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| Classical Events Newsletter |
July 2019 |
Feature
Founded by local musicians Hannah King and Owain Park, the first Muswell Hill Music Festival is a week-long celebration of classical music in the area of north London. Curated in partnership with local churches, the festival plays host to nine concerts and events over six days across Muswell Hill, Alexandra Park, Highgate, East Finchley and Crouch End. The focus moves from baroque splendour with J.S. Bach to contemporary works by Thea Musgrave and Master of the Queen’s Music, Judith Weir, with events also including a jazz evening and family Come and Sing workshop. Hannah King, co-founder of the festival said: “Since we moved here a few years ago, we have been captivated by the sense of community and amazed at the amount of artistic talent in the area. We have put together a programme that includes a range of styles and idioms, in the hope that there will be something for everyone to enjoy.” The festival plays host to a variety of high-calibre artists, including Helen Charlston, winner of the 2018 Handel Singing Competition and current 'Rising Star' of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, and The Gesualdo Six, one of the UK’s foremost vocal ensembles praised for their outstanding performances of renaissance and contemporary music. Muswell Hill Music Festival: all concerts. |
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Muswell Hill Music Festival concerts
Amici Voices
Mon 8 Jul 8:00 PM St Andrew's Church Muswell Hill London Opening Concert: J.S. Bach To open the first festival, we turn to the music of one of the greatest composers that ever lived, Johann Sebastian Bach. Featuring star performers Helen Charlston and Louise Ayrton, highlights include the Partita in D minor for solo violin, Cantata ‘Vergnügte Ruh’, and choral work ‘Lobet den herrn’. A Festival Pass, which gives access to all events and includes a complimentary programme can be purchased here. |
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Chapel Perilous
Tue 9 Jul 8:00 PM St Michael's Church Highgate London The Hidden Face Chapel Perilous use music and chant as a tool for meditation and discovery. Guy James (picture) sings countertenor with the ensemble. Centred on music by John Tavener and featuring works by Arvo Pärt and Hildegard von Bingen, the programme explores an atmosphere of prayer and reflection. |
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London Meridian Players
Thu 11 July 8:00 PM Holy Innocents Church Hornsey London Les Illuminations Performing unconducted, the London Meridian Players are made up of gifted young string players who focus their interpretation on energy and communication. They are joined by soprano Verity Bramson for works including Britten: ‘Les Illuminations’ and songs by Alma Mahler. |
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Ben Comeau & Alice McCarthy
Fri 12 Jul 8:00 PM St Andrew's Church Muswell Hill London The Great American Songbook Ben Comeau (piano) and Alice McCarthy (voice) explore the links between American and French popular music of the 20th century, including songs from the Great American Songbook – focusing on George Gershwin – alongside French music by Michel Legrand and Edith Piaf. Plus original compositions by Alice and spontaneous improvisations. |
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The Next Step Two weeks before the end of the survey entry and prize draw!
In mid-June a special email was sent to concert promoters, whether or not they receive the newsletter. It was entitled 'The Next Step'. Before Classical Events embarks on further development of the site your help will be needed. Please complete the short 10 question survey and you can then optionally enter yourself into a prize draw for an £50 Amazon voucher. The survey allows for anonymity and your privacy will be respected. Click here for the short 10 question survey. Jonathan HeatonFounder, Classical Events |
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Forthcoming Events Ian Venables
Tue 2 Jul 7:45 PM. Holy Trinity Church Sloane Square London Venables: Requiem Evoke present the London Premiere of a brand new work, Requiem, by British contemporary composer, Ian Venables. Venables is widely recognised as a master of song and his skills are now focussed in this beautiful choral setting of the requiem text. “…music of bewitching lyricism, idiomatic grace and rapt instinct…” Gramophone The programme also includes works by other classic and contemporary British composers. |
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Ken Cowan
