One More Time....!

Emma Roberts steps out to meet the leader of The Ladies' Palm Court Orchestra

Do you enjoy curling up in front of the fire on a cold, grey winter's afternoon to watch old black and white films? Particularly the ones that feature the likes of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, dancing and singing along to such golden oldies as 'Puttin' On The Ritz' or 'Let's face the music and dance' by the inimitable Irving Berlin? If you do, then you might be a closet fan of 'light music', also known as 'Palm Court Music' - without even realising it !

'Light music was popular in the UK from around the turn of the 19th century until the birth of pop and the arrival of The Beatles in the early 1960s. It's a very easy listening, tuneful style of music, that's light and uncomplicated but not to the extent that it becomes wallpaper !', Ann Adams, leader of the Ladies Palm Court Orchestra explains.

Indeed as a genre, light music can consist of anything from Charlestons and The Gay Gordons to light classical pieces such as waltzes by Strauss or polkas and tangos.

The term 'Palm Court' didn't actually come about until the 1930s, when the BBC, a big advocate of light music at the time, used to make live broadcasts from the Palm Court Room in Eastbourne. This elegant room, bedecked with large potted palms provided the perfect backdrop for tea dances which were all the rage in those days. So Palm Court Music then became synonymous with light music and it was also used to encapsulate the light-hearted and genteel atmosphere of the times. It conjured up images of traditional English seaside resorts such as Eastbourne and Brighton, or even the final moments of the Titanic, as the Palm Court Orchestra continued to play while the doomed ocean liner slipped beneath the icy waves.

One of only a handful of Palm Court ensembles in the entire country, Ann's large orchestra, which she conducts herself, consists of 22 professional musicians playing an assortment of percussion, woodwind and string instruments.

'We've played everywhere from Bournemouth to Scotland, as well as The Ritz and The Royal Festival Hall'.

As well as conducting the LPCO, Ann plays her flute in The Pearl Palm Court Ensemble - a quartet that she formed as an offshoot of the orchestra, comprising a violin, cello and piano in addition to her flute.

And you're unlikely to pick a tune they don't know, as Ann now has sheet music for over 8,000 different pieces of light music, much of which is now out of print.

To add to the nostalgia, the ladies of the orchestra perform at all their concerts and private functions in colourful Edwardian outfits, which they have designed themselves. These consist of ankle length dresses trimmed with lacy collars and cuffs and bandeaux on their heads, transforming them into musicians of yesteryear when it was the turn of light music to be top of the pops.