The New Elizabethan Singers

Time 2021-08-21 06:05:02

Web Name: The New Elizabethan Singers

WebSite: http://www.thenewelizabethansingers.org.uk

ID:188620

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Our next concert... We hope to return to singing as soon as it is safe to do so. Our next concert - pencilled in for Spring 2021 - will be works by two local composers: Three Trees (a cantata for Eastertide) by Chris Reynolds, and Requiem by Matthew Coleridge. Please keep an eye on this website and our Facebook page for provisional dates. The New Elizabethan Singers was founded in 1966 by the late Bruce Critchinson, and has since grown to become the largest choir in West Dorset.We perform two or three concerts per year, usually at St Mary's Church, South Street, Bridport - although we occasionally go 'on tour' to other nearby venues. Recent performances have included Handel's Israel in Egypt, Durufle's Requiem, Vivaldi's Magnificat and Paul Carr's Seven Last Words from the CrossMany of our concerts feature an orchestra, drawing on some of the finest players the county has to offer, and over the years we've had the privilege of working with some wonderful professional soloists. The choir is conducted by Matt Kingston. Our accompanist is Nick Brown. Matt Kingston - Musical Director Matt joined NES as conductor in 2011, and has introduced the choir to many new and unfamiliar works, alongside the usual repertoire. In recent years we've given only the third UK performance of a neglected Baroque masterpiece - Heinrich Biber's epic Missa Salisburgensis, and the fourth performance of Paul Carr's wonderful Seven Last Words. Matt has been involved in choral music since he was six years old, when he joined his local church choir. Both his grandfather and great-grandfather were organists and choirmasters, so it wasn’t long before Matt joined the family firm! Matt is music arranger by trade, and one of the UK’s most prolific arrangers of brass music, specialising in music for junior bands and for brass quintets. He has written and published over 500 arrangements, with performances in more than 50 countries.In recent years Matt has begun to write choral music (using the pen name Matthew Coleridge - the surname of his grandfather). His first composition, the Corpus Christi Carol, appeared on BBC Music Magazine’s Christmas CD in 2015. His first large-scale work, Requiem, premiered in October 2015 and has since received numerous performances in the UK and Europe. Bach - Magnificat Mozart - Vesperae Saturday 25th January 2020 - St Mary's Church, Bridport PUCCINI Messa di Gloria Saturday 2nd February 2019 - St Swithun's Church, Bridport Puccini's colourful and operatic Mass, alongside Bruckner's monumental Te Deum. With chamber orchestra and four professional soloists, this concert promises to be a joyous festival of Late Romantic choral works. SHOWY PUCCINI STEALS THE LIMELIGHT WHILE BRUCKNER BUILDS HARMONIES Review by Bruce UptonImagine going to a Puccini opera, but discovering a Mass had been substituted at the last minute! Last Saturday the New Elizabethan Singers performed just such a work, The “Messa da Gloria” of 1880, written by teenage Puccini as his graduation piece, and with more than a nod to Verdi. The young Italian used every trick in the musical book to showcase his emerging genius – dramatic changes in SPEED, in dynamics; triplets set against duplets; florid solos (the tenor Alberto Sousa was on exceptional form); luscious harmonies that wrapped round us like a warm blanket on a freezing evening.The choir was on top form – well drilled, attentive to conductor Matt Kingston, with clear enunciation and absolutely together, even on difficult and exposed entries.By contrast Bruckner’s Te Deum of 1884 came across as a far more introspective work. Eschewing Italian flourishes, the music dutifully echoed the Te Deum prayer (“We praise Thee, O Lord”. However, this did not make it an easy piece to sing. Very high top notes taxed the sopranos, and sliding chromatic sections meant that both choir and orchestra had to pitch their notes precisely. Soloists Katharine Fuge and Emily Hicks blended their voices perfectly to produce an ethereal contrast to Ricardo Panela and Alberto Sousa’s anchoring in the lower range. The orchestra, under Alexandra Ennis, coped sturdily with a taxing score.Four years apart in composition; aeons apart in style, these works are relatively little known to modern audiences. All credit to the Elizabethans for educating as well as entertaining us with such a stylish performance. Bach - Magnificat | Mozart - Vesperae solennes de confessore St Mary's Church, Bridport Matthew Coleridge - Requiem | Chris Reynolds - Three Trees St Mary's Church, Bridport In addition to our concerts, we often perform in smaller groups at functions and special occasions. Recent engagements have included 14 singers for a wedding at Milton Abbey, and seven of us carol singing at Seaside Boarding House. If you are interested in hiring singers for your special occasion, please get in touch with our MD, Matt Kingston

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Choral society in Bridport, Dorset. We rehearse on Tuesday evenings and perform two major concerts a year, often with orchestral accompaniment and professional soloists.

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