Surrey Mozart Players
Guildford Philharmonic Choir
Fauré Requiem
Poulenc Organ Concerto
Ravel Mother Goose Suite
Sponsored by MOORE STEPHENS
CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS
Saturday 29" May 1999
Guildford Cathedral
,_
£1.50
About CHASE Children’s Hospice Service
CHASE’s aim is to build a network of care for life-limited children and their families
in Surrey, South West London and West Sussex areas, where up until now there has
been a shortage of such assistance.
Our appeal was launched in 1997 to build a
specialist centre for respite, palliative and terminal care in Guildford to be called
Christopher s. In addition, round-the-clock community teams will support the work
of the centre, assisting families in their own homes throughout the area. Our first
Community Team will start in South West London in June.
There is little statutory provision for helping such families. When a child needs
medical attention they are cared for in a hospital; but during what are often long
periods of relative stability, there is little help available to carers. The children’s
conditions are such that 24 hour attention is often needed making day to day life for
families extremely stressful. Christopher s will enable children and their families to
get the most from their time together.
-
-.
CHASE
CHASE needs to raise £3.5 million to build, equip and open Christopher s and a
further £1.5 million per year to run the service. We have already raised over £1.5
million. A proportion of this has been invested in organising the infrastructure to
enable us to run a permanent service to the estimated 600 families with life-limited
children in this area. What we now need are donations towards the capital appeal for
the building of Christopher 5.
CHASE is enormously grateful to Guildford Philharmonic Choir and the Surrey
Mozart Players for holding this performance. We would also like to express our
heartfelt thanks to Moore Stephens whose generous support will enable virtually all
of the proceeds to go towards our appeal. We are confident that this evening’s concert
will raise a substantial sum of money. In addition, CHASE’S association with such
a high quality cultural event can only be beneficial to our local profile. We are
delighted to be involved and thank everybody present this evening for their
contribution towards the vital work of our organisation. Your contribution will make
a difference to the lives of many people.
Thank you.
Guildford Philharmonic Choir
President Sir David Willcocks CBE MC
The Surrey Mozart Players
Fauré
Pavane
Ravel
Mother Goose Suite
Fauré
Cantique de Jean Racine
Duruflé
Quatre Motets
Poulenc
Organ Concerto
Interval
Fauré
Requiem
Helen Neeves
Soprano
David Ashman
Baritone
Jeremy Filsell
Organist
Jeremy Backhouse
Conductor
All profits from the ticket sales will go to the CHASE Appeal. If you
would like to contribute further to the Appeal, collection points are
situated around the Cathedral, but please do not feel obliged to donate
further as your contribution in purchasing a ticket has already been
gratefully noted.
The Guildford Philharmonic Choir’s next concert will be Haydn’s
Creation Mass on November 20th at Guildford Civic. En Shao will be
conducting the Guildford Philharmonic Orchestra and Choir.
Tonight’s concert is sponsored by MOORE STEPHENS
CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS
Gabriel Fauré 1845 - 1924
Fauré was born in Paniers on May 12 1845 and died in Paris on November 4 1924.
One of the few important French composers not to have trained at the Conservatoire,
Fauré studied at the Ecole Niedermeyer where he was taught by Saint-Saéns amongst
others. Saint-Saé&ns was considered a progressive teacher for his time and introduced
his pupils not only to Bach and Mozart but to Wagner and Liszt as well. Following
his studies, Saint-Saéns continued to encourage Fauré, helping him to find jobs and
publishers. Fauré was later to say that he owed everything to his older colleague.
Fauré left the Ecole Niedermeyer at the age of twenty with first prizes in piano,
organ, harmony and composition. From 1866 to 1870 he was church organist in
Rennes. He returned to Paris to become organist at the church of St Honoré. He
fought in the Franco-Prussian War, returned to the Niedermeyer as a professor of
composition, became choirmaster and later organist at the Madeleine and in 1896
was appointed to the Conservatoire as professor of composition. He became the
director of the Conservatoire in 1905, remaining its head until 1920. Tragedy was to
set in in the form of deafness complicated by distortion of pitch. High frequencies
sounded flat, low ones sounded sharp. He continued to compose and some of his
best music comes from this period. When news of his affliction became known he
was forced to resign from the Conservatoire but continued to compose right up until
his death.
