A Friday evening concert in Ewesley Road Methodist Church by Bishopwearmouth Young Singers and the Bishopwearmouth Chamber Choir, followed by refreshments.

Start time and cost to be confirmed.

A Saturday evening concert by Bishopwearmouth Choral Society, conducted by David Murray, in St.Gabriel’s Church, Chester Road, Sunderland.

Details to follow.

“Concerts presented by Bishopwearmouth Choral Society are looked forward to with keen anticipation by performers and audience. Saturday evening at the Minster was no exception. Faure was the featured composer his Requiem being the main work.  The first half of the concert includedworks that are miniature gems.  A convincing performance of Cesar Franck’s “Panis Angelicus” began the programme to be followed by “Calme des Nuits” (Saint Saens) in which the choir successfully reflected the atmosphere suggested by the title.  An unfamiliar work can also be a pleasant surprise and the inclusion of “Dirait-On” by the American composer Morten Laurindsen, one of whose influences was Faure, fitted nicely into the programme.

Faure songs require a particular sensitivity to text and musical line and textures and the guest soloist for the evening, the young but experienced Baritone, Alexander Robin Baker and his accompanist Eileen Bown were ideal performers in “L’horizon Chimerique” a miniature cycle of four songs and the last ones to be written by Faure.  David Murray the Society’s Music Director joined Eileen Bown at the piano to charm the audience with three movements from Faure’s “Dolly Suite.” The first half concluded with “Cantique de Jean Racine.” If the epithet “Simplicity of Genius” applies to any work it is this delightful piece which prepares one for the refined lyrical warmth of the Requiem.

Serenity and contemplation pervade the atmosphere of the “Requiem” rather than the dramatics of a Berlioz or Verdi. There are climaxes however, one in “Hosanna” being one of the loveliest moments in music.  It is the positive policy of the Choral Society to encourage young people to get involved and a group of junior members, who would have thoroughly enjoyed singing in the opening item, sang the “Pie Jesu” achieving the difficult task of blending as one. A large well balanced choir, guest soloist and orchestra under the direction of David Murray are to be congratulated for an imaginative well focused programme.”

Vincent Smith

A Saturday morning event in Fulwell Methodist Church.

Why not join the Society in a social event which comes with a raffle and stalls, while enjoying the tea/coffee and a chat

Please come a little earlier than usual to ensure that scores can be given out in time for the rehearsal to begin promptly at 7.30 p.m.. You will also need £6.00 to cover score hire.

A Saturday evening concert, conducted by David Murray, in Sunderland Minster to mark the Queen’s Jubilee.

Tickets are £12 in  Nave (£6 concessions for full time students and UB40s), £8.00 in Gallery (with limited view) and accompanied children under 16 admitted free. Obtainable via this website or info@bishopwearmouth.co.uk and from online ticketing at http://wegottickets.com/BCS

The concert will include the Magnificat in D major - Bach, Ein feste Burg - Bach, and feature Coronation Anthems by Handel.

The Magnificat in D major is a setting of the Magnificat text by Johann Sebastian Bach for five soloists, a five part choir and orchestra. Bach first composed a version in E-flat major for Christmas 1723 and then reworked that music in D major in 1733 for the feast of the Visitation. The Latin text is the canticle of Mary, mother of Jesus, as told in the Gospel of Luke.

Ein feste Burg (A mighty fortress is our God) is a church cantata also by Johann Sebastian Bach, which he composed in Leipzig for Reformation Day. It is based on Martin Luther’s chorale ‘Ein feste Burg ist unser Gott’.

Many composers have written coronation anthems but the best known were composed by George Frideric Handel. Handel’s four coronation anthems use text from the King James Bible  and are Zadok the Priest, let Thy Hand Be Strengthened, The King Shall rejoice and My heart Is Inditing. The text for all four anthems were picked by Handel – a personal selection from the most accessible account of an earlier coronation, that of James II of England in 1685. One of George I last acts before his death in 1727 was to sign an ‘Act of naturalisation of George Frideric handel and others’. The first commission for Handel as a newly- naturalised British subject was to write the music for the coronation of George II and Queen Caroline which took place on 11th October that same year. Right from their composition the four anthems have been popular and regularly played in concerts and festivals even during Handel’s own lifetime.

The Bishopwearmouth Choral Society’s traditional December concert proved to be the perfect early Christmas present for an enthusiastic and appreciative audience.

Conductor David Murray chose an all-Beethoven programme: a popular overture and two rarely-heard choral pieces. It proved to be an inspired choice. Beethoven may not be so well-known as a composer of choral music but this concert by Murray’s terrific group of singers demonstrated that anything a musical genius puts his hand to will always reward the listener.

The concert began with a performance of the Coriolan Overture. The grandeur and tragic heroism of the piece were movingly conveyed by the orchestra and it proved to be the perfect introduction to the concert.

The Mass in C suffers in comparison with its more well-known counterpart, the Missa Solemnis, but it is a great work in its own right. The unaccompanied opening of the Kyrie, the ecstatic joy of the Gloria and the poignancy of the Miserere arestern tests for any choir – Murray’s singers passed with flying colours.

The soloists (Katherine Moore, Sara Parry, Edward Lee and Martin Robson) were excellent throughout. They displayed a genuine sense of teamwork and clearly enjoyed singing unfamiliar repertoire.

Beethoven’s Choral Fantasy, which brought the concert to a rousing conclusion, is a bit of a highbrow hybrid – part sonata, part concerto and part chorus. The testing piano part was superbly played by Eileen Bown with a fantastic display of virtuosity which was simply stunning. The orchestra, especially the woodwind and horns, played with great feeling but it was the choir which really
delighted the audience. The warm applause that followed the exciting finale to the piece was richly deserved.

The Bishopwearmouth Choral Society continues to be a musical beacon in Sunderland and this concert was a shining example of de-light.

Keith Nixon

A Wednesday evening concert at Ewesley Road Methodist Church, Chester Road, Sunderland.

Come and join the Young Singers in celebrating Christmas in conjunction with the Bishopwearmouth Choral Society Chamber Choir and featuring a young artiste from the Sage Music School. No ticket is required but any donations will be gratefully received. There will be refreshments after the performance.