to uphold and continually renew a proud tradition of choral singing
Newsletter Issue 20 AUTUMN 2014 In July the Society made its first visit to the Buxton Festival. We were asked to sing a programme of music suitable to commemorate the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War. Eileen Sheller kindly agreed to give a personal report on the day. Two coaches left Huddersfield Town Hall at 4pm on Sunday 20th July 2014 for our last concert of the season. There was a flurry and scurry whilst folk decided which coach they wanted to board, then off we went, winging our way to the prestigious Buxton Festival for a concert commemorating the outbreak of World War 1. Quite a few of our members made their own way to Buxton, many of them staying a night or two to enjoy the delights the festival had to offer. The weather was kind! Upon arrival, we were ushered into St. John’s Church, a beautiful old building, and shown to our seats. My hat goes off to the committee members who must have spent countless hours visiting the venue, discussing numbers and voice parts and finally arranging the choir to their best advantage within the confines of the church building. The rehearsal, around an hour and a half in total, went all too quickly but, as always, Joseph found the problems and dealt with them quickly and efficiently. Vaughan Williams’ Six Choral Songs to be Sung in Time of War were, I think, the ones the choir were most concerned about, but I must admit I had begun to warm to them by the time of the concert and I believe, in the end, they proved to be some of the most moving pieces of the concert. Mark paid tribute to two of our long serving members who were retiring and for whom this was to be their last concert – Sylvia McGee (who unfortunately was ill and couldn’t make her last concert) and Pam Hird, who had auditioned on the same day and had sung with the choral for over 40 years. They will be sadly missed in the Choral and in the Alto section in particular.
Photos: David Ward
Following the rehearsal, we had approximately an hour and a half to eat our sandwiches in the Opera House across the road from the church, then get changed in order to briefly sample and drink in the atmosphere of the festival in the dusk of a warm July evening, before lining up outside the church in readiness for the concert which began at 9pm. The concert was well attended and the surprise on the faces of many in the audience as they were hit by the wall of sound from the choir with the first lines of Non Nobis Domine, ably supported by Darius, who pulled out all the stops on a quite temperamental organ, was quite amusing. It is something I will remember for many years to come. There then followed the two pieces by Parry – the old favourite Blest Pair of Sirens and My Soul, There is a Country. Joseph’s witty banter in between the pieces pulled the concert together excellently. The choir’s rendition of three pieces by Elgar kept the audience spellbound, followed by that wonderful piece which fitted the theme of this concert so well – Ireland’s Greater Love Hath no Man. I found myself fighting back the tears whilst singing the words of this very poignant piece. The choral finished with the Six Songs to be Sung in Time of War and Faure’s heavenly In Paradisum from his Requiem – the only piece in which I wish I sang soprano! Still, I like to think we Altos acquitted ourselves creditably and sang our one word with reverence and precision! I returned home and crept into my bed around 1.15am Monday morning, tired but elated by the experience. My thanks go to Joseph and Darius for preparing us so well and to the committee for bringing about the opportunity to showcase The Choral at the Buxton Festival with this poignant programme. I hope it may be repeated at some time in the future. Eileen Sheller
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Coming up John Brown has decided to hang up his pen, so we are indebted to Jim Cowell, who has kindly agreed to provide a preview of our Spring concert on Friday 27 March 2015. Unfortunate circumstances have caused the committee to amend the announced programme for this concert, but we plan to include James MacMillan’s Seven Last Words in a future season.
Incarnatus’, and a romping finish in D major. A hushed opening to the Sanctus leads to a dramatic unison passage at ‘Pleni sunt coeli’ and a short ‘Osanna’. In the Benedictus, the soprano soloist and chorus imagine for us the sort of pomp and circumstance that would surround a messenger ‘in nomini Domini’. Near the end, the trumpets and drums suddenly enter to create grand music, suggesting a magnificent procession. Some have interpreted this section as a martial tribute to Lord Nelson himself, but it is more likely that Haydn did not have Nelson in mind, but a far greater power. The Agnus Dei takes us from intimate prayer to a joyful conclusion. The only previous performance by HCS was in 1987. Mozart accepted a commission to write the Requiem shortly before his death in December 1791. The stories, myths and legends surrounding the circumstance of this commission are well-known. They were largely started by his widow Constanze, who secretly entrusted the completion of the work to other composers after Mozart’s death so that she could claim the full payment and publishing rights. It is Süssmayr’s completion which is generally performed today.