Fauré concentrated on music in small forms. He composed songs, piano and chamber
music. He never wrote a symphony nor a concerto and his one opera, Pénélope, has
never received popular acclaim. His musical output represents a complete antithesis
of the German post-Romantic movement of the same era. It has led many to criticise
his music for lacking depth. But this is to confuse subtlety and austerity with simplicity.
His talent of setting notes to words is arguably without equal. He eschewed the
grand gestures and orchestral heroics that could have brought him greater fame in
favour of a fluid style of concentrated elegance and grace which he was to make
entirely his own.
Pavane
The Pavane was composed in the summer of 1887 and first performed on 25 November
1888 by Charles Lamoureux in his series of concerts. It had originally been intended
for the first performance by Jules Danbé in his concert hall, but this had been burned
down the previous year. Greatly admired as a work by Debussy, the Pavane was
conceived initially as a purely orchestral work, although Fauré was persuaded to add
vocal lines by his devoted patroness, the Countess Elisabeth Greffulhe. The choral
version we perform tonight demonstrates a sparse yet subtle approach to choral
writing, although no less captivating for that.
C’est Lindor! C’est Tircis!
Here come Lindor and Tircis
Et c’est tous nos vainqueurs!
Our conquerors!
C’est Myrtil! C’est Lydé!
Here come Myrtil and Lydé,
Les reines de nos coeurs.
the queens of our hearts!
Comme ils sont provocants!
How provocative they are,
Comme ils sont fiers toujours!
and how proud always,
Comme on ose régner sur nos sorts et
How they dare to rule our fate and our
nos jours!
lives!
Faites attention!
Take heed!
Observez la mesure!
Follow the measure!
O la mortelle injure!
O mortal insult!
La cadence est moins lente
The pace is slower
Et la chute plus stire
And irony more certain.
Nous rabattrons bien leurs caquets!
We shall not fail to humble their minions.
Nous serons bient6t leurs laquais!
We shall soon be the subject of their gossip.
Qu’ils sont laids! Chers minois!
How ugly their dear little faces are!
Qu’ils sont fols! Airs coquets!
How foolish their coquettish airs!
Et c’est toujours de méme,
And it is always thus,
Et c’est ainsi toujours!
it is always the same.
On s’adore! On se hait!
One loves and loathes
On maudit ses amours!
the curse of love.
Adieu Myrtil! Eglé! Chloé!
Farewell Myrtil, Eglé, Chloé,
Démons moqueurs!
mocking demons!
Adieu donc et bons jours
Farewell, then, and welcome
aux tyrans de nos coeurs!
tyrants of our hearts!
Et bons jours!
Begone!
Maurice Ravel 1875 - 1937
Ravel was born in 1875 in Cibourne in the Basses Pyrénées, the son of an engineer of
Swiss ancestry and a Basque mother. He acquired from his father an interest in
precision made mechanical things and from his mother a familiarity with the Basque
language, and both are reflected in his compositions. He entered the Paris
Conservatoire in 1889, withdrew in 1895, and returned again in 1897 to study under
Fauré. With the deaths of Debussy and Fauré, Ravel was regarded as the leading
French composer, but his own career was tragically shortened by an illness from
which he died in 1937.
Mother Goose Suite
Pavane de la belle au bois dormant
Petit Poucet
Laideronette, impératrice de pogodes
Les entretiens de la belle et de la béte
Le jardin féerique
Ravel was establishing himself as a composer in the early part of this century despite
opposition to his style from certain parts of the establishment.
His career took a
major step forward when Diaghilev commissioned him to compose the music for the
ballet Daphnis and Chloé, staged in 1912. The suite of Mother Goose nursery tales
dates from this early period. It was originally written as a piano duet, to entertain the
children of his friend Cipa Godebski. It was orchestrated and extended as a ballet
score in 1911.
The music begins with Sleeping Beauty, followed by Tom Thumb with his trail of
breadcrumbs leading through the forest. Laideronette is the Empress of tiny oriental
insect-musicians, and thereafter Beauty converses with the Beast, depicted by the
contra-bassoon. The work ends in the fairy garden.
