Author Archives: vhk10

The War Requiem in Gloucester

Posted on December 18, 2013 by vhk10

Our performance of the War Requiem was given jointly with the Gloucester Choral Society, and our first performance was in Gloucester Cathedral with Cathedral choristers in the boys choir. I’ll save my reflections on the piece itself for later. The … Continue reading →

Posted in singing in concerts | Tagged , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mozartfest 2013 – 2

Posted on December 3, 2013 by vhk10

On the Tuesday evening I was back in the Assembly rooms with our youngest for the Trio Wanderer, a French ensemble who played Mozart’s K502, Ravel’s piano trio and Schubert’s D898 in poised yet expressive performances. This was my son’s … Continue reading →

Posted in children, going to concerts | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mozartfest 2013 – 1

Posted on November 27, 2013 by vhk10

We managed to fit in several concerts in this years’s Bath Mozartfest. We began on the Sunday night with Anthony Marwood (violin) and Aleksandar Madžar (piano) in the Assembly Rooms. This was quite a popular concert, which opened with Schumann’s … Continue reading →

Posted in going to concerts | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Duruflé’s Requiem (2): Bath

Posted on November 26, 2013 by vhk10

The second performance of the Requiem came a week later, at our Remembrance Sunday service. We would not normally do an entire Mass setting, but we were playing host to a visiting choir, conducted by a former organist who now … Continue reading →

Posted in singing at services | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Duruflé’s Requiem (1): Winchester

Posted on November 18, 2013 by vhk10

It’s been nine years since I sang Duruflé’s Requiem which was something of a cult piece when I was a student. And then I am invited to take part in two performances with different choirs in the space of nine … Continue reading →

Posted in singing at services | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Cavalli’s Argonauts

Posted on November 18, 2013 by vhk10

Some of the duller evenings of my life have been caused by Cavalli’s Messa Concertata, as performer and audience. I was therefore slightly hesitant about spending an evening at one of his operas. However, I was at a loose end, … Continue reading →

Posted in going to operas | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

John Tavener RIP

Posted on November 13, 2013 by vhk10

#tavenerrip Some of us heard the Song for Athene playing in the dentist’s surgery yesterday, and this turned out to be because Sir John Tavener had died. I predict an Christmas outbreak of performances of The Lamb and perhaps also … Continue reading →

Posted in category-defying | Tagged , , , | Leave a comment

back at WNO

Posted on November 8, 2013 by vhk10

So it was back to the Millennium Centre in Cardiff a couple of weeks after our previous visit. On death row, the condemned prisoner is reminiscing about the good times while elsewhere frantic efforts are made to secure their release. … Continue reading →

Posted in going to operas | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Remembering the War Requiem

Posted on October 29, 2013 by vhk10

@bristolchoral The War Requiem is associated with remembrance, which is why it gets so many performances at this time of year, especially in these years of the centenaries of Britten and the outbreak of the Great War. But I am … Continue reading →

Posted in choirs | Tagged , | 2 Comments

the importance of publicity

Posted on October 15, 2013 by vhk10

I have a stack of flyers and a couple of posters for my next concert and must distribute the remainder in appropriate places. I feel very guilty when I find publicity after a concert that I never got round to … Continue reading →

Posted in choirs | Tagged , , | 1 Comment