew & Mark Ossowski (Ossowski Antiques) and with the inestimable help of the writer, historian and art critic Huon Mallalieu.

Accompanying the exhibitions the musical ensemble ArchiCantiores (#archicantiores) headed by architect Jonathan Louth (Jonathan Louth Architects) performed with ‘Airs, Graces, Poems:  from Handel to Munden 1718 - 2018’ on occasion with guest saxophonist Tunday Akintan (@TundayAkintan).

The performances celebrated the poem ‘Quartet’ commissioned by ArchiCantiores from Paul Munden for the Master Carvers Association in 2018. Quartet is a foursome of four-line stanzas. Each stanza characterised as Cello, Viola, Violin II and Violin I, each reflecting designs of music stands by Master Carvers, combining the elemental themes represented as Earth. Water, Fire and Air with the Muses Myths and other themes represented in the music stands.

Quartet

Earth, Water, Fire, Air

1 Cello

Striding out, each fine-boned, cloven, planted hoof

marks time on bedrock, pasture, heath; a gruff

and grounded walking bass; a founding myth

that stamps its formative dominion on the earth.

2 Viola

Creatures manoeuvre within the tremulous swell—

deep violet, blue, maroon, the undulating colours

of corals constructing their rococo futures

while water music lifts from a fluted shell.

3 Violin II

A pulse, a current, a subtle, solar flicker—a flare

from the coiled, exuberant flux; harmonic torsions

of plasma channelling the ethereal dark; vibrations

along the fretted, counterpointed filaments of fire.

4 Violin I

A clean ascent, inscribing the visible grain of the air

with its poetry, its spiralling grace; each wingbeat

beating new song into being, each bird's-eyed note

of the melody intent on a distant, dizzying frontier.

The Events

5th June 2018 at Tomasso Brothers, Jermyn Street,

St James’s, SW1Y 6NY 

Titled: Myths & Muses

ArchiCantiores

Jonathan Louth baritone & Marion Wyllie mezzo soprano

with Duo Villanesca: Peter Bennett guitarist, Ana Estefanía Rodriguez Morán flautist

Jonathan Louth reading from the stand

Photograph by Dunata Solowiej

photograph by Dunata Solowiej

Paul and Jessie Ferguson in conversation

7th June 2018 at Luke Hughes Co Ltd, Savoy Court , WC2R 0EX

Titled: Carving & Making

ArchiCantiores

Jonathan Louth baritone & Marion Wyllie mezzo soprano

with Duo Giuliano-Mikeleiz: Iñigo Mikeleiz accordionist and Daryl Giuliano cellist

Photograph by Dunata Solowiej

Marion Wyllie singing from the stand

Guest saxophonist Tunday Akintan

12th June 2018 at Luke Hughes, Savoy Court, WC2R 0EX

Titled: Love and Relationships

ArchiCantiores

Jonathan Louth baritone & Marion Wyllie mezzo soprano

with Viella Duo: Marcello Deidda violinist, Katherine Clarke violist

Photograph by Dunata Solowiej

Marion Wyllie singing from the stand

21st June 2018 at Ossowski, Pimlico Road, SW1W 8PH

Titled: Instruments & Music

ArchiCantiores

Jonathan Louth baritone & Marion Wyllie mezzo soprano with Duo Correa-Andrews: Emily Andrews flautist & Francisco Correa guitarist

Paul Munden poet & Stephen O'Connor reader

Paul Ferguson talking with Paul Munden

The Music Stands on Tour

A number of stately homes and organisations such as the National Trust, the Chippendale Society and the MCA came together under the banner ‘Chippendale 300’ to celebrate his life, work and legacy. On completion of the MCA’s events the group of music stands went on tour.

In a prelude to the commemorations this music stand was used at Westminster Abbey for a service to celebrate the fiftieth anniversary of the Arts Society