top of page

1971

small.png
Ottawa The Andrew Huggett Family Ian viol

CONCERTS & EVENTS

January - Family relocates to "Sea View", on the Ise of Purbeck, Dorset, U.K..

January - Entire family is enroled at Trinity College, and the Royal College of Music, London

July - CBC documentary series, Telescope, Wales.

September - Back to Sea View and formal musical studies, Dorset.

This is the only year in which the Huggetts did not spend time in Canada.

LISTEN WHILE YOU BROWSE

Oboe Sonata in C Minor
G.F. Handel

 

The baroque oboe was derived from the eastern shawm and bombard of the middle ages and was the instrument for which Handel wrote this Sonata in C minor. Technically the instrument presents many challenges to the player. The sound tends to the uneven side, and without its modern counterpart's many keys, many fingerings are clumsy and awkward. 

Handel's music is considered some of the finest in the "high baroque" style, and he is consistently recognized as one of the greatest composers of his age. 

This 1973 recording  was produced by Jane Forner.

Andrew - baroque oboe
Margaret - harpsichord
Jennifer - bass viol

SWANAGE, DORSET

In mid-January 1971, the family set down roots in Swanage, Dorset. Usually rented by the week to summer holidaymakers, their new home, "Sea View," perched high on the windswept bluffs, offered a spectacular view of the English Channel and the Isle of Wight. Central heating was a novelty in the UK and individual coal fireplaces heated each room. In January, bedtime was a damp frigid experience only slightly improved by a mandatory hot water bottle. But spring comes early to the southern British Isles. By the end of February, and with the daffodils in full bloom, the Huggetts started practicing outdoors.
There was a set daily practice routine. Eight a.m. Breakfast was followed by an hour of group singing, after which individuals practiced various instruments until lunch. After lunch, there was an hour off followed by two hours of schooling courtesy of the Ontario Ministry of Education. Before supper, there were two more hours spent on instrumental ensemble practice. After supper was personal time.

Ottawa The Andrew Huggett Family sea view mr kade Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett

Sea View, Acton, Langton Matravers, Swanage, Dorset, UK. - an address without a number in sight! Margaret surveys the property before renting with the curmudgeonly landlord, Mr. Kade, who held a rather grandiose opinion of "his house."

Ottawa Jen Dorset 1971 The Andrew Huggett Family Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett

January. Jennifer waiting for warmer climes.

Ottawa Dorset 1 1971 recorders The Andrew Huggett Family Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett
Ottawa The Andrew Huggett Family margaret julie andrews Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett

A tribute to Julie Andrews. There is no doubt that the success of The Sound of Music helped pave the way for The Huggett Family's own musical journey 10 years later.

Outside ensemble practice. By early March, the weather in Dorset was relatively balmy.

Ottawa The Andrew Huggett Family lute dorset Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett

Andrew practicing on a lute generously loaned to him by teacher Edgar Hunt.

Ottawa Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett

A publicity shot taken at the McKenzie King Estate in Gatineau, Quebec.

Ottawa Fiona Viol Dorset 1971 Dorset 13 1971 The Andrew Huggett Family Manotick Ottawa Citizen Andrew Huggett

Fiona on the tenor viol. 

Ottawa Dorset 5 1971 The Andrew Huggett Family

Publicity shots on the Dorset downs in front of Sea View.

Ottawa Dorset 9 1971 The Andrew Huggett Family
Ottawa Dorset 10 1971 The Andrew Huggett Family.jpg

Hidden talents revealed. In this publicity shot taken with the assistance of the Huggett's milkman, you can see Sea View and the quarry worker's hamlet of Acton in the background.

img183.jpg

SNOWDONIA PARK, WALES

During the summer months, the rent at Sea View was prohibitive. Margaret's Aunt Cecil, author of over 60 Harlequin Romances under the pen-name Eleanor Farnes, and her husband Uncle Bob, who'd made a small fortune building swimming pools for the Arabs in the 1930s and 50s, generously allowed the family to summer in their Snowdonia Park cottage in Wales.  

Ottawa The Andrew Huggett Family wales

Aunt Cecil's cottage in Snowdonia National Park.

Ottawa img183_edited.jpg

Jennifer and Fiona with their pet guinea pigs. Wherever went the Huggetts, so too went the guinea pigs.

Ottawa The Andrew Huggett Family wales

The cottage's view overlooked the beautiful Mawddach Estuary.

The Andrew Huggett Family wales

Plenty of backdrops for publicity photos and one of the sunniest summers on record.

The Andrew Huggett Family wales ian bull

Ian adopts one of the local cows.

Ottawa Andrew Huggett

Directing music, one of Leslie's favorite activities.