We welcome Eamonn Dougan to our podium for the first time to conduct the Royal Northern Sinfonia and the Choral in two very popular works: Haydn’s Nelson Mass and Mozart’s Requiem.
Haydn’s Nelson Mass was written for the Name Day of Princess The Concert Hall of the Esterhazy Palace in Eisenstadt, Esterházy in 1798, but gained its where Admiral Lord Nelson heard a performance of the title when Lord Nelson and Lady Mass which subsequently came to bear his name. Hamilton heard it performed as Mozart was a great admirer of Bach and Handel, and the guests of the Esterházy Court in Eisenstadt in 1800, after his counterpoint and fugues show Mozart looking backward defeat of the French at the battle of the Nile. The scoring is for to their era. But his score offers more than this. The Dies strings, organ, trumpets and drums, with no woodwind (they Irae, traditionally the most dramatic section of the Requiem, had been dismissed by Haydn’s patron Nikolaus II as a here takes the form of a thundering chorus. The choral Rex cost-saving measure). Tremendae and Domine Jesu are in their own way scarcely The five sections of the Mass are treated as a large-scale less urgent. In the Tuba Mirum, a trombone calls us to the Last continuous musical entity, with the four soloists emerging Judgement, and there is highly expressive writing for the solo and blending with the chorus in short passages of solo and vocal quartet in this movement, as well as in the Recordare and ensemble writing. Agnus Dei. The Kyrie is a setting of anguished confusion and tragedy, notable for the dramatic coloratura lines for solo soprano, which also continue into the Gloria. This cheerful setting ends with a great fugue at ‘In gloria Dei Patri’. Choirs always like to get their teeth into a good fugue! The Credo starts with an austere two part canon before a beautiful soprano solo at ‘Et
Above all, it is a work showing all of Mozart’s characteristics: drama, pathos, charm, expressiveness, and – pure genius. It was last performed by the Society in 2006. Jim Cowell
DO YOU REMEMBER... -40?
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Fri. 27 September 1974
The Creation - Haydn City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra Owain Arwel Hughes - Conductor Nan Christie - Soprano Wynford Evans - Tenor John Tomlinson - Bass
of continued and sustained power. Sometimes though, despite this fine work, the singers were forced into too hefty a delivery of some choruses. Mr Hughes seemed always to search for brilliance - and got it yet there were many other occasions when, because of the vigorous beat, Haydn’s gentleness did not come through’.
Malcolm Cruise reporting for the Huddersfield Examiner wrote: ‘Certainly the chorus were as good as I have heard them in recent years, attacking their entries firmly and without trace of fault and proving themselves capable
In a very short report for the Yorkshire Post, Sydney Crowther wrote: ‘The chorus also excelled in the freshness of the final fugue and they sang finely also in such choruses as “Achieved is the Glorious Work” ‘.
