 |
|
|
||
Saturday 21st June 2008 at St Mary's Parish Church, Melton Mowbray, Leicestershire Sacred and Profane - The English Choral Heritage This concert - on the face of it a pleasing recital of favourite items from the English choral repertoire - turned out to be something of a revelation, so fresh and vital were the performances. They proved yet again why it is worth travelling across the county, or even into the neighbouring one, to hear the Leicestershire Chorale perform. When you see a first-class choir responding to a conductor in the way the Chorale responds to Tom Williams, it lifts the spirit. He has the score in his head rather than his head in the score. The result is a smooth, flexible tone allied to an amazing dynamic range, rhythmic precision and attention to detail. There is also an enviable stylistic awareness – ensuring that each piece is performed in the most appropriate way. The qualities were immediately apparent in the opening item: Hosanna to the Son of David by Weelkes. The sense of exultation combined with disciplined and balanced singing was exhilarating for the listener. Tallis’s exquisite O nata lux required a quite different approach and Tom Williams produced a glowing performance that was all the more moving for its restraint. With Byrd’s Laudibus in Sanctis we were back in exultant mode and this compelling account made me wonder why I was not as familiar as I might be with what is clearly a masterwork of the English renaissance. The striking “layered” effect of the opening of Purcell’s Hear my Prayer was superbly done and this brief but masterly gem was given a most moving performance, direct and heartfelt. It was good to hear the motet Justorum Anime by Stanford, its rich textures making a good contrast to what had gone before and with what was to come. The account of Britten’s Hymn to St. Cecilia a notoriously difficult piece, was disciplined and controlled, yet it had a real sense of exaltation and urgency. Another stylistic change came in the vibrant performance of the three madrigals that opened the second half. Again the sense of vitality and freshness was apparent in every bar. The earliest piece on the programme was also one of the most evocative – especially when sung so expertly by Beth Carpenter, Claire Deare and Claire Barrett. The idea of surrounding us to perform Pearsall’s radiant part-song Lay a Garland paid off handsomely. The effect was magical and greatly enjoyed by the audience. The Three Shakespeare Songs by Vaughan Williams show the composer at the height of his powers: imaginative, graphic and subtly coloured. The performance was wonderfully idiomatic. What a splendid finale the two Tippett folk song settings made. These fiendishly difficult pieces came across with tremendous panache. The attack and swagger were breathtaking. No wonder Lillibulero had to be encored! It’s always a pleasure to listen to an organist of the stature of David Cowen. I particularly enjoyed his account of the Saraband for the Morning of Easter by Herbert Howells. This is one of my favourite Howells’ organ works and David’s sure sense of style, phrasing and registration made it especially enjoyable. Textures were clear and dynamics well graded, creating a vision in sound of a stately, yet increasingly exultant procession. Neil Crutchley, Leicester Mercury SINGING THE CHORISTERS' PRAISES AFTER FINE FESTIVAL SHOWING
10:30 - 08 March 2007 Leicestershire Chorale played host to seven other choirs in this year's Leicestershire Festival of Choirs. This venture was set up to encourage young people to experience the joy of singing with others in choirs and to show them, with the example of the senior choirs, what they can achieve. The four adult choirs were, of course, Leicestershire Chorale, with Leicester Bach Choir, Cecilian Singers and Kingfisher Chorale. Four secondary school choirs were invited: Guthlaxton College Choir, Groby Community College Choir, John Cleveland College, Hinckley and Countesthorpe College Chorus (both excellent), all conducted by the respective directors. In the first half each choir gave an individual performance, which displayed their ability, diversity and presentation and it was interesting to compare the different approaches. The second half was devoted to a performance of John Rutter's Feel The Spirit - a set of seven African-American spirituals, imaginatively arranged for chorus and orchestra, this orchestra being Leicestershire Camerata and the soloist mezzo-soprano Yvonne Lea. This proved to be a first rate performance with great rapport with
conductor Tom Williams, who gave us a variety of dynamics from the
emotive Motherless Child to the final climax of When the Saints. Superb!
On Saturday 15th November, 2003 at St James the Greater, Leicester the Chorale performed Janacek's Otcenas, Palestrina's Missa Aeterna, and Bruckner's Mass in E Minor. "The Leicestershire Chorale has always maintained a high technical standard and an adventurous approach to prgramme planning.... The choir, under its conductor Jonathan Tilbrook, produces a smooth, refined sound that is well balanced and flexible. .... The Palestrina was beautifully done. The choir's purity of tone was a great advantage... with a welcome undercurrent of emotion. The Bruckner ... has the harmonic richness of his symphonic works and this performance had plenty of weight and a good dynamic range." Neil Crutchley, Leicester Mercury, November 2003 Saturday 14th June 2003 at Holy Cross Priory. Hector Berlioz, Maurice Ravel, Trois Chansons, Messiaen, O Sacrum Convivium and Poulenc's Gloria. "Leicestershire Chorale ... gave thier summer concert of French music in the mellow acousitic of Holy Cross Priory...This was a programme ... sung with tranquility or great vivacity as the mood required. Messiaen's O Sacrum Convivium ..was performed with wonderfully sustained passages, well controlled. Poulenc's Gloria was the final work in this lovely programme.....The choir supplied good rhythm and dynamic variety and this was an excellent performance. This first rate choir gives us a well balanced sound with sweet tone and this was a most enjoyable performance in a lovely venue." J.Parkin, Leicester Mercury, 16th June, 2003 On Saturday 22nd March 2003 at All Saints Parish Church, Oakham the Chorale performed a programme of music by Henry Purcell accompanied by the Fitzwilliam Quartet. The concert was reviewed by the music critic of the Rutland Times. "The Leicestershire Chorale ..(were) singing with conviction and aplomb under the assured conductorship of Jonathan Tilbrook. ..they performed Hear my Prayer with great commitment and a lovely tone. (In) My Heart is Inditing, (they paid) assiduous attention to Purcell's superb word setting, the "joy and gladness" was suitably conveyed, "Incline thine ear" was most expressive, "Praise the Lord" noble and "Alleluia" truly triumphant.
Neville Favell writing in
The Rutland Times, Friday March 28th 2003.
Leicestershire Chorale ~~ Registered Charity No. 1007773 ~~ secretary@leicestershirechorale.org.uk |