St Albans Bach Choir with St Albans Cathedral Choir, St Albans Abbey Girls Choir and the Abbey Singers in partnership with the St Albans Cathedral Music Trust
The love affair that British classical music audiences have with Handel’s Messiah is something of a phenomenon. Since its Dublin premiere in 1742, the work has been regularly performed across the land by choirs of all shapes and sizes.
St Albans Bach Choir
Conductor
Andrew Lucas
Soloists
Nicholas Mulroy (Evangelist)
Thomas Flint (Christus)
Rowan Pierce (soprano)
Helen Charlston (mezzo)
Peter Mitchell (tenor)
Benjamin Bevan (baritone)
Sinfonia Verdi
The St John Passion was the first of the two great Passion settings by J S Bach, written and performed soon after he was appointed Kapellmeister to the churches in Leipzig. Originally he had intended it to be sung in the Thomaskirche, but the Council (with whom Bach was to have a difficult relationship) altered the venue to the Nikolaikirche at short notice. It was performed on Good Friday 1724, originally in two parts, with a sermon in between. For better or for worse, St Albans Bach Choir’s current performance will concentrate solely on the music!
The text is taken from chapters 18 and 19 of the Lutheran translation of St John’s Gospel. In the, by then, well established tradition of the German Passion, a tenor soloist sings the part of the Evangelist, telling the story, and is backed up by the choir and other soloists playing the various characters of the drama. Soloists reflect in their arias on the spiritual message told by the narrative. This is summed up in chorales, being Lutheran hymns in which the Leipzig congregation may well have joined (another tradition no longer to be repeated).
This was not Bach’s first Passion setting: he wrote one while at the court of Weimar, but this is now lost. It may be that he re-used some of that music in the St John Passion. He continued to revise the work, adding new numbers in 1725, 1732 and 1749. The work has been described as more extravagant than its successor, the St Matthew Passion, with an expressive immediacy, at times more unbridled and less 'finished'. However, Bach himself considered the earlier work to be supremely important. Perhaps the biggest joy of the St John Passion is that, for all the ferocity and sorrow of the Good Friday story, it is a truly optimistic work, anticipating the resurrection with music suffused with light and hope.
The Passion forms a staple part of St Albans Bach Choir’s repertoire, having last been performed in 2011. While no longer being intended for worship on Good Friday, it will form an important part of preparation for Holy Week and Easter.
St Albans Bach Choir has been performing since 1924: recent programmes have included Carl Orff’s Carmina Burana, Verdi’s Requiem (also in London's Cadogan Hall), Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast, and in July 2016 the choir joined forces with the St Albans Cathedral Choirs to present Bach's Mass in B minor with The English Concert. In 2013, as part of the St Albans International Organ Festival’s fiftieth anniversary celebrations, the choir performed Britten’s War Requiem with the Britten Sinfonia under the baton of Sir Richard Armstrong. Last summer the choir returned to the Festival in July for a performance of Handel's Messiah with the London Handel Orchestra conducted by Laurence Cummings. In December 2013, and again in 2015, the choir joined John Rutter and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra for their popular carol concerts at the Royal Albert Hall. For the past two years the choir has also been represented onstage at the Albert Hall for the Christmas and New Year editions of the BBC1 Big Sing programme.
Tickets
Please visit St Albans Cathedrals' website for ticket pricing and availability here.
Mendelssohn’s Hymn of Praise proclaims the praise of God and celebrates mankind’s progress from darkness to enlightenment. Beethoven’s Mass in C is less well known than its famous brother, the Missa Solemnis, but it is no less beautiful or dramatic.
Watford Colosseum are delighted to welcome the Czech National Symphony Orchestra, one of the leading Czech orchestras, under their distinguished Music Director Libor Pesek, with a performance of Dvorak’s much loved New World Symphony which is sure to be something very special.
The first international Orchestra to visit Watford Colosseum for many years is one of Russia’s finest, the Tchaikovsky Symphony Orchestra.
Stressed, anxious or depressed? M-ASK is a new 12-week programme that uses theatre techniques to help those suffering from stress, anxiety, depression and other conditions affecting mental wellbeing. You don’t need any experience to take part, everyone is welcome, from absolute beginners to the more experienced.
To take part in this free programme - which is funded by Dacorum Borough Council and Hertfordshire Public Health - you must be aged 11 or over and live within Dacorum borough.
Each session will explore theatre techniques using masks and you will also have the opportunity to complete a Bronze Level Arts Award qualification.
To express an interest in M-ASK, please fill out the online form here or telephone 01442 228181.
Join The Lord Chamberlain’s Men this summer for Shakespeare’s sparkling, battle-of-the‐sexes comedy, Much Ado About Nothing.
