CHRISTMAS AT BLACKMORE

The Stondon Singers at the Priory Church, Blackmore

20.12.16

The passing of another year is marked by this annual Christmas treat; as so often, the last of the carol concerts in the calendar.

The Singers, conducted by Christopher Tinker, began with the fifteenth century simplicity of Busnois' Noel, Noel, Noel, written when the Augustinian priory here was at its most prosperous, and ended with an equally simple, equally moving My Lord Has Come, written in 2010 by Durham composer Will Todd.

Loyset Pieton, of whom little is known, worked in Dijon at the start of his sixteenth century career; his O Beata Infantia was a wonderful discovery. Other highlights of a varied programme were Alan Bullard's Shepherds, Guarding Your Flocks, premièred here a year ago, Malcolm Archer's A Little Child There Is Yborn, with its haunting Alleluias, a nimble arrangement by Mark Wilberg of Ding Dong Merrily, and the sweet harmonies of Gabriel Jackson's lilting Christ-child. Michael Frith was the accompanist at the organ.

The capacity crowd got a chance to sing, too, and after a rousing O Come All Ye Faithful, the Stondon's traditional Christmas encore, an a cappella Silent Night from the west end of the nave.

As Nick Alston pointed out in his introduction, a choir is not just for Christmas, and the Stondon Singers' busy diary for 2017 includes a Marian anthology in Queen of Heaven, Evensong in St Paul's Cathedral, and the eagerly awaited William Byrd Anniversary in Stondon Massey.

William Todd - My Lord has come  from , A Christmas Eucharist from Bath Abbey, 25th December 2015. directed by Peter King

FAURÉ REQUIEM & CHICHESTER PSALMS

FAURÉ REQUIEM & CHICHESTER PSALMS

The Stondon Singers at Blackmore

14.11.15

Two great works from the choral repertoire, poles apart in many ways, but sharing a romantic solo at their heart.

First, Bernstein's Chichester Psalms. The accompaniment, from the organ of Michael Frith and the harp of Gwenllian Llyr, was vibrant and muscular, and seemed to inspire the choir to up their game, too, producing a refreshingly assertive, open sound. Alto soloist Oliver El-Holiby, singing without a score, gave a wonderful account of the psalm, powerful but tender, with subtle dynamics, the choir softly shading in behind.

Oliver also gave us an aria from Gluck's Orfeo, and Hurford's beautiful setting of Herrick's Litany.

The Singers, directed by Christopher Tinker, ended the first half with early Whitacre: Waternight, an uplifting, intricately woven sequence of dissonances and tone clusters, well sustained by the choir.

The final work, Fauré's movingly simple Requiem, first given in the Madeleine in Paris with rather larger, and all-male, forces, was here underpinned by organ, with the harp for the Sanctus and the choir of angels. Hosannas, and Dies Irae, made a particular impact. Mark Ellis sang the baritone part from the ranks; the treble for the Pie Jesu was a confident and pure-toned Elliott Harding-Smith.

FOR THE FALLEN

FOR THE FALLEN

Stondon Singers at St Lawrence, Blackmore

11.11.2014

Armistice Day was marked in Blackmore with this timely concert, including works from some of the best-loved choral composers now writing.

But the evening began, and ended, with Douglas Guest's In Memoriam, a short, simple setting of Binyon's familiar words of remembrance; a reading too of a poem by Julian Grenfell, who lost his life in France in 1915.

Morten Lauridsen, master of American mysticism, wrote his Lux Aeterna after the death of his mother. It is a simple, heartfelt continuum of sacred texts on the theme of light, sung with sustained emotional momentum by the Singers under Christopher Tinker, with Michael Frith at the organ.

Even better suited to their forces was Rutter's Requiem, which was accompanied by members of the Meridian Sinfonia: the oboe for The Lord's My Shepherd, with its exquisite soprano solo, and the mournful cello for Out of the Deep, which seemed somehow to resonate with the ancient stones of this historic Priory church.

A memorable, moving musical commemoration of those lost in war, and proof that the Stondon Singers' expertise extends far beyond the Renaissance polyphony for which they are best known.

The fighting man shall from the sun
Take warmth, and life from the glowing earth;
Speed with the light-foot winds to run,
And with the trees a newer birth;
And find, when fighting shall be done,
Great rest, and fullness after dearth.

WATERCOLOURS

WATERCOLOURS

Stondon Singers at Blackmore Priory Church

12.11.13

Music inspired by the natural world made for a pleasing programme from the Stondon Singers, conducted by Christopher Tinker.

Lively choruses from Haydn's Creation, linked by readings and including a robust Heavens Are Telling and a precisely delivered Achieved is the Glorious Work, provided a contrast with the pastel, pastoral tone of many of these settings. As did the playful Ballad of Green Broom, the last of Britten's Five Flower Songs.

