Tag Archives: Bristol Choral Society

2014 and 2015’s resolutions

Posted on January 9, 2015 by vhk10

2014 certainly had some very high points – comparable to if not better than the annus mirabilis of 2007. These include, in approximately chronological order: singing Messiah in Bombay and Goa with the South West Festival Chorus performing the Glagolitic … Continue reading →

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‘a passionate and sensitive interpretation’

Posted on December 13, 2014 by vhk10

The following Saturday I returned to another work I performed earlier this autumn, The Dream of Gerontius in Colston Hall. Again we had new soloists (ours were Mark Padmore, Susan Bickley and David Stout), conductor (Adrian Partington) and orchestra (Bournemouth … Continue reading →

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The sea will give up the dead

Posted on December 13, 2014 by vhk10

A while since our performance of the Berlioz Requiem in London but the time came round for us to revisit it in Gloucester Cathedral. The chorus were mostly the same people, and we still had the Philharmonia Orchestra, but soloist … Continue reading →

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My Radio 3 début

Posted on November 12, 2014 by vhk10

When I sang in the last English Cathedral last year, people asked what my next ambition was. I didn’t really have a single big one, but I did have a number of other things I wanted to do, among which … Continue reading →

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A return to the Royal Festival Hall

Posted on September 30, 2014 by vhk10

The Royal Festival Hall is beginning to feel like a home from home for me. Quite literally in one sense – because I grew up in a house where many furnishings had been purchased around the time of the Festival … Continue reading →

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The Kinshasa band

Posted on September 29, 2014 by vhk10

The Kinshasa Symphony Orchestra, founded 20 years ago, visited the UK for a four-concert tour. We were invited to join them for the final concert in Bristol, in the finale of Beethoven 9. They brought their own strong choir with … Continue reading →

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the frivolous time of year

Posted on June 26, 2014 by vhk10

At this season the music I’m asked to sing tends to lighten up a bit. First up was Rossini’s Messe Solennelle with Bristol Choral Society – the first time I’d performed with them in Bristol Cathedral, so there was new … Continue reading →

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Performing the Glagolitic Mass

Posted on April 28, 2014 by vhk10

@bristolchoral We gave two performances of the Mass on successive nights, the first in Colston Hall, the second in the Royal Festival Hall. This marked my Royal Festival Hall début! I have a principle of not evaluating here concerts that … Continue reading →

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Learning the Glagolitic Mass

Posted on April 21, 2014 by vhk10

Our two performances of the Janáček’s Glagolitic Mass were sufficiently remarkable that they merit two posts. I’ll begin by considering the problems I encountered in learning the Mass. The obvious one is the language. It ought to be no harder … Continue reading →

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a local première of the Glagolitic Mass?

Posted on March 11, 2014 by vhk10

@bristolchoral I’ve been going round saying that our forthcoming Glagolitic Mass is the first in the Bath/Bristol area for at least 20 years. Then I started to wonder whether it was in fact the first ever. Unless you have a … Continue reading →

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