Author Archives: vhk10

Review of the year: 2022

Posted on December 31, 2022 by vhk10

This was naturally enough a great improvement on the two previous years. My musical life (like my non-musical one) contained many events postponed from 2020 and 2021, and so became very busy. I’ve only done half a dozen overseas choir … Continue reading →

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Advent/Christmas 2022 (2): four carol services

Posted on December 30, 2022 by vhk10

Three I sang in and one where I was in the congregation. One new piece for me in the church Advent carol service (held as usual on the second Sunday in Advent): Nova! Nova! by Bob Chilcott, very catchy but … Continue reading →

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completing the set of Coronation Anthems

Posted on December 15, 2022 by vhk10

The following weekend I had another concert, Bristol Choral Society’s Christmas concert in Bristol Cathedral. A chance to complete the set of Coronation Anthems by Handel, as we did all except The King shall Rejoice, which I sang in May … Continue reading →

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an unheated Messiah

Posted on December 10, 2022 by vhk10

I try to space out performances of Messiah – helped by the pandemic I’d managed to go four years since the last one – and in fact I’d never performed it in Gloucester Cathedral. I rejoined Gloucester Choral Society (having … Continue reading →

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Advent/Christmas (1): Spanish music on Advent Sunday

Posted on December 2, 2022 by vhk10

December is often not as busy a month for me as it is for many choral singers, but this year there were two concerts and several carol services. Advent Sunday (not December, I know) was a busy day, beginning at … Continue reading →

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Mozartfest 2022 and Nosferatu

Posted on November 25, 2022 by vhk10

The Bath Mozartfest presented a full programme for its 2022 edition, largely in the Assembly Rooms (the Guildhall did not feature). All Covid restrictions had apparently been lifted, apart from visible hand sanitizer and the absence of a coat rack. … Continue reading →

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a Remembrance concert

Posted on November 18, 2022 by vhk10

The Chamber Choir was involved in Bath Abbey’s concert for Remembrance for the first time. This concert was logistically quite an undertaking as the various pieces used different combinations of performers. Indeed Vaughan Williams’ Five Mystical Songs (the third recent … Continue reading →

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the Symphony of Psalms – at last!

Posted on November 15, 2022 by vhk10

The concert’s been postponed three times, the Stravinsky anniversary has come and gone, but at last Bristol Choral Society got to perform the Symphony of Psalms with members of the Bristol Ensemble. This found its way on to our concert … Continue reading →

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two commemorations I missed

Posted on November 10, 2022 by vhk10

In the summer present and past members of the Chandos Singers met to commemorate their recently departed conductor, Malcolm Hill. Although I hadn’t sung with them for a decade, I was invited back, but wasn’t able to sing because I … Continue reading →

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a recap of a favourite evensong

Posted on November 8, 2022 by vhk10

I was back in Gloucester towards the end of October, not to rejoin Gloucester Choral Society (that comes later) but for a weekend of services with the Erleigh Cantors. Our programme had been adapted because the main organ was unavailable … Continue reading →

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where has this piece been?

Posted on October 25, 2022 by vhk10

Every so often I sing a piece for the first time and wonder how I’ve not even heard it before. This happened at a funeral at church recently, the piece in question being Es ist nun aus mit meinem Leben … Continue reading →

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twin performances

Posted on October 20, 2022 by vhk10

Bristol has been twinned with Hannover for 75 years, and this was celebrated by a pair of performances of Brahms’ Deutsches Requiem in Hannover, given by members of Bristol Choral Society and the Hannoversche Oratorienchor, directed by Keno Weber with … Continue reading →

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