Author Archives: vhk10

marking the end of an era with Blair

Posted on June 5, 2007 by vhk10

Martin Hall has handed over as director of the Cathedral Chamber Choir (which he founded) to Matthew O’Donovan and the occasion was marked by a special evensong including Blair in B minor (famously on the music list at Westminster Abbey … Continue reading →

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

admiring the candelabrum

Posted on June 4, 2007 by vhk10

In front of the choir stalls in Lincoln Cathedral there is a very fine candelabrum which attracted my attention (not least when two of the vergers were getting it lit before Sunday evensong). I think only Southwark has a better … Continue reading →

Posted in singing at services | Tagged , , , | 1 Comment

Bath Festival 2007

Posted on May 25, 2007 by vhk10

There are various things I miss about the Festival these days: the fly-past of hot-air balloons followed by fireworks on the opening night, and the best-dressed window competition. And there’s no Bath Festival Chorus again this year. But we’ve been … Continue reading →

Posted in going to concerts | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment

responses

Posted on May 14, 2007 by vhk10

I’ve sung quite a few different settings of these recently, and about 30 altogether, so here are some overall verdicts, as I haven’t a recent performance to write about. (For one thing, church is full of scaffolding!) My favourite set: … Continue reading →

Posted in repertoire | Tagged , , , , | 5 Comments

an alternative to singing

Posted on May 11, 2007 by vhk10

I was recently told that there’s a surplus of singers in Bristol at the moment and so all the choirs have waiting lists. I couldn’t help reflecting, firstly, on how things change over time. Not very long ago there were … Continue reading →

Posted in choirs | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

You know you’re a Purcell fan when …

Posted on May 8, 2007 by vhk10

you can’t log into your blog and see the little checkbox with the question ‘Remember me?’ without mentally carrying on ‘but ah! forget my fate’.

Posted in repertoire | Tagged | 9 Comments

two long Magnificats

Posted on May 1, 2007 by vhk10

I returned to St. Alban’s Cathedral rather sooner than expected, on the weekend of Low Sunday with the Peterborough Chamber Choir. I sang two evensongs, dashing off after the first one to a photoshoot followed by a College dinner in … Continue reading →

Posted in singing at services | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments

Bruckner did not write heavy metal

Posted on April 27, 2007 by vhk10

But this didn’t stop the Grauniad from putting a spurious umlaut over the u in his surname today. I recommend the Wikipedia article on this topic. I expect that I won’t be mentioning heavy metal again here in a hurry … Continue reading →

Posted in category-defying | Tagged | 1 Comment

a top C

Posted on April 22, 2007 by vhk10

I hadn’t been asked to do one of these in performance for a while (the last time I think was when I sang in the chorus in Mahler 8). But there was one at the end of a specially-written descant … Continue reading →

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

Tribulation

Posted on April 20, 2007 by vhk10

The St. Matthew Passion wasn’t the only choral work I performed for the first time in Holy Week. On Good Friday I went over to Oxford to sing in a scratch performance of Rossini’s Stabat Mater at St. Giles’s Church … Continue reading →

Posted in singing in concerts | Tagged , , | 1 Comment

friendly and unfriendly choirs

Posted on April 6, 2007 by vhk10

Most choral singers must have had this experience: of trying to engage another in the choir in conversation, who has clearly decided that you aren’t in their league and can safely be ignored. I’ve already written about the time I … Continue reading →

Posted in choirs | Tagged | Comments Off on friendly and unfriendly choirs

the Chorus Angelorum

Posted on April 4, 2007 by vhk10

This was the name of the choir assembled to sing a big performance (really, there is no other kind) of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion in Bath Abbey tonight under the direction of Gavin Carr and accompanied by the English Chamber … Continue reading →

Posted in singing in concerts | Tagged , , , , , | 3 Comments