Bring a chair and a picnic, buy a glass of something chilled from our bar and spend a glorious summer’s evening watching this funny, moving and fast‐paced production of one of Shakespeare’s best‐loved comedies. Performed in the open air, an all male cast with Elizabethan costume, music and dance, this is undoubtedly one of the hottest tickets of the summer.
Musical Director : Bob Porter
Stevenage Choral Society
Conductor : Robin Osterley
Location: St. Andrew and St. George's Church, Stevenage
Ticket Prices: £ 10 Adults (£ 12 bought at the door) and £ 5 for under 16s
For more information visit: www.stevenagechoral.org.uk or call 01438 365769
Following his dazzling collaborations with the Oxford Philharmonic in 2015, maverick of the violin Nigel Kennedy is back with a stunning transformation of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons and his dedications.
Come to the Ashridge Estate visitor centre to make some Easter crafts or enjoy their Easter trail.
Following the excitement of the Cadbury Easter Egg Trail why not carry on celebrating by taking a quieter stroll along the Easter Trail and/or making Easter crafts in the Ashridge Estate Community Hub?
£2 per child.
Please visit the National Trust website here for more information.
Join the Philharmonia Orchestra with world-renowned conductor Vladimir Ashkenazy, celebrating the 150th Anniversary of Sibelius with the unofficial national anthem of Finland alongside his stirring Symphony No. 2.
The BBC Concert Orchestra presents a programme of ballet music chosen by its Conductor Laureate and Principal Guest Conductor of The Royal Ballet, Barry Wordsworth.
Date/Time
Date(s) - 05/01/2016
9:30 am - 11:45 am
Location
Carey Baptist Church - HP1 1LD
First rehearsal of the term. This will be an extended rehearsal at Carey Baptist Church, starting at 9.30am and ending at 11.45am, to prepare for the Epiphany service on the 10th January.
Please bring your music from our Christmas Concert, Kings Came Riding, and our Christmas Standards.
Looking forward to seeing everyone again.
The following information has been taken from the Watford Colosseum website. For more information and to book, please visit the website directly via the following link.
'Vaughan Williams A Sea Symphony
Britten Four Sea Interludes
McDowall Ave Maris Stella
Watford Philharmonic Society presents an evening of British music inspired by the sea.'
Aristotle’s thinking on potential allows us to understand how things change around us.
Come and join artist Per Huttner and a group of artists, researchers, scientists and thinkers who put Aristotle’s ideas to the test in the Reading Room through conversations, performances, artwork and everything in between.
From neurones to possessions and public memorials, examine the relationship between memory, immateriality and objects through a full day of talks and discussion.
Information extracted from Barbican Events Sep 2015 brochure, for booking and more information, please visit the Barbican link here.
'Building on the Guildhall School's pioneering research and development on mindfulness, this symposium brings together artists and researchers to explore mindfulness in the arts: its practice and its potential. Hear from the creative team of Lost in Thought and a selection of mindfulness practitioners, and find out more about the audience's experience and engagement in the opera.
Speakers include:
Rolf Hind Lost in Thought composer and Guildhall School professor
Frederic Wake-Walker Artistic Director of Mahogany Opera Group
Stuart King clarinettist and Artistic Director of CHROMA
Siwan Rhys pianist
Professor John Sloboda Guildhall School Research Professor
Tickets £20 (£15 concessions) plus booking fee
Lunch is provided as part of the day
Produced in partnership by the Guildhall School, Mahogany Opera Group and the Barbican'
Information extracted from the Barbican Events Sep 2015. For more info, please visit the Barbican site link here.
'Forget about the world outside in this groundbreaking new opera, which fuses traditional medication with mesmerising new music by Rolf Hind to take you on an inner journey of mindfulness.
Rolf Hind Lost in Thought (world premiere)
Frederic Wake-Walker director
Lore Lixenberg mezzo-soprano
Mahogany Opera Group
Rolf Hind music and concept
Tickets £10-30 plus booking fee (£3 booking fee per online transaction, £4 by phone. No fee when tickets are booked in person)
Part of Barbican Presents
Co-produced by the Barbican and Mahogany
Opera with the support of the Nicholas Berwin Charitable Trust and the RVW Trust'
"In the Human Library, the books are people and the reading is conversation.
The Human Library is an international equalities movement that challenges prejudice, exclusion and discrimination through social contact. By connecting people who might not normally have a chance to sit down and talk, the Human Library uses conversation to break down stereotypes.
Choose from a wide range of titles that reflect the astonishing diversity and behaviours of the community we live in, and don't judge a book by it's cover..."
This event is FREE.
Information extracted from "Wellcome Collection" Sep-Nov 2015 brochure, for booking and more information, please visit the Wellcome Collection website here.
