Reports include – St Paul’s searches for Diamond Jubilee choir; Music for a Spring Evening and Karl Jenkins’ Stabat Mater; Lenten music at St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast; Getty event – Belfast sells out; Music in Calary; Choirs gather for feis ceoil Dublin; Angelic voices – the choristers of Salisbury Cathedral; New Irish in Titanic people
St Paul’s searches for Diamond Jubilee choir
Young singers are being given a once-in-a-lifetime chance to perform in front of the Queen as part of St Paul’s Cathedral’s Diamond Choir. The cathedral has launched a nationwide search to find 40 children to form the choir as part of celebrations to mark the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee. The competition is open to all boys and girls aged 10 to 13 who sing regularly in a church, school or other choir. They will be given the chance to audition at regional cathedrals. Those selected for the final choir will be invited to St Paul’s Cathedral, where they will sing before the Queen during a thanksgiving service on 5 June.
The choir will perform a new work, The Call of Wisdom, which has been written specially for the occasion by young British composer Will Todd, with words by Rev Canon Michael Hampel, Precentor of St Paul’s. The piece will be performed alongside the Choristers of St Paul’s Cathedral and the Chapel Royal, with St Paul’s Director of Music Andrew Carwood conducting.
Rev Hampel said: “This is a once-in-a-lifetime chance to sing in front of The Queen at St Paul’s Cathedral in Diamond Jubilee year. It’s the first Diamond Jubilee service at St Paul’s since Queen Victoria’s in 1897 and we want to share it with young people from every region and nation of the United Kingdom. “Auditions will be taking place all over the country and we are grateful to our friends in other cathedrals who are hosting them. As long as children regularly sing in any local choir, they can apply to take part in this exciting project.
“We’re really looking forward to hosting this unique occasion; having young singers from all over the country will make it even more special.”
Auditions will be held in the following cathedrals: Aberdeen, Belfast, Birmingham, Blackburn, Brecon, Bury Saint Edmunds, Canterbury, Durham, Edinburgh, Exeter, Gloucester, Manchester, Peterborough, Southwell, St Asaph, St Paul’s, Winchester and York. To find out more, go to www.diamondchoir.co.uk
Music for a Spring Evening and Karl Jenkins’ Stabat Mater
Holywood Parish Church is the venue for, ‘Music for a Spring Evening and Karl Jenkins’ Stabat Mater’ tonight Friday 23 March at 7.00pm.
Featuring:
• The Parish Choir
• Jubilate
• Sullivan Senior Choir
• Jenny Bourke – soloist
• Stephen Hamill – organ
• and a host of local musicians
Supporting missions to Kkalwe, Uganda and with Asha in Delhi, India.
Kindly supported by John Gray & Co., High Street, Holywood
Tickets £10 each including refreshments, are available from the Parish Office (028 9042 3622 / 71 Church Road, Mon–Fri, 10AM–1PM).
Lenten music at St Peter’s Cathedral, Belfast
The Victoria Consort present a programme of Lenten music for the beginning of Holy Week at St Peter’s Cathedral on Monday 2 April at 7.30 pm. The Victoria Consort, under the direction of Malachy Frame, is based around a nucleus of young singers many of whom are members of college choirs in Cambridge University. A programme of Lenten music including Allegri’s Miserere , Lamentationes by Alonso Lobo and motets by Bruckner and Victoria.
Admission £5.00.
Getty event – Belfast sells out
New Irish Arts has announced that the Saturday 2nd June event with Keith & Kristyn Getty is SOLD OUT with very few tickets left for Friday 1st June. Due to this exceptional demand, we are delighted to announce the release of a third concert on Thursday 31st May in the Waterfront, plus –
one on Tuesday 5th June in Londonderry!
Please avoid disappointment by booking tickets for your family and friends now.
Why not get a party together from your church or housegroup and take advantage of the
discount rate for groups of 10.
Tickets available from www.waterfront.co.uk / 0289033 4455 or www.millenniumforum.co.uk
Due to the Bank Holiday weekend, Gettymusic have decided to postpone the Dublin concert that was orginally planned for Sunday 3rd June in the National Concert Hall to a date in their 2013 tour. Plans are underway for a Dublin concert featuring the New Irish Choir and Orchestra later in 2012 – full details will emerge soon, so watch this space.
Music in Calary
Music in Calary gets its Spring Summer 2012 programme underway with the first concert of the season on March 28. Calary Church is delighted to welcome the Herbert Quartet, which is made up of four young Irish cellists – Ben Cashell, Peggy Nolan, Aoife Dennedy and Paul Grennan – for a concert that will start at 8.00 pm. The programme will include works by Rossini, Bellini, Mozart, Brahms, Prokovief, Part, Albeniz, Joplin, Fitzenhagen and the world premiere of Michael Doherty’s Petits Four, a suite for 4 cellos. Tickets cost €15 or €10 for concessions and can be booked by emailing Derek at derekneilson@eircom.net or phoning John at (01) 2818146.
Together we can do this: choirs gather for feis ceoil
Irish Times – THOUSANDS OF children sang their hearts out at the RDS in Dublin, with works ranging from Gregorian chants to songs about crocodiles, on the second day of the Electric Ireland Feis Ceoil. It was choir day at the classical music competition and 40 primary and post-primary school choirs were battling it out to be crowned Electric Ireland Feis Ceoil School Choir of the Year. More than 5000 classical musicians from all over Ireland are competing at this year’s Electric Ireland Feis Ceoil 2012
http://www.irishtimes.com/newspaper/ireland/2012/0322/1224313703080.html
Angelic voices – the choristers of Salisbury Cathedral
A documentary filmed at Salisbury Cathedral last year is to be broadcast on BBC FOUR on Sunday 25 March at 9pm. The programme follows the choristers of Salisbury Cathedral choir’s for four months, while at the same time relating the history of a tradition that goes back 900 years. Directed by Emmy Award Winner Cesca Eaton, the documentary features music from composers such as Sheppard, Byrd, Purcell, Handel, Mozart and Rutter, and includes interviews with some of the 32 choristers at the Cathedral, as well as the Dean, and director of music David Halls. It will be repeated on 6 April (Good Friday) at 7.30pm
Titanic people
New Irish Arts are participating in this presentation in Westbourne Presbyterian Church, Newtownards R, Belfast on Saturday 31st March at 8.pm. This is a one-off event to commemorate the sinking of the Titanic, and will be very different from typical New Irish concerts. Through stories from the local community, readings and music associated with the ship, the event will celebrate the achievements of the local community and remember the lives lost. Presented very much from a Christian perspective, there will also be an opportunity to reflect on lessons we can now learn from the tragedy. The music will feature members of the New Irish Choir and Orchestra, with soloist Julia Clarke. It will include pieces from the era of the ship, items actually performed on the voyage and some songs which have been inspired by the story. The script will be presented by Etta Halliday and will feature actor Dan Gordon.
Tickets available – phone 07801 347090