Gabriel Fauré
Cantique de Jean Racine
The Cantique de Jean Racine was written during Fauré’s time at the Ecole
Niedermeyer which he attended from 1854 to 1865, one of many early works written
at that school. It was whilst at this institution that Fauré gained a thorough grounding
in all aspects of music - performance and composition. Completed in 1863/64, the
Cantique was published in 1873 and first performed in 1875. Dedicated to César
Franck, the work shows a remarkable maturity and poise. In the words of Ph. FauréFrémiet: “The clarity of form, the purity of the harmony and the seriousness of the
inspiration speak of
a feeling for classicism which, without any artificiality, matches
word for word the clear language of Racine”.
Verbe, égal au Trés-Haut, notre unique
Word, of God the most high, our sole
esperance,
hope,
Jour éternel de la terre et des cieux.
Eternal day of earth and heaven,
De la paisible nuit nous rompons le
As we break the silence of the peaceful
silence,
night,
Divin Sauveur, jette sur nous les yeux.
Divine Saviour, cast thine eyes upon us.
Répands sur nous le feu de ta grace
Shower upon us the fire of thy powerful
puissante;
Que tout I’enfer fuie au son de ta voix;
Dissipe le sommeil d’une ame
languissante
grace;
That all hell flee at the sound of thy
voice;
Dispel the slumbers of a listless soul
6
Qui la conduit a I’oubli de tes lois,
O Christ, sois favorable a ce peuple
For they incline to forget thy laws,
O Christ, look favourably on the flock of
fidele
the faithful
Pour te bénir maintenant rassemblé;
Now assembled to bless thee;
Recois les chants qu’il offre a ta gloire
Receive the chants they offer up to thy
immortelle
immortal glory
Et de tes dons qu’il retourne comblé.
And let them depart blessed with thy
bounties.
Maurice Duruflé 1902 - 1986
Maurice Duruflé was born in Louviers on January 11 1902. From 1912 to 1918 he
was a chorister and student at Rouen Cathedral. He studied piano, organ and theory
and it is here that he developed his affection for Gregorian chant and the modal
harmonies which are so central to his musical personality.
In 1919 he moved to Paris to continue his studies, first with Charles Tournemire and
then with Louis Vierne at Notre Dame de Paris where he was the assistant organist.
In 1920 he entered the Paris Conservatoire, studying the organ with Eugene Gigout.
At his audition for the Conservatoire he so impressed the jury that they predicted he
would be a first prize winner, and so he was. He took first prizes for organ, harmony,
accompaniment, counterpoint and fugue and composition.
Following his studies, his career progressed brilliantly. He quickly became a popular
concert organist and also a highly respected composer, although most unusually for
such a popular composer, he only published thirteen works.
The reason for this is
most likely his exceptionally self-critical personality which had him re-writing and
revising his works for years after they were written.
In the 1940s he was named professor of harmony at the Conservatoire and assisted
Marcel Dupré with his organ class. It was in this organ class that he came to know a
particularly attractive and gifted young organ student, Marie-Madeleine Chevalier.
In 1953 they were married.
The Duruflés toured widely for many years giving joint organ recitals. Tragically in
1975 they were critically injured in a car crash in Southern France. Each underwent
a series of operations, Madame Duruflé was later to resume playing but during the
next ten years, Maurice Duruflé was rarely to leave his bed in his apartment in Paris.
Quatre motets sur thémes grégoriennes, op.10
i)
Ubi caritas et amor
ii)
Tota pulchra es Maria
iii)
Tu es Petrus
iv)
Tantum ergo
Although Maurice Duruflé is one of the greatest in a long tradition of French organist/
composers, his output was remarkably small. Nonetheless, his work is exquisitely
crafted and ostensibly effortless in its utterance. His Requiem has become deservedly
well known and now ranks alongside that of Fauré as one of the great settings of that
text; his Mass Cum jubilo, composed in 1966, is also highly regarded. Many of his
choral and organ works (the Requiem in particular) are based on or use plainchant.
The Four Motets on Gregorian Themes, composed in 1960, are exquisite examples
of his ability to create something original and personal from ancient melodies. Each
motet is preceded by the chant on which it is based, the theme then being taken up by
the choir.
Ubi caritas et amor
Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est.
Congregavit nos in unum Christi amor.
Exsultemus et in ipso jucundemur.
