From Portsmouth Baroque Choir
Review: Stanford at St George’s
Our Autumn concert at St George’s, Whyke celebrated a number of composer anniversaries, Stanford’s centenary in particular. As the applause died down after the final bow it felt like we had done his legacy proud, especially in the way we’d coped with the demands Stanford’s music places on those who carry the melodic line, and so, appropriately, the loudest applause on the night was reserved for four of our soprano stars: Ruth Sands in the Te Deum, Jenny Barton and Jane Hoskins in the Song of Peace and Song of Wisdom respectively, and Lucy Bradley soaring effortlessly above the awe-struck soundscape of The Blue Bird.
Another highlight was Puccini’s Requiem, which must hold the record at 57 bars in four minutes for the shortest example of the genre. Peter Gould selected a distantly mournful registration for the organ, perfect for foregrounding the sorrowful elegance of Markus Simojoki’s viola playing.
This was our first time at St George’s, a space that’s kind to voices, the sound of its organ larger than the sum of its stops. Charlie Allison from the Chichester Camera Club came along to take some photographs.
Music for Advent and Christmas
Music for Advent and Christmas, Havant URC, 7pm on Saturday 7 December
As I write, the Choir is busy rehearsing the finer details of Byrd, Palestrina, Holst and a glorious host of others as we approach our last concert of the 2024 season, Music for Advent and Christmas at the United Reformed Church in Havant. Pride of place this year goes to four carols written by the Choir’s President, Ian Schofield. one of which, There is no rose, will be a first performance in its revised setting for SATB.The composer writes:
“It’s one of a collection of four carols with the overall title Of A Rose written during the first of the Covid lockdowns for the choir of Sherborne Girls’ School. Portsmouth Choral Union is doing them all the week after the Baroque Choir concert”.
The concert ends joyfully with Ian’s Benedicamus Domino, a sequence of three carols for mixed voices and organ written in 1997 that test the choir’s vocal agility, timing and concentration.
Last year at this venue in Havant we drew one of our biggest audiences. Do join us and make it even merrier.
That’s not quite all for 2024. For the third year running, members of the Portsmouth Baroque Choir will join the Portsmouth Salvation Army Band in leading the carol singing at The Boardwalk, Port Solent to help raise money for the Salvation Army’s work in the city. That takes place on Wednesday, 18th December starting at 6:30 pm outside The Botanical, where for a £5 donation you will be served a mince pie and hot chocolate, with our without rum.
2025 season
Rehearsals resume after the Christmas and New Year break with a folder of music that does exactly as it says on the tin: our first all Baroque programme for some time, Buxtehude and Kuhnau, which will be performed at the Fareham United Reformed Church on 22nd March. The choir will also be making an early start on rehearsing the Brahms German Requiem for the performance on May 10th at Romsey Abbey with the Southampton Choral Society and Winchester Youth Orchestra. Other concerts are being planned for July 5th and in October, venues and programmes to be decided.
I’ll end this newsletter by wishing you, on behalf the Portsmouth Baroque Choir, a merry Christmas and happy New Year.
Chris Clark
(Chair & Publicity Co-ordinator, Portsmouth Baroque Choir)
