Trio Paradis premiere work by newly discovered Frome composer Dora Bright

TO celebrate International Women’s Day, next month’s Trio Paradis Café Concert at Christ Church is Daughters of the Muse: music by female composers, including Frome local Dora Bright.

Originally from Sheffield, Dora married Wyndham Knatchbull in 1892 and lived at Babington House for another 60 years. She had been a concert pianist and later enjoyed considerable national and even international popularity as a composer.

“At Babington House, she ran a music theatre company, The Babbington Strollers, which put on charity performances of Gilbert and Sullivan operettas,” says one of the organisers of the event, Jacquelyn Bevan. “Dora also had a highly successful collaboration with Adeline Genée, founder of the Royal Academy of Dance, writing music for many dance performances.

“Trio Paradis will perform a brand-new arrangement for piano trio of the beautiful slow movement of Dora Bright’s Piano Concerto in A minor, on Thursday 7th March at 1.15pm.”