Timeamus et amemus Deum vivum.
Et ex corde diligamus nos sincero.
Ubi caritas et amor, Deus ibi est.
Amen.
Where charity and love is, there God is also.
We are come together as one in Christ’s love.
We praise him and are joyful.
We fear and love the living God.
From our hearts, diligently and sincerely.
Where charity and love is, there God is also.
Amen.
Tota pulchra es Maria
Mary, most beautiful of all,
Tota pulchra es Maria,
In you is there no original stain,
Et macula originalis non est in te,
Vestimentum tuum candidum quasinix, ~ Your shining white vestments are like snow,
And your form is like the sun.
Et facies tua sicut sol.
Mary, most beautiful ...
Tota pulchra es ...
You, the glory of Jerusalem,
Tu gloria Jerusalem,
You, the joy of Israel,
Tu laetitia Israel,
You, the most honoured of our people.
Tu honorificentia populi nostri.
Mary, most beautiful ...
Tota pulchra es ...
Tu es Petrus
Tu es Petrus
et super hanc petram
aedificabo ecclesiam meam.
Tantum ergo Sacramentum
Tantum ergo sacramentum
veneremur cernui,
et antiquum documentum
novo cedat ritui,
praestet fides supplementum
sensuum defectui.
8
Thou art Peter
and upon this rock
I will build my church.
So great a sacrament let us
therefore worship with bowed heads,
and let the ancient example
give way to new rite,
let faith make good
the insufficiency of our senses.
Genitori, genitoque
laus et jubilatio,
salus, honor, virtus quoque
sit et beneditio,
procedenti ab utroque
compar sit laudatio.
Amen.
To the Begetter and the Begotten
be praise and rejoicing,
safety, honour, virtue
and blessing;
to Him who proceeds from both
let there be equal praise.
Amen.
Francis Poulenc 1899-1963
Francis Poulenc was the most famous of a group
of composers who emerged in Paris
in the 1920s and were known as “Les Six”. The other
Georges Auric, Louis Durey, Germaine Tailleferre
members were Arthur Honegger,
and Darius Milhaud.
Eric Satie
tual leader and Stravinsky their
was their spiritual leader, Jean Cocteau their intellec
musical influence.
The group had no common aim or programme but
came together through friendship
and common tastes - for the circus, music-halls, jazz,
comedy and popular music of
the time. Les Six believed that classical music had
become sterile and outmoded.
They were opposed to the vagueness of the Impress
ionist composers (principal
amongst them Debussy and Ravel), advocating instead
simplicity and clarity in musical
composition. Although the name stuck, the group
did not stick together and Poulenc
was the only one of the six to have a major internat
ional career.
In his early musical life, Poulenc was somethi
ng of a joker.
entertainment and his early style reflects this.
He saw music as
He was an outstanding pianist and the
keyboard dominates his early attempts at composition.
Friendships with various leading avant-garde French
poets also led him to compose
songs. He only became comfortable with the larger
forms
of music nearer the end of
his life. In 1935 he rediscovered religion and returne
d to the
Catholic Church. From
ing his deep faith, although
this time he produced a series of sacred works express
some critics believe that this religious period was
as much an exercise in style as his
earlier, more supposedly frivolous compositions.
From being the enfant terrible of Les Six he
developed into a skilled composer of
genuine melodic talent which, combined with
his wit and gallic style, produced
sophisticated music with a distinct personality
and of an enduring style which is
increasingly popular today.
Organ Concerto in G Minor
Poulenc’s Organ Concerto in G minor, scored for
was commissioned by, and is dedicated to, the
solo organ, strings and timpani,
Princess Edmond de Polignac. It was
written between April and August 1938. The first perform
ance was a private affair in
9
the residence of the Princess on 16 December of the same year, on which occasion
the soloist was Maurice Duruflé; the orchestra was conducted by the famous teacher
and musician Nadia Boulanger. The first public performance took place on 21 June
1939 in Paris, again with Duruflé as soloist. Duruflé advised Poulenc on the organ
registrations and Duruflé’s recording of the work is still considered to be the classic
performance.
It was conceived in the spirit of a Buxtehude fantasia, based on a single theme and
played without a pause. In it we see both the public and private sides of Poulenc,
which happily correspond to the