A Message from our President Singing Member Jane Sargent was elected as President of the Society at the Annual General Meeting in July. She will serve for a two year term and we wish her good luck and a great deal of enjoyment to go with the hard work involved in leading our Society through challenging times. These are her thoughts at the start of her term of office. Welcome to this new edition of our Choral Newsletter. Every issue is something of a treasure trove, containing interesting articles and reports which reveal the wealth of knowledge and talent within the Society. The hidden depths of all of our contributors are a source of fascination to me. How fortunate we are to have singing members, committee, professionals and others who are happy to give their time and enthusiasm to support the Society’s work in such a variety of ways. After taking up the Presidency in July, my first engagement was to visit Buxton Festival with the Society. This was a new destination for us. The performance was planned to mark the centenary of the outbreak of World War One. It was a dignified and moving occasion and many of those in the audience were touched by the music they heard. We have since looked back into our own archives to learn about some of the singing members who left Huddersfield for the battlefields and trenches. I hope we might be able to share this research with you in another edition. Over the next two years, one of the main priorities for my Presidency will be to ensure that the Society’s strategy sustains the momentum which our immediate Past President, Jenny Lockwood, gave it. Many of our stakeholders contributed to the development of the strategy and the result has been an excellent piece of work which can steer us through the next few years, enabling us to uphold tradition but not stagnate. Together with the officers, committee and singing members, I want to ensure that the Society retains its reputation for high quality music making and continues to engage excellent orchestras, conductors and soloists. However, it is important that we recognise that looking after the Society’s future means fostering a spirit of renewal in our work in addition to revisiting well-loved masterpieces. This will allow us to continue to develop our artistic flexibility. Perhaps an appropriate metaphor derived from our textile town is that we need to weave together the old and the new. In this way, I hope that our prestigious organisation will continue to thrive and maintain its position as one of the UK’s leading choirs. Jane.
The Society’s new Committee elected at the AGM in July is as follows: PRESIDENT Jane Sargent VICE PRESIDENT Jeremy Garside GENERAL SECRETARY (Acting) Jeremy Garside TREASURER Adrian Lee CHOIR SECRETARY Mark Taylor SUBSCRIBERS’ SECRETARY Jane Armitage SPONSORSHIP SECRETARY Tony Booth LIBRARIANS Howard Sandford Susan Sandford RECRUITMENT OFFICER Gaynor Haliday PUBLICITY & MARKETING OFFICER Robert Drummond PROGRAMME OFFICER Sue Turnbull MEMBERS’ REPRESENTATIVES Charmaine Beaumont (Sop) Liz Hill (Sop) Lucy Pople (Sop) Hilary McLean (Con) Stephen Brook (Ten) David Ward (Ten) John Harman (Bass) Geoff Priestley (Bass) SUBSCRIBERS’ REPRESENTATIVES Cynthia Pratt (also Friends’ Secretary) Ken Wootton Non Committee Positions ARCHIVIST Malcolm Hinchliffe WELFARE SECRETARY Jean Parker
MEMORIES FROM 40 YEARS AGO Our regular feature on concerts 25 and 40 years ago has brought a response from associate member, Marjorie Upson. Reading our article on the Spring performance in 1974 of Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius in the previous edition she writes: ‘It was the last concert of my first season with the Choral. We rehearsed at that time in the YMCA Building on Lord Street. One of the hazards there was that youths used to delight in banging on the doors and windows and generally causing a nuisance. One evening there was a particularly loud interruption and several members ran out to try and apprehend the culprits. When they returned the rehearsal resumed and first section of music to be sung was ‘Low Born Clods of Brute Earth’. I think everyone laughed at the appropriateness of the words’. Thank you Marjorie, it is always good to hear anecdotes from members - current or retired. If anyone wishes to contribute an article to the newsletter, based directly or indirectly about the Society or choral music in general, please e-mail the editor on stephen.brook1@ntlworld.com
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Strategy Matters “To uphold and continually renew a proud tradition of choral singing” John Harman has agreed to write a series of articles to try and demystify and explain the recently adopted strategy for the future development of the Society. This first piece sets the scene and he has called it... ‘TO SEE OURSELVES...’ It’s about two years now since the then President, Jenny Lockwood, asked me to convene a group to study and report on the Society’s direction and strategy. We were a mixed bunch - and mixed by design, with some Committee officers, but also singing members, subscribers and friends. We worked over the winter and spring of 2012-13 and delivered our report to the Committee in that May. It was accepted unanimously and now forms the Society’s musical strategy. Many of you will have seen its summary of 8 headline recommendations. But headline recommendations are dry stuff. In this article, and in those that follow, I want to tell the story of how the mixed bunch came to a distinctly unmixed set of conclusions about the Society’s future direction, and what is now being done to put those conclusions into practice. It goes without saying that if you put together a dozen people who all have a fierce loyalty to the Society, you are going to have several dozen firmly held opinions. The first, and perhaps the best, thing that we did was to agree to shelve all that. This wasn’t just a laying down of arms; it was a recognition that any conclusions which sprang from the Society’s conversation with itself would run the risk of self-delusion. Instead we resolved to spend time (and, yes, money) on finding out what the world thinks of the Huddersfield Choral Society. Or if not the whole world, those bits of it that matter most to us; singers, subscribers, the wider community in our catchment area, and the wider musical world. Structured research was commissioned with the first three groups, and I had the task – and the privilege – of conducting detailed interviews with a cross-section of music professionals; the soloists and conductors we work with, orchestra managers and people from the broadcasting and recording sphere. It turned out that this was time well spent. Once we understood the view from outside the Society the way forward became pretty clear. But looking at ourselves in the mirror of others’ perceptions was often uncomfortable. Words and phrases such as “inspiring”, “world class” and “professional” jostled with less welcome associations, “oldfashioned”, “cliquey”, “exclusive”, and the unkindest cut of all, just plain “old”. Whether we like it or not, whether we think it fair or not, we have to recognise that these responses are real and that they matter.
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The professional music world was kinder, but still gave us pause for thought. Several interviewees referred to the Society as “a national treasure” in the tone with which people used to speak of the late Queen Mother. A number
of quite influential people who hadn’t heard us perform in recent years identified us strongly with performances of Messiah going back to Malcolm Sargent’s time, and that reflects the fact that the Society’s image in parts of the music world is coloured in sepia. Those with whom we have worked more often were much more positive, but even then the view is hedged, as for example one interviewee who said: “If
I was looking for a choir for more modern works I probably wouldn’t go to HCS, and if I did it would need a lot of rehearsal. But for the core repertoire Huddersfield is a slam dunk”!
Looking for our peers, in Britain at least, is not easy. Many of the traditional choral societies now struggle to maintain membership, and with around 200 singing members we are an exception – very few other societies can now successfully tackle the larger works. We are more likely to be compared with the symphony choruses such as the Halle, BBC Wales or the City of Birmingham, all of which have deeper professional resources and a number of semi-professional singers. But if it is clear that the Society is still seen as being in this company, it is also clear that we have no divine right to that status and need to keep earning it. And here we come to the rub. The Society is probably singing better today than it was 10 or 20 years ago. Under Joseph Cullen’s persistent teaching, intonation, attack, sight reading and learning have improved markedly. Yet none of that matters if we aren’t heard. We record less than we did (and it is dreadfully expensive), we are broadcast less often, we are rarely heard live outside Huddersfield, and there is almost no presence of the Society’s recent work in the electronic media which is where most people nowadays get their music. So this is what the Society’s strategy is about; on the strength of our ability to maintain a high standard in performance, we need to address the negative perceptions, and we need to ensure that we reach that wider audience on which our reputation has always been based. Those readers who attended the recent AGM will have had a brief taste of how the Society intends to do this, and the newsletter will follow the story as it unfolds. And it really isn’t a trade-off between the local and national audiences. Our subscriber base is the core of our continuing viability as one of the country’s leading large choirs, so it enables us to support a national and international reputation. But it is that wider reputation that in turn feeds our subscriber base. A continual striving for excellence in performance underpins both. We exist to present the wonderful repertoire of choral classics to successive generations of audiences and to maintain the standards of choral discipline that allow this to be done. But we must also continually renew that tradition, which is one that evolves, adding new work with each generation. And that is why the first thing that the Society did on accepting the report in the summer of 2013 was to adopt as its purpose:
“To uphold and continually renew a proud tradition of choral singing”
Membership News... Long Service At the start of the new season our President, Jane Sargent, had the pleasure of presenting a number of long service awards. Contralto member Christine Durham was the latest recipient of a silver salver to mark 50 years service as a singing member. For a period of 10 years Christine lived in Whitby, but still travelled to Huddersfield every Friday evening to attend rehearsal. On the same evening our President also presented three 25 year badges. The recipients were Thelma Simpson (Soprano), Tim Wilkes (Tenor) and Barrie Williams (Bass).