Among the most enjoyable offerings were Elgar's gentle Torrents in Summer, William Hawley's evocative setting of Emily Dickinson's My River Runs to Thee, and the closing number, Stanford's much-loved Blue Bird, with Annabel Malton's pure soprano soaring above the nave.

This is a chamber choir, and they excel in the delicate madrigals, like Wilbye's miniature Flora Gave Me Fairest Flowers. But they also rose to the challenge of the Haydn, Tinker's own Memento Mori, and Eric Whitacre's unaccompanied Water Night, with its intense, richly textured harmonies.

Michael Frith, the Singers' accompanist, contributed a fine Bach Prelude and Fugue on the venerable St Laurence organ.

CHRISTMAS AT BLACKMORE

CHRISTMAS AT BLACKMORE

The Stondon Singers in the Priory Church

18.12.2012

History and tradition were respected at St Laurence this year: ending with Stille Nacht to send us off into the night, and beginning with Gaudete, Ben Parry's arrangement of an ancient tune which may well have echoed round these walls when the great Priory still dominated the village.

But there was a healthy injection of new music, too. Conductor Christopher Tinker led us through Matthew Owens' very different setting of The Holly and the Ivy, Thomas Hewitt Jones' What Child Is This, with its haunting motif [Michael Frith at the organ], Will Todd's My Lord Has Come, and Bob Chilcott's lively Sussex Carol arrangement, rhythmic and harmonically interesting, the tune often in the lower voices. All performed with care and commitment, the voices of this chamber choir blending effectively in these lovely surroundings.

The reading this year, by Mavis Holmes, was Kipling's Eddi's Service [where the congregation – "such as cared to attend" – were the Ox and the Ass] looking back to an early Christmas at St Wilfrid's in remotest Sussex, a church even older than Blackmore's ancient Priory.

Eddi, priest of St. Wilfrid
   In his chapel at Manhood End,
Ordered a midnight service
   For such as cared to attend.

But the Saxons were keeping Christmas,
   And the night was stormy as well.
Nobody came to service,
   Though Eddi rang the bell.

"'Wicked weather for walking,"
   Said Eddi of Manhood End.
"But I must go on with the service
   For such as care to attend."

The altar-lamps were lighted, --
   An old marsh-donkey came,
Bold as a guest invited,
   And stared at the guttering flame.

The storm beat on at the windows,
   The water splashed on the floor,
And a wet, yoke-weary bullock
   Pushed in through the open door.

"How do I know what is greatest,
   How do I know what is least?
That is My Father's business,"
   Said Eddi, Wilfrid's priest.

"But -- three are gathered together --
   Listen to me and attend.
I bring good news, my brethren!"
   Said Eddi of Manhood End.

And he told the Ox of a Manger
   And a Stall in Bethlehem,
And he spoke to the Ass of a Rider,
   That rode to Jerusalem.

They steamed and dripped in the chancel,
   They listened and never stirred,
While, just as though they were Bishops,
   Eddi preached them The World,

Till the gale blew off on the marshes
   And the windows showed the day,
And the Ox and the Ass together
   Wheeled and clattered away.

And when the Saxons mocked him,
   Said Eddi of Manhood End,
"I dare not shut His chapel
   On such as care to attend."

TOUCHES OF SWEET HARMONY

TOUCHES OF SWEET HARMONY

The Stondon Singers

at St Laurence, Blackmore

21.04.12

Shakespeare's getting an extra boost from the Games this year, and for his birthday, the Stondon Singers presented a garland of song settings and sonnets, based around Vaughan Williams's Serenade to Music.

This much-loved tribute to Henry Wood was given here in a choral arrangement, though we did hear brief solos from within the choir, and Michael Frith's organ accompaniment was remarkably effective.

The Singers' conductor, Christopher Tinker, contributed three songs written especially for this occasion, including a witty but demanding "Sigh No More", a plaintive "summer's lease" and a haunting recollection of "wild thyme" to end. Other groups of three from Essex composer Armstrong Gibbs and Vaughan Williams again, the choir showing their mettle in his Three Shakespeare Songs, written as a test piece for a national competition.

This very enjoyable concert began with Purcell's Faerie Queen, and ended with George Shearing's delicious jazz settings, including the familiar Lover and His Lass from As You Like It.

We also heard spoken sonnets – three from the Bard, and one from our Poet Laureate: Anne Hathaway's thoughts on that second-best bed.

The bed we loved in was a spinning world
of forests, castles, torchlight, clifftops, seas
where we would dive for pearls. My lover's words
were shooting stars which fell to earth as kisses
on these lips; my body now a softer rhyme
to his, now echo, assonance; his touch
a verb dancing in the centre of a noun.
Some nights, I dreamed he'd written me, the bed
a page beneath his writer's hands. Romance
and drama played by touch, by scent, by taste.
In the other bed, the best, our guests dozed on,
dribbling their prose. My living laughing love -
I hold him in the casket of my widow's head
as he held me upon that next best bed.

