CREATIVE CABBIES
HIP HOP ON THE ROOF AND GO FOR A SPIN IN MANCHESTER
A dance company stopped spectators in their tracks with a breakdance routine... on top of a black cab. Avant Garde showed off their routine for their production of Taxi out- side the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester city centre. Featuring street the- atre mixed with dance, the show uses a spe- cially-reinforced black cab which can with- stand the dancers’ moves. Created by Avant Garde and arts company Remarkable Productions, it aims to tell the story of a cab driver’s bizarre pas- sengers over the course of a day. The performance was part of Decibel, a per- forming arts showcase taking place across Manchester.
The event allows new arts groups to show off performances in poetry, dance, drama and spoken word.
CABBIE HAS ‘SOLUTION’ TO BUCKS STREET LIGHTING PROBLEM
Photos courtesy of Avant Garde/ Remarkable Productions
A former taxi driver from Manchester believes he has the answer to Buck- inghamshire’s street lighting problems. Philip Scott-Shurety, 45, has developed a device called Span- switch II, which he has tested on roads in the north of England. He contacted Bucks County Council (BCC) after reading the Advertiser’s Switch the Lights On campaign against plans to switch off 10,000 more street- lights to save cash. Mr Scott-Shurety set up the company Streets Ahead Innova- tions UK, or SAIK UK, following an accident. He told the Bucking- hamshire Advertiser: “I lost the sight in one eye in an accident three years ago, and I have found it really dif- ficult to drive at night if there are no street lights.
“I’ve always enjoyed designing things and
coming up with possi- ble new products, so I started working on a new idea to improve street lighting.”
The Spanswitch II is triggered by cars driv- ing near it.
When it senses a car driving past, it switch- es on a group of between 20 and 30 street lights, meaning that lights are in use only when there is traf- fic on the road, limiting costs and carbon emissions.
A number of local authorities around the country have shown interest in the device. Mr Scott-Shurety is now trying to persuade BCC of its benefits. He said: “I read on the Advertiser website about the case of Elaine Stacey, who died on an unlit road in Chalfont St Peter.
I
also read about how unhappy people are about the street light- ing situation in the
county, and I think that this product could be the solution.” Peter Goode, from Ger- rards Cross, who has spoken out against BCC’s plans to turn street lights off in the past, said: “It seems like a great idea. If it is practical then it looks as if it would solve all the problems by keep- ing drivers safe and saving the county council money.
“I think BCC needs to seriously consider this idea as a solution to the street light issue. So many people are unhappy about the current plans to switch the lights off that they should be looking at alternatives, and this looks like a good one.” A BCC spokesman said no decision has yet been made regard- ing the future of street lighting in the county and that discussions abou t the issue are continuing.
FORMER CABBIE CONCERT PIANIST OPENS MUSIC SCHOOL IN PLYMOUTH
A concert pianist who came to Plymouth from Prague to work as a taxi driver has given up his cab and opened a music school.
Matej Lehocky officially opened Plymouth Piano School, based in Derriford, in September. But first Mr Lehocky, who has wowed Ply- mouth audiences with a series of well-attend- ed concerts, will be entertaining top Euro- pean ambassadors at a recital organised by Chamber of Com- merce UK - at Windsor Castle.
That he is performing at such an illustrious con- cert should come as no surprise because Mr Lehocky, who has been playing piano since he
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was four, attended the prestigious Prague Conservatory of Music, one of Europe’s top schools, gaining a diploma in 2003.
He came to Plymouth from the Czech Republic in 2005, working as a taxi driver to earn enough cash to continue his studies, but left to teach at a piano school in Wind- sor in 2009.
He told the Plymouth Herald: “I think I’ll stick to the piano. They can’t disqualify me for playing too fast.” Now he has returned to Plymouth to start his own piano school and said: “I missed Plymouth. This city gave me such a warm welcome. It was a
good part of my life so I thought I would give it another try.”
Mr Lehocky’s website is already live and people have been call- ing in at his premises. “I had a surprising number of inquiries and eleven bookings for the first term so far. I’m very pleased,” he said. Mr Lehocky said he is able to teach anyone “from three years old to 120 years old”, at his studio, in a former piano shop, which is equipped with a baby grand piano.
He is able to teach in students’ homes, par- ticularly if the student has a disability, and his repertoire includes classical music through to jazz and pop.
age those people who don’t feel very confi- dent.”
Mr Lehocky, whose favourite piece of music is Frederic Chopin’s Piano Con- certo No2, won the International Gustav Mahler Competition, in the Czech Republic, in 2001.
Matej Lehocky opened Plymouth Piano School
“Learning the piano is very easy to pick up,” he said. “For children it helps with concentra- tion and hand-eye co-ordination. There’s a
link between playing the piano and improved academic performance. And it’s a skill for life. “I wanted to start a business to encour-
Last year he was awarded the River- musik Composition Cup for the most out- standing composition at the Marlow Music Festival, and won the gold medal in the com- position category at the Maidenhead Festival of Music and Dance. He is hoping to per- form more concerts in Plymouth later this year.
PHTM NOVEMBER 2011
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