Sad Farewells
In early September the Society was deeply saddened to learn of the death of Bass member, Lyndon Wilkinson. Lyndon had become something of a legend in the choir due to his Basso Profundo voice, with the ability to sing notes far below the normal call of duty with great resonance and accuracy. He had frequently performed at Society Annual General Meetings and at fund raising concerts and more recently had given of his time to fulfil the position of Treasurer of our Junior Choirs. A large contingent of the choir was able to attend the funeral service at Batley Central Methodist Church and sing in tribute to a much loved gentleman. Our thoughts remain with his family and particularly Susan, who continues in her position of Musical Director of the Junior Choirs. We have also been informed of the death of associate member Joan Holroyd, at the age of 87. Joan was a singing member of the choir for 35 years. We send our sympathy and condolences to her family and friends.
The President presents a silver salver and flowers to Christine Durham with Barrie Williams, Tim Wilkes and Thelma Simpson
Photo: John Harman
A few weeks later there were more presentations, this time to Bass member Jim Stafford (40 years service) and Contralto, Rowena Burton (25). The Society is deeply grateful for the dedication of all our long serving members. We would also like to mention two retirees, Pam Hird and Sylvia McGee. Both ladies joined the choir on the same night in 1971 and decided to retire together too having completed 43 years as singing members of the Society. Thank you and well done.
The Society has been recruiting with some success in the past few months with the following new members joining our ranks: Jovenia Beevers (Soprano), Frances Durning (Our first lady Tenor), Felicity Dunk (Contralto), Chris Kneale (Bass), Margaret Mallaband (Soprano), Poppy Martin (Contralto), Geoff Nemec (Tenor), Jane Williamson (Soprano), Andrew Wright (Bass) and Clare Wright (Contralto). We wish them all a huge amount of enjoyment and look forward to their comradeship for years to come.
Birthday
The choir often sings ‘Happy Birthday’ to mark the happy occasion, but only when a member’s celebration falls on a rehearsal night. We were very pleased to relax that tradition on 7 November when we sang the verse for Bass member, Dennis Holmes. Dennis has 28 years service with the choir, having joined in 1986. However, the remarkable thing is that Dennis was 62 years of age when he joined the Society. On Saturday 8 November Dennis celebrated his 90th birthday. Our President was pleased to present him with a celebratory bottle to toast the occasion. The Society’s old records do not give the ages of members, but it must be a distinct possibility that Dennis is the oldest person ever to sing with the Society, unless of course you know differently. If anyone knows of a member singing with the choir at an older age, please contact the editor on stephen.brook1@ntlworld.com.
Photo: Robert Drummond
Photo: David Ward
New Members
Rowena Burton and Jim Stafford receive their badges
Dennis with the President
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Junior Choirs News Cycle Song ‘Vive La Velorution’ – Alexander L’Estrange – to celebrate the ‘Tour De France’ July 2014 The ‘Choral’ Junior Choirs always look for opportunities for members beyond the local area if possible. They had a ‘late’ invitation to take part in a piece composed by Alexander L’Estrange which had been commissioned by the Chapter House Choir in York. Due to arrive in January 2014, in the event the music arrived in May. The piece was great fun and included bicycle bells and pumps amongst a variety of uplifting rhythms and vocal reminiscences of cycling including ‘Daisy, Daisy’. In the end, it was a fantastic experience for all those from the Youth Choir who took part in York Minster alongside a number of adult and junior choirs totalling 400 from the Yorkshire area.
