The Mistress Spectacle Maker, Mrs Gloria McGregor supported
by the Master, acted as hosts for afternoon tea at the Bakers Hall and the
Mistress and I were delighted to receive an invitation to join them. And what a
very special afternoon it turned out to be.
The primary purpose of the event was to raise awareness of
hearing loss, a subject very dear to the heart of the Mistress Spectacle Maker
and in line with her Company’s objective of Better Vision, Better Senses, For
Life. To help her in her task, the Mistress was joined by two professional
musicians, teachers and campaigners who work with deaf and hard of hearing
musicians across the UK and abroad. All three of them had a very personal story
to tell as each are profoundly deaf.
The Mistress herself opened the lecture with her own story
about the decline in her hearing over a number of years. As a Head Teacher
surrounded by young children every day, the slow but steady loss of this sense
must have been devastating and she took us through all the highs and lows with
great candour. She is now an accomplished lip-reader and teaches other adults
this vital skill. She spoke with such power and commitment it was a real
revelation about overcoming difficult odds.
Taking on from these opening comments, Ruth (who was born
deaf) and Elouise (who lost her hearing aged seven) explained to us the work
they do with young children and adults who are struggling with their deafness.
But before that they played to us on the flute and violin the most beautiful
piece by Sibelius (see picture) and to the highest of standards. Simply
wonderful.
Their work – which was illustrated by video – brings them
into contact with a range of people, mostly musicians, and the results they
achieve are exceptional. They have worked with many renowned musicians, some
deaf, some not (including Dame Evelyn Glennie) through organisations such as
Music of Life Foundation, Decibels, Audiovisability and Deaf Awareness. They
have even worked with an international Dressage champion who cannot hear the
music as she competes. Truly inspirational.
More music followed before we joined together for tea and
light refreshments in the Charter Gallery. This gave us a chance to speak to
Ruth and Elouise in person about their work. It was a very noisy room so they
both conversed via signing and we were so moved by their enthusiasm.
Our sincere thanks go to the Master and Mistress Spectacle
Maker, their Wardens and Clerk for making the afternoon so extraordinary. But a
special thanks must go to Ruth and Eloise for their remarkable story. We wish
them every success.
No comments:
Post a Comment