MOZART AND HAYDN

Waltham Singers at Chelmsford Cathedral

19.11.16

Impressive music-making in the Cathedral. The massed ranks of the Waltham Singers, directed by Andrew Fardell, joined by the St Paul's Sinfonia and two outstanding string players.

Mostly Mozart, but Haydn to begin: the dramatic motet Insanae et Vanae Curae, one of his most popular choral works. A piece of two halves, with the urgent string passages setting the mood of fear and dread, underlined by brass and drums, before the calmer, more lyrical Quid prodest section. The voices conveyed the trepidation and the meditation in a beautifully controlled performance.

Mozart's C Minor Mass had its monumental moments, too – the closing pages of the Gloria, for instance – but precisely delivered pianissimo passages were equally powerful, from the opening Kyrie on. The soloist here was soprano Laurie Ashworth, whose contributions, notably the wonderful Et Incarnatus Est, were magnificently musical. The choir too were generally on excellent form, the diminuendo in the Sins of the World typical of their disciplined attention to detail.

Between these pillars of the sacred choral repertoire, the orchestra was joined by Julian Leaper and Martin Outram [both of the Maggini Quartet] for Mozart's Sinfonia Concertante. A constant delight, with lyrical phrasing and impassioned dialogue between violin and viola. The emotional Andante was taken at a tempo which allowed the music to breathe, without losing its impetus, before the energetic Contradanza brought the work to a sunny conclusion.

MOZART AND HAYDN

MOZART AND HAYDN

Chelmsford Singers at Chelmsford Cathedral

10.03.12

An upbeat farewell to Peter Nardone from his Chelmsford Singers, featuring two of the most loved choral works from the Classical period.

First, Mozart's Solemn Vespers, opening with a confident Dixit Dominus, performed with exemplary attack and excellent internal balance, thanks in part to the men from the Cathedral Choir who augmented the tenors and basses. Spirited support, too, from the Chelmer Classical Players, led by Sarah Sexton. After the complex Laudate Pueri and its powerful Amen, one of Mozart's most sublime melodies, the Laudate Dominum, performed here by soprano Janet Coxwell.

Then Haydn's Nelson Mass, composed eighteen years later in 1798. The assertive Kyrie, with Nardone's distinctive counter-tenor joining the soloists for a bar or two, was followed by the Gloria, with some incisive contributions from tenor Julian Stocker and bass Andrew Davies. The strings especially eloquent in accompaniment here; after the stark Crucifixus, the drama and excitement of the Resurrection. Impressively solemn choral singing in the Sanctus led to a splendid Benedictus, a thrilling battle between the singers and the brass and drums.

Peter Nardone has directed the Chelmsford Singers for eight years; now he is off to Worcester [and their Festival Choral Society], and after the warm applause they paid a hearfelt tribute to the education, the inspiration and the fun he has brought them.