Workshop Day - Saturday 11th October was organised to give extra learning time to Christmas repertoire. Three rooms were used for practice with Susan and Jane, supported by visiting musician Emily Reaves and accompanist Tim Wilkes. The first concert at St Joseph’s, Aspley on 29 November, is always a favourite, with soloists from the Choir sections, Christmas songs and carols, silly hats and raffle prizes. A highlight of the season will be the concert with the Seniors in the Town Hall on 12 Dec. For these young people it is exciting to be on stage in a packed Town Hall. Whether aged six or from University it will be the first time some have experienced such a concert.
Workshop Day at New North Road Baptist Church
Pizza & fun at lunch time! A rest from learning
The Summer Concert and Awards Presentations on 13 July in Holmfirth had a packed audience. Choir sections and soloists performed well. Award Winners were well-deserved and proud to receive their cups or shields from newly appointed Choral President Jane Sargent who has worked with the Juniors for many years.
Summer Concert at Holmfirth Parish Church
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Annual Award Winners – July 2014
DO YOU REMEMBER ...-25 ? Fri. 10 November 1989
War Requiem - Britten English Northern Philharmonia London Mozart Players Jane Glover - Conductor Heather Harper - Soprano Maldwyn Davies - Tenor David Wilson Johnson - Baritone Choristers of York Minster The poignancy of this concert, which had been planned for Remembrance weekend in the 50th Anniversary year of the outbreak of World War 2, was even more greatly felt due to events in East Germany where, that very morning, dismantling of the Berlin Wall had commenced. Malcolm Cruise, still on duty for the Huddersfield Examiner, wrote: ‘The chorus sang with marvellous commitment and alertness, as well as an uncanny feeling for the work’s moods the brilliance and pungency of the Dies Irae, the stunning, gigantic effect of the free chanting in the Sanctus and the floating quietness of the Pie Jesu. It was all a clear statement of the polish and accomplishment of this chorus, a point further illustrated at the end where, after the lengthy, but most pointed of Owen’s poems which depicts the reconciliation of two opposing soldiers after death, came a growing warmth of tone, added to by the boys’ choir and ultimately spreading into the most sensational and glorious fullness. And the final resolution - of Amen was sublime, perfection’. In a superbly crafted review in the Yorkshire Post, Simon Cargill wrote: ‘Whatever doubts remain about the consistency of inspiration, the appropriateness of the treatment, are washed away by the sort of sheer bloody minded commitment that the Huddersfield Choral Society and York Minster Choristers under Jane Glover brought to the work. It was not a beautiful performance; it is not beautiful music, but seldom can the piece have received such a gutsy and by turns radiant and brutal recreation’.
DIARY Please get these dates into your diaries! Sunday 30 November 2014 - St. Joseph’s Church, Aspley - 3.30pm. Junior Choirs - Christmas Concert Friday 12 December 2014 - Huddersfield Town Hall -7.30pm. HCS and Junior Choirs - Christmas Concert Brian Kay, Conductor and Presenter Tuesday 16 December 2014 - Huddersfield Town Hall - 7.15pm. Messiah - Handel (Subscribers’ Performance) Orchestra of Opera North - David Angus Wednesday 17 December 2014 - Hudersfield Town Hall - 7.15pm. Messiah - Handel (Public Performance) Orchestra of Opera North - David Angus Saturday 31 January 2015 - Ossett Youth Choir - Private Event Saturday 7 March 2015 - Venue tbc Junior Choirs - Concert Sunday 15 March 2015 - Huddersfield Town Hall - 4.30pm. Junior Choirs - Mayor’s Charity Concert Friday 27 March 2015 - Huddersfield Town Hall 7.30pm. HCS - Subscription Concert - Haydn, Nelson Mass Mozart, Requiem Saturday 25 April 2015 - Huddersfield Town Hall 7.30pm. HCS - Huddersfield Philharmonic Concert Gershwin, Porgy and Bess Saturday 9 May 2015 - Venue tbc. Junior Choirs Concert Sunday 5 July 2015 - Venue tbc Junior Choirs Concert
The Society is in discussions regarding other events in the summer of 2015. Details will be shown on the website if and when arrangements are contracted. News will also be given in the Spring 2015 Newsletter.