STONDON SINGERS CHRISTMAS

STONDON SINGERS CHRISTMAS

at the Priory Church of St Lawrence Blackmore

20.12.11

Today the Christ is born – Hodie Christus Natus Est – bracketed this Yuletide concert, in two very different settings: the late Renaissance richness of Sweelinck and the devoutly lyrical Poulenc.

Between these two, we heard Britten and Part [the end of his Magnificat finely judged], two lively pieces by Imogen Holst, and a seasonal selection from Handel's Messiah: "For Unto Us" particularly successful in this chamber version.

The centrepiece was the glorious polyphony of Thomas Tallis – Videte Miraculum. From the 20^th century two new favourites: Rutter's What Sweeter Music, and Kenneth Leighton's gentle lullaby, with a beautiful soprano solo.

Michael Frith was the organist, Christopher Tinker the conductor, and we also heard a reading of Clive Sansom's moving poem The Innkeeper's Wife: "The world is a sad place, But wine and music blunt the truth of it."

Before the mulled wine and mince pies, their traditional Silent Night, sung at the back of the Priory Church, to send us out inspired into the dark lanes of Jericho.

FAURE REQUIEM 

AND THE ROMANTIC TRADITION

The Stondon Singers at St Laurence Blackmore

05.03.11

Christopher Tinker and his admirable singers, with Michael Frith at organ and piano, brought us familiar Fauré and a supporting programme of works from all corners of the Romantic legacy.

The Requiem began with an effectively deliberate Introit, and ended with the exquisite In Paradisum, beautifully sung by the sopranos and altos. The tenors and basses sometimes seemed underpowered for this repertoire, but the climaxes for the whole choir were often impressive - “Exaudi!” for example, or the robust Hosannas. I also admired the transition from the Agnus Dei to the Lux Aeterna. The Pie Jesu was sung, as Fauré intended, by a treble: Brendan Chung of the Brentwood Cathedral choir. A nicely controlled solo, his delivery of “sempiternam” making the prospect of life eternal very seductive.

Brendan also contributed briefly to the challenging Finzi in the first half. We heard four exquisite Bruckner motets: the Locus Iste from the west end, with a beautifully sustained ending. The Singers surrounded us on three sides for the Ave Maria – an interesting, if unbalanced, experience, exposing some individual voices. There was also a charming Berger Alleluia, and, new to me, American composer William Hawley's eight-part unaccompanied My River Runs To Thee, a tender, magical setting of Emily Dickinson, proving that Romantic music is still alive and well – Hawley is younger than most of us in the appreciative audience at the Priory Church.

CHRISTMAS AT BLACKMORE

The Stondon Singers at the Priory Church

21.12.10

In this remote church a tall tree and the aroma of spiced wine speak of Christmas before the choir has sung a note.

They begin with an Advent Responsory by Palestrina, and end with that great hymn for Christmas Day, O Come All Ye Faithful. And, as tradition demands, Stille Nacht from the west end. This year they programmed Villette's Hymne à la Vierge, from 1954, and a gentle setting of Swete Was The Song, from the early 17^th century.

The central work was the much-loved Fantasia on Christmas Carols of Vaughan Williams, with its tunes collected from counties all over England and its Happy New Year ending. The soloist was Matthew Butt. For me, the Singers' most successful sequence was the group of Elgar, with some impressive solos, Howells and Christopher Tinker's I Saw A Maiden. Tinker, the choir's current director, also contributed a clever arrangement of Angels From The Realms Of Glory using a brass quartet as well as the organ. Brentwood Brass, directed by Shirley Parrott, also gave us two varied sets of seasonal music, as heard on many a snowy street corner – Christmas Joy, for example, was a lovely patchwork of pieces from oratorio to Jingle Bells.

CONTRASTS

The Stondon Singers at the Priory Church Blackmore

17.10.09

Two Requiems were at the heart of the contrasts, presented by the Stondon Singers under Christopher Tinker.

First, the richly textured Requiem Mass for Six Voices of Tomas Luis de Victoria, written four hundred years ago in the Golden Age of Polyphony. The Singers began behind us, at the West End; the voices were blended and balanced perfectly for this evocative acoustic – the Sanctus and the Agnus Dei seemed to grow organically from a single stem. The mass was followed by two extracts from the same composer's Office of the Dead, ending with the substantial Libera Me. A superbly moving sequence – it deserved a much larger audience.

Herbert Howells' Requiem, composed in 1954, and given its amateur première by this very choir, includes only two settings from the traditional mass, amongst Psalms and a final word from Revelation: I heard a voice from heaven saying … blessed are the dead which die in the Lord, for they rest from their labours. The Singers' performance of this challenging work was notable for some fine solo work, subtle harmonies and the calm resolution of the close.

After these two sombre works, the last contrast was provided by Britten's Choral Dances from Gloriana – a peal of bells for Time, serenity for Concord, and a lively Homage to the Old Queen to finish.

image by Nick Robinson