A decade ago I sang Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle with Bristol Choral Society in Bristol Cathedral. The wheel has turned full circle and I went back there to hear them sing the same piece. I was a guest of the soprano soloist, whom I’ve known since we were both on the same Chorus Angelorum tour.
This was my first return to hear the choir since I stopped singing with it and lots of people said hello. It was a good chance not just to appreciate its sound but also to see what it looks like in performance. There were one or two surprises in this area. This Mass has (as I remarked before) several consecutive movements in the Gloria where the chorus doesn’t sing. (Verdi’s Requiem has a similarly long wait in the Dies Irae but somehow you don’t notice that as much.) Inadvertent entertainment was provided by watching choir members looking in various directions, shuffling around or stretching during this. I must remember next time I sing the Mass that I’m on view.
Another thing to watch for is the ridiculously catchy themes of the final fugues in the Gloria and Credo which produced gentle swaying in time from some. But overall I thought the performance comparable to what I remember from the previous one, including the tricky a capella section sprung on the chorus in the Kyrie.