Writes Samuel Hill, Music Administrator
The first large-scale concert of the academic year was the Choral Concert, which took place on Friday 7th November in the Great Hall. Well over one hundred singers took part in the concert, across the School Choir, Chamber Choir, and the Thomas White Singers. In addition to choral performances, we also enjoyed three organ solos, and three solo song performances.
The concert began with the massed forces of the School Choir singing Do you hear the people sing? from Les Misérables, an assertive and stirring start to the concert. This was contrasted with the following piece, Mozart’s motet Ave Verum, which was accompanied by Dominic D. (U6ths) on the organ. Next came Aarnav H. (5ths) with Schubert enduringly popular piscatorial ditty Die Forelle. From the gallery then came the sounds of the sixteenth century in the form of the Thomas White Singers’ rendition of Tallis’ evocative If ye love me. Having recently honed the piece on the Organists’ Trip to Hamburg, Ethan G. (Divs) took to the organ bench to play the Prelude in B-flat attributed to Bach, from his Eight Short Preludes and Fugues. To follow this lively baroque music was a more melancholic song by English composer Michael Head, his Money, O! sung by Jos W. (U6ths).
The Chamber Choir assumed their position on the stage after this, to sing three unaccompanied works, beginning with Sir John Stainer’s miniature God so loved the world from The Crucifixion. Dominic D. (U6ths) took up the baton for the following piece, Bruckner’s Locus Iste. The third song in the set was the secular work by Canadian composer Sarah Quartel, Sing, my child, for which the choir was joined by Jonah G. (U6ths) on the djembe. The variety of these songs well displayed the Chamber Choir’s aptitude in singing music from in variety of styles.
Not content with a quiet if appreciative audience, when the Thomas White Singers took their place to sing, Mr Crawford set the audience a motif to sing throughout the performance of Santiana, an old sea shanty. All that can be said is that we finished together!
After such excitement, the audience sat back and relaxed, perhaps tapping their feet, as the Thomas White Singers continued with Freddie Mercury’s Crazy little thing called love, which included some rather stratospheric notes for the TTBB ensemble. Two members of the ensemble then performed a solo, first Milan A. (5ths) who sang Schubert’s lied Du bist die Ruh, before Ben C. (L6ths) played the Prelude and Fugue in G minor from Bach’s Eight Short Preludes and Fugues on the organ. To conclude the concert in suitably cheerful spirits, the School Choir returned to the stage to sing Bart Howard’s timeless Fly me to the moon.
The Head Master closed the concert by giving a hearty thanks to the Choirmaster, the new Assistant Director of Music, Mr Crawford, for his efforts in putting together the concert which so cheered the audience on a rather dark November evening. Around 200 people were in the audience, and we hope for a similarly good attendance at the forthcoming Lower School Concert on Wednesday 26th November at 4.30pm in the Great Hall.
