Lynden Cranham, the Consort of Twelve’s continuo cellist, describes the Consort’s distinctive contribution to this city’s life.
Chichester’s baroque ensemble, the Consort of Twelve, was founded in 1980 by violinist Paul Denley and harpsichordist Ian Graham-Jones. Together with cellist Jean Graham-Jones and violinist/violist Kate Goodchild, who still plays in the group, they formed the core of what remains today a small ensemble consisting of string instruments and harpsichord. Ian chose the name because twelve represented a typical number of players in an early eighteenth-century orchestra.
Of course, the number of musicians can vary: woodwind instruments, for example, are added when the programme requires it. There is generally no conductor, the first violinist also having responsibility for directing the ensemble. Being part of such a group gives the players a real chamber music experience. The instruments used by the Consort usually date from the period when the music was composed or are modern reproductions of such instruments. They are tuned a semitone lower than is usual today, also having a gentler, more blended sound: a sound that’s ideally suited to the wonderful acoustic in Chichester’s St John’s Chapel, where the Consort usually plays.
Back-stage work
From its beginnings, one of the special things about the Consort has been the quality of the musician who is leader/director. In the earliest years this post was held by Paul Denley; he was followed by Julia Bishop and then Judy Tarling, with each of the three in post for several years. The resulting sense of continuity also came from founders Ian and Jean: they not only played in the Consort but also took on the complete range of administrative tasks that running such a group entails.
When, after more than thirty years, they moved to Devon, the Consort Committee had to decide how the ensemble might survive without them. And survival was a given: all of us felt passionately that the Consort served an important function, both for its regular players and, most importantly, for the Chichester community at large.
Our solution was to divide the tasks between us. The ‘backstage’ process of putting on an event begins in the previous year, and takes many months: we hold meetings, discuss finances, choose possible dates (three concerts a year has become the norm), invite directors, decide on repertoire, book rehearsal and concert venues, engage players, find/make the parts for the musicians, organise, print and distribute publicity and tickets, write programme notes, rehearse intensively the day before and on the day of the concert. By the time we get to the event itself there’s a huge sense of relief: we can, in front of our loyal audience, simply enjoy the music-making.
Sunday afternoon performances
In recent years the Consort of Twelve’s original model has changed slightly. Concerts are now held on Sunday afternoons rather than evenings and – instead of having an unchanging musical director – we engage a different one for each concert.
One of the tasks I have taken on is to invite and negotiate the availability of these potential directors, usually colleagues with whom I’ve played in the past. In recent years we have welcomed some of the established leaders on the international scene of baroque music-making, including Julia Bishop, Kati Debretzeni, Catherine Mackintosh, Catherine Martin, Ashley Solomon, Simon Standage and Elizabeth Wallfisch.
I am also the librarian of the Consort’s more than forty years’ collection of scores and parts: months prior to their concert each director and I begin exchanging phone calls and emails, discussing their ideas for the themes and planning of the programme, and deciding on repertoire.
As a result of this director-led process, there is considerable variety between concerts, all directors bringing their distinctive personalities to bear on the music we play and its presentation. We in the Consort are always so grateful to these extremely busy musicians: in committing to a weekend with our group, they often have to sacrifice more lucrative work. It is heartening that they say how much they enjoy working with the Consort.
Three concerts a year
The Consort’s three public performances have established a pattern. The spring and autumn concerts are generally instrumental, giving the directors and players the chance to shine in concertos and concerti grossi. In the summer we take part in that marvellous institution, the Festival of Chichester (the Consort recently celebrated 40 years of association with the Festival), usually exchanging the intimate space of St John’s for the more spacious St Paul’s Church.
We join forces with such groups as Portsmouth Baroque Choir (director Malcolm Keeler) and Portsmouth Choral Union (director David Gostick, who is also our regular harpsichordist). We have enjoyed successful collaborations with each of these groups, performing large-scale pieces including Handel’s Messiah, Bach’s B-minor Mass and Handel’s Saul. For this repertoire, the size of the Consort changes dramatically, with extra woodwind, brass instruments and timpani.
Our final concert in 2024 was in September and was particularly memorable. As many in Chichester will be aware, for decades the St John’s organ lay in pieces in the Chapel’s gallery, but it has now been restored to its former glory. In celebration, the Consort engaged Timothy Ravalde, Chichester Cathedral’s Assistant Organist, to take part. There was some anxiety about whether the restoration would be finished in time and we even had a ‘plan B’ programme lined up! In the end the new organ emerged in all its glory, Timothy giving the instrument its first public outing by playing two concertos from the period. See photo below.
The ensemble’s extraordinary record of music-making in and around Chichester since 1980 has been broken only by the hugely disappointing cancellations during the Covid pandemic years. On our return, with Julia Bishop on 19 September 2021, we were so delighted
to be back that we gave two concerts in one day! We are now looking forward to 2025, when all our concerts will be at St John’s. Three excellent directors are booked: Julia Bishop, Alison Bury – for the first time – and Ashley Solomon. We are eager to welcome audiences, new and long-standing, on the next stage of our musical journey. The Consort of Twelve feels deeply rooted in Chichester. One of the great delights of our concerts is to look out and recognise that a local community has formed around our group. We are immensely grateful to all who continue to support us.
Concerts planned in 2025 – all at St John’s Chapel Chichester
18 May, 3pm
Director Julia Bishop
29 June, 4.30pm
Director Alison Bury
7 September, 3.00 pm
Director Ashley Solomon
Tickets £20 (adult), £5 (student) £1 (child) from www.consortoftwelve.co.uk; Phillip and Phillip Hairdressers, Baffins Ct, Baffins Lane, Chichester, PO19 1UA; the Festival Theatre Box Office in summer; or at the door.
This article originally appeared in the Chichester Society Magazine, December 2024
Main image: credit Helen Hooker.
Timothy Ravalde at the newly restored organ in September 2024 (image credit: Jonathan Randall).
Catherine Mackintosh has been one of the Consort directors (image credit: Timothy Kraemer)
