The Erleigh Cantors usually perform a concert in May, and this year it was decided to honour the Marian connexion (our reader read the poem by Hopkins on this theme). We did so with a large number of mostly short pieces, many revived from Cathedral visits.<\/p>\n
Some highlights from the music I already knew were: the Giles Swayne Magnificat, which I’ve only ever sung with this choir; anniversary composer Holst’s Ave Maria<\/i> (I’m gradually working round all four soprano parts in this piece); Rihards Dubra’s Ave Maria<\/i>; Tavener’s Hymn to the Mother of God<\/i>; Guerrero’s Ave Virgo sanctissima<\/i>; Jonathan Dove’s Vast ocean of light<\/i> (not really a Marian piece but it was fresh in the choir’s memory). Also Britten’s Hymn to the Virgin<\/i>, which seemed to have a sickness jinx affecting the solo quartet; I was a late substitute for an indisposed soprano and am apparently turning into a Britten specialist this year.<\/p>\n
There were several pieces new to me. Franz Biebl sounds as if he ought to be Baroque but he is much more recent. His Ave Maria<\/i> exists in several different arrangements which caused some confusion in rehearsal. It’s quite a long piece and the soprano part gets strenuous in places. Paul Mealor’s O sanctissima Maria<\/i>, by contrast, lies low, especially at the end. I’d heard Judith Weir’s Ave Maris Stella<\/i> on the radio recently so it was good to perform it. I had only sung anthems by Vivanco before, but we included his Magnificat on the 8th tone, where the polyphonic verses have different numbers of parts, a trap for unwary singers. (However Mapa Mundi editions are the best for laying out the lines so that you don’t miscount!)<\/p>\n
We had a good sized audience of Eurovision refugees<\/a> as last year.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The Erleigh Cantors usually perform a concert in May, and this year it was decided to honour the Marian connexion (our reader read the poem by Hopkins on this theme). We did so with a large number of mostly short … Continue reading