Photos: Selwyn Green
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In The Loop In this section we will aim to keep everyone up to date with the many facets of the Society’s work.
We currently have no idea which programmes the pieces will be broadcast in, so please just set your recording devices to cover all Songs of Praise programmes for the next three or four months.
CHRISTMAS We are delighted to welcome back Brian Kay to conduct and present our Christmas Concert on Friday 12 December. The concert also features Black Dyke Band and the HCS Junior Choirs. Our Messiah performances this year are on Tues. 16 (Subscribers’) and Weds. 17 (Public) December when the Orchestra of Opera North and the Choral will be conducted by David Angus. At the time of writing tickets were still available for all dates.
WELFARE FUND The Welfare Fund exists to give support to members and associates in times of illness, hospitalisation and bereavement. Jean Parker works tirelessly as organiser and secretary of the fund. We would like to congratulate Jean on organising a very successful Coffee Morning at Fartown Trinity Methodist Church a few weeks ago. A magnificent total of almost £950 was raised. Thanks must also go to the many people who gave their time to help on the day and also money in the form of raffle prizes etc.
To obtain your tickets please contact Kirklees Box Office on 01484 223200. CHART SUCCESS The Society has hit the top of the Classical CD Charts, with a little help from the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra and Maestro Vassily Petrenko. The recording of Shostakovich Symphony No. 13 - Babi Yar - was released a few weeks ago on the Naxos label and immediately shot to the top of the charts. It has now dropped back a little, but at the time of writing was still in the top ten. The CD is very reasonably priced, so if you would like to hear the men of the choir singing in this very atmospheric symphony, make sure to get a copy of this recording. CHORUS MASTER We would like to express a huge debt of gratitude to Darius Battiwalla, our Deputy Chorus Master, who made substantial alterations to his diary in order to be available for the great majority of rehearsals through the autumn season and up until Christmas. This is due to the absence of Chorus Master, Joseph Cullen, who remains suspended from his duties in accordance with the statement posted on the Society’s website in early September. In the meantime Darius will continue to be responsible for the preparation of the Society’s engagements with the help of guest Chorus Masters when required. SONGS OF PRAISE By the time you read this newsletter the Society will have taken part in a major recording with the BBC Philharmonic in Gorton Monastery, Manchester. We are recording nine chorus and hymn arrangements, under conductor David Lawrence, which will be slotted into various editions of BBC Songs of Praise over the next few months.
SPRING CONCERT The Society has amended the programme of music for our Spring Concert on March 27, 2015. The programme will now consist of Haydn Nelson Mass and Mozart Requiem (in the original Süssmayr completion). We have felt the need to postpone the scheduled performance of James MacMillan’s Seven Last Words from the Cross until the situation regarding the position of Chorus Master becomes clearer. The piece has considerable difficulties in the learning and it would not have been possible to adequately learn the piece using guest Chorus Masters. We appreciate that many people will be disappointed not to be able to hear one of most significant pieces of choral music written in the past twenty years, but don’t despair; it is postponed, not cancelled, and we hope to include it in the season within the next three years. PORGY & BESS The Society has accepted an invitation from the Huddersfield Philharmonic Orchestra to perform a new concert version of Gershwin’s Porgy & Bess at the Town Hall on Saturday 25 April 2015. This will be the Society’s first foray into the world of Gershwin and we look forward to working with our local orchestra and their conductor, Robert Guy. LATE NEWS The BBC have just informed us that the first of our recorded items for Songs of Praise – Hills of the North Rejoice – will be broadcast on Sunday 30 November.
CUTTING DOWN ON POSTAGE... The Society is trying to reduce its costs, both monetarily and environmentally, by posting out fewer paper copies of the newsletter. If you would be willing to receive the newsletter by e-mail from now on, please send your name, address and category (ie Associate Member, Subscriber, Sponsor or Friend) to our editor, Stephen Brook @ stephen.brook1@ntlworld.com NB. If you have already informed us due to reading this in a previous edition, there is no need to get in touch again.
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