Tag Archives: Purcell

Health and safety at Canterbury

The Cathedral Chamber Choir was at Canterbury for their summer week this year. We rehearsed in All Saints’ Chapel because the song room was unavailable for ‘health and safety reasons’. As one of our singers fell on the steps leading … Continue reading

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Note clusters in Ely

I made a swift return to Ely Cathedral, this time for a weekend of services with the Erleigh Cantors. We weren’t able to do introits and we weren’t at full strength, because it wasn’t half-term for some people, so our … Continue reading

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Ambrosian rites

I spent much of Holy Week in Milan, and was able to get to Palm Sunday and Maundy Thursday services in the Cathedral. There is a tradition of elaborately choreographed liturgy there which I’ve experienced before – does it go … Continue reading

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Purcell’s monument

While on a shopping trip to London, I found time to go to evensong at Westminster Abbey, which I’d never done before (I’ve been at evensongs there, but singing them!) The attraction was Byrd’s Great Service, a setting I’ve never … Continue reading

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Bath Mozartfest 2011 (1): The Sixteen

My first Mozartfest concert was The Sixteen in Bath Abbey. Having missed their ‘choral pilgrimage’ when it came to Wells a few weeks ago I wanted to catch them especially as they were doing Purcell. Purcell is in fact a … Continue reading

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LPs batch 26: more sticking points

I actually recorded these LPs some months ago, but am behind with writing them up. This batch began with a Hungaroton transfer of Beethoven violin sonatas performed by Dénes Kovacs and Mihaly Bächer. Some of the other discs in the … Continue reading

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Flesh coloured tights

These were requested as part of the dress code for my weekend of services with the Erleigh Cantors in St. Alban’s Cathedral. We had a busy weekend which began with a wedding on the Saturday morning as well as the … Continue reading

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the Howells jinx

I am beginning to feel that at the moment something happens to drastically cut rehearsal time every time I have to sing some Howells. At Birmingham Cathedral it was a loss of power, at Canterbury Cathedral with Priory Voices it … Continue reading

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Don’t mention the anniversaries!

It’s impossible to listen to Radio 3 so far this year and not notice that anniversaries of Purcell, Handel, Haydn and Mendelssohn are being commemorated in 2009. I normally remark on occasions when I perform anniversary composers, but I think … Continue reading

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a Messiah and a carol service

I’ve got a bit behind with performances. Just before Advent began we had a come-and-sing Messiah in church, for which I joined the chorus. This was an informal performance so we could wrap up well and I dug out my … Continue reading

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You know you’re a Purcell fan when …

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’.

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G’s and Z’s

Plenty of these in the name of one of the composers in the most recent Chandos Singers concert: Grzegorz Gerwazy Gorczycki, whose Conductus (an assortment of settings of mostly funerary texts) we performed. The other substantial single piece was Lalande’s … Continue reading

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