Sydney Chamber Choir starts a new era
Six centuries of music which takes a look at itself was the theme of Sydney Chamber Choir’s season opener under its new director and conductor, Sam Allchurch.
Wentworth Courier
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Six centuries of music which takes a look at itself was the theme of Sydney Chamber Choir’s season opener under its new director and conductor, Sam Allchurch.
Sydney University Great Hall’s stained glass, wood panelling and portraits of worthies formed an atmospheric backdrop for this two-hour concert. Outside
It may have been the beginnings of deep dark winter but inside it was all glorious music and great singing, complemented powerfully by Joshua Ryan on the organ.
The program ranged from the Renaissance through Bach to the modern day. William Byrd, Josquin des Prez and Palestrina rubbed shoulders with contemporary Australians Elliott Gyger and Joseph Twist.
Allchurch also paid musical tributes to predecessors in his job, Paul Stanhope, whose Cherubic Hymn was sung, and the late Richard Gill, a noted campaigner for music education, with 20th century American composer Elliott Carter’s setting of Emily Dickinson’s poem Musicians Wrestle Everywhere.
The choir’s superlative ensemble work was a highlight of its triumphant rendition of J.S. Bach’s motet Singet dem Herrn ein neues Lied, with the choristers divided into two groups bouncing off each other and a chorale of four excellent soloists in the middle section.
The other large work of the night, Benjamin Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb, also a showcase for soloists, was a highlight in an evening of many highlights.
DETAILS
● CONCERT: Sydney Chamber Choir
● WHERE: The Great Hall, University of Sydney
● WHEN: March 30