Thu 4 Jul 6:30 PM St Paul's Cathedral London St Paul’s Cathedral 'Fantastic Feats' Organ Festival 7246 pipes ranging in size from 10 metres to the size of a small pencil, all controlled from a console of five keyboards, a pedalboard and over a hundred pistons: the organ of St Paul’s Cathedral has always been a fantastic feat of engineering and one of the world’s most spectacular technological marvels. But it is in music that it becomes truly alive and transcendent. Ken Cowan performs a range of organ music and transcriptions including Durufle and Wagner. The dexterous digits and fantastic feet of one of the world’s organ-playing masters put the great machine through its paces, performing music spanning five centuries. |
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Musicke in the Ayre
Fri 5 Jul 7:30 PM Coach House Studios Wirksworth Derbyshire Chantement Cordiale Local soprano Carmel Edwards and Din bring a much extended version of their Anglo-French programme (last given as a lunchtime recital at St Brides Fleet Street in March) to Wirksworth - joined by local singer/songwriter Carol Fieldhouse. As well as the popular English lute ayres and the classic French airs de cour, the programme includes some early airs de cour, as well as extending later into the English repertoire of the Cavalier and Restoration periods. |
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Royal Choral Society
Sat 6 Jul 7:30 PM Winchester Cathedral Winchester Hampshire Parry, Elgar and Vaughan Williams The Royal Choral Society returns to Winchester Cathedral as part of the Winchester Festival to perform music by some of the greatest composers of the twentieth century – Parry, Elgar and Vaughan Williams. The choir is joined by the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra and soloists Elin Pritchard and Edward Grint under the baton of Royal Choral Society Music Director Richard Cooke. In his matchless ‘A Sea Symphony’ (Symphony no. 1), Ralph Vaughan Williams pair his stirring music with Walt Whitman’s evocative poetry: from the terrific opening: ‘Behold the Sea’, to the thrilling finale, we are in no doubt about the power and drama of the ocean. The concert also includes Elgar’s colourful portrayal of some of his close friends, the evergreen Enigma Variations, and there is also a rare outing for the full-scale orchestral version of Parry’s coronation anthem I was Glad. |
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Bristol Ensemble
Sat 6th Jul 7:30 PM St Mary the Virgin church Maldon Essex Haydn's Animal Symphonies A second chance to hear this fabulous orchestra. The Bristol Ensemble is the city’s only professional orchestra. It was founded in 1994 by its Artistic Director and lead violinist Roger Huckle. He studied with Frederick Grinke, and was a regular member of Noway’s Bergen Philharmonic. Roger now dedicates his time to directing and developing the Bristol Ensemble as well as spending time in Bergen. Part of the Maldon Festival 2019. |
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Kellie Consort
St Cecilia's Hall University of Edinburgh The Kellie Consort will be playing some of Purcell's greatest choral and ensemble music including 'Rejoice in the Lord Alway' and his Incidental Music for 'Abdelazer'. Hilary Michael directs the consort and also plays the baroque violin. |
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Exeter Symphony Orchestra
Sat 6 Jul 7:30 PM Exeter Cathedral Exeter Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius This performance has special meaning for everyone in Exeter, in that all superb soloists are of local and international interest. Thomas Hobbs (picture) will sing the role of Gerontius, who was brought up here in Exeter, and has now established himself as an international tenor of high regard. Madeleine Shaw, who will take the part of the Angel, now lives in Exeter and is well known internationally as a fine mezzo-soprano. Tim Murfin, another well-known local soloist, will take the bass role. The members of Exeter Philharmonic Choir, St. David’s Singers and the University Chapel Choir, will all join forces for this unique event, with ESO providing the orchestral backbone and immense orchestral colour needed for this work. |
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Guildhall School of Music
Sun 7 Jul 4:00 PM Milton Court Barbican London The penultimate concert of Guildhall's Chamber Music Festival offers the chance to hear music by Mozart, Bartók and Dohnányi. Guildhall professors Simon Blendis, Richard Lester, Sam Walton, Andrew Marriner (clarinet) and Sarah-Jane Bradley perform in collaboration with Guildhall instrumentalists. |
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Clare Hammond
Fri 12 Jul 7:30 PM Tetbury Goods Shed Tetbury Gloucestershire Clare will be performing works by Haydn, Schumann, Debussy, Rachmaninov, Rimsky-Korsakov, Mendelssohn together with a specially commissioned piece “Ballad” by Liz Lane. |
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Chorale Jazz Trio
Sat 13 Jul 7:30 PM St Peter & St Paul Church Newport Pagnell Buckinghamshire Will Todd: Mass in Blue What happens when you fuse jazz with a choral setting of the mass? Will Todd’s Mass in Blue has firmly establishes itself as one of the 21st century’s most engagingly refreshing takes on the traditional religious texts. Paired with jazz pianist George Shearing’s highly inventive Songs and Sonnets, and a selection of Spirituals, this promises to be a choral concert with a difference. |
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Tenebrae Choir
Mon 15 Jul 7:30 PM St Bartholomew-the-Great West Smithfield London Tenebrae: Russian Treasures Conducted by Nigel Short, Tenebrae perform an exquisite collection of Russian choral music at the iconic St-Bartholomew-the-Great in Smithfield. Russian choral music has been a cornerstone of Tenebrae’s repertoire since the choir’s inception, and this programme includes little-known gems rarely heard outside Russia alongside familiar favourites, including movements from Rachmaninov's Vespers. |
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London Concord Singers
Thu 18 Jul 7:30 PM London Concord Singers Grosvenor Chapel Mayfair London Telling Stories Exploring story telling in music, from Robert Hugill's science-fantasy-inspired The Black Dragon (commissioned for London Concord Singers in 2000), to Bob Chilcott's retelling of Aesop's Fables and Elizabeth Maconchy's vivid animal pictures in Creatures. Choral Dances from Gloriana take us to Britten's evocation of Elizabethan England and Jessica Norton's new piece explores Celtic myth, whilst Richard Strauss' rarely performed melodrama combines spoken text with piano accompaniment. |
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Bampton Classical Opera
Fri 19 Jul 7:00 PM The Deanery Garden Bampton Oxfordshire Stephen Storace – Bride & Gloom (Gli sposi malcontenti) This summer Bampton Classical Opera will stage Stephen Storace’s lively comedy of unhappy newlyweds 'Gli sposi malcontenti' (1785) under the title 'Bride & Gloom'. Stephen Storace is an undeservedly neglected 18th century composer, who was the brother of the legendary soprano Nancy Storace (Mozart’s first Susanna in 'Le nozze di Figaro'). Stephen and Nancy spent time in Vienna from 1785-87, and were friends with Mozart. 'Gli sposi malcontenti' was commissioned in 1785 by the Emperor Joseph II, and partly came about because the Emperor was infatuated with Nancy. Unfortunately on opening night Nancy lost her voice in the first Act, and retired from the stage for several months. 'Gli sposi malcontenti' was one of several operas which had an effect on Mozart and Da Ponte in their creation of 'Figaro' and 'Così fan tutte'. Stephen Storace returned to England a couple of years later, and introduced Viennese classical style to London. His hugely popular English operas dominated the Drury Lane Theatre from 1788 until his death in 1796. Storace had a lyrical gift and more sense of the theatre than practically any other English opera composer of the eighteenth century apart from Thomas Arne. His hugely successful later London operas such as ‘The Pirates’ helped establish a trend which eventually led to Gilbert and Sullivan. |
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City of Manchester Opera
Sat 20 Jul 7:30 PM Buxton Methodist Church Buxton Derbyshire Best of British at Buxton Festival Fringe In the Best of British Summer Series of concerts, the pieces included are by British composers, and that are set in Britain or have a British subject. There will be some favourite works, including Zadok the Priest by Handel, extracts from The Yeomen of the Guard by Gilbert and Sullivan and Jerusalem by Parry. 27 July: City of Manchester Opera |
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City Music Foundation
Mon 22 Jul 1:00 PM Wallace Collection Manchester Square London City Music Foundation returns to The Wallace Collection for its 4th annual Summer Residency (22nd – 26th July). Featuring six CMF Artists, 2019 sees the residency expanded beyond the popular free lunchtime recitals to include a children’s concert, a performance for dementia sufferers, and an evening concert centered around Schubert’s ‘Trout Quintet’ with guest performer, pianist Sholto Kynoch. 2018 CMF Artist Ariana Kashefi (cello) presents the first lunchtime recital of the week with pianist Maksim Štšura. Ariana Kashefi has a wealth of experience performing solo and chamber music in venues including the Royal Albert Hall, Wigmore Hall, and Pierre Boulez Saal. All concerts 22 - 26th July: Wallace Collection |
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Lana Trotovsek & Maria Canyigueral
Mon 22 Jul 7:30 PM Wigmore Hall London Born in Slovenia but based in London, the increasingly prominent violinist and her Spanish-Catalan pianist partner take on three major sonatas from the 19th- and 20th-century repertoires (Beethoven & Prokofiev). Also performed is a rediscovered work (1934) by the Slovenian late-Romantic Lucijan Marija Škerjanc. |
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Tasmin Little
Thu 25 Jul 7:30 PM King's Lynn Minster King's Lynn Norfolk King's Lynn Festival Tasmin Little is one of the most respected violinists on the scene today, performing on every continent in some of the most prestigious venues in the world. London-based Australian pianist Piers Lane stands out as an engaging and highly versatile performer, at home equally in solo, chamber and concerto repertoire. |
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Samling Academy Singers
Fri 26 Jul 7:30 PM Sage Gateshead Gateshead Tyne and Wear Step into an enchanted world of song and poetry with some of the finest young classical singers in the North East. Gardens have been celebrated through the ages as places for love, romance and reflection. From Renaissance madrigals, to German Romantics, to the great flowering of English song in the twentieth century, young singers from Samling Academy present a semi-staged programme of song and poetry inspired by the language of flowers. Directed by Samling Artists Miranda Wright and pianist Ian Tindale. Samling Academy nurtures the next generation of classical musicians in the North East giving them high-level coaching and performance opportunities. Their year of work comes to fruition in this summer concert celebrating the growth and blossoming of young talent. |
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Musica Antica Rotherhithe
Sat 27 Jul 7:00 PM Holy Trinity Church Rotherhithe London Le Nuove Music Passion's voice found in the music of Giulio Caccini, Jacopo Peri, Claudio Monteverdi & Francesco Cavalli Musica Antica Rotherhithe perform some of the most powerful and unjustly-neglected music ever written for the stage alongside the intimate songs and madrigals of Giulio Caccini, Jacopo Peri and Claudio Monteverdi, whose experiments redefined passion's voice at the beginning of the 17th Century. As always, home-infused gins, wine, beer and other refreshments will be sold before the concert and during the interval, in support of Holy Trinity Church, Rotherhithe. |
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Rodolfus Choir
Mon 29 Jul 11:30 AM Gloucester Cathedral Gloucester Three Choirs Festival Gloucester 2019 The vibrant young Rodolfus Choir returns to the festival with a programme inspired by peacefulness and serenity. Featuring music by Elgar and Tavener, and with the highly acclaimed Ralph Allwood at the helm, this recital is sure to be an oasis of calm and reflection during a busy week. |
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Oliver Wass & Nicholas McCarthy
Tue 30 Jul 7:30 PM St Mary's Church Petworth West Sussex Petworth Festival 2019 Nicholas McCarthy was born in 1989 without his right hand and only began to play the piano at the age of 14 after being inspired by hearing a friend play Beethoven’s Waldstein Sonata. Nicholas’ graduation from the Royal College of Music in 2012 drew press headlines around the world being the only one-handed pianist to graduate from the RCM in its 130-year history. In March 2018 he was awarded honorary membership by its President, HRH the Prince of Wales. Nicholas is a champion of the ‘left hand alone’ repertoire, a repertoire that first came to prominence in the early 19th century and developed rapidly following the First World War as a result of the many injuries suffered by musicians on the battlefield. The first half of the concert will be performed by harpist Oliver Wass, the first harpist to win the Guildhall Gold Medal, the Guildhall’s most prestigious prize. Previous winners of the competition include Jacqueline du Pré, Bryn Terfel and Tasmin Little. He is supported by the Musicians’ Company. |
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Classical Events is a dedicated classical music web site, and a concert listing with picture is currently free. Whether you are a professional or amateur musician your concerts are welcome. Typically this will include concerts by orchestras, ensembles, choral groups and soloists. Jonathan Heaton, Founder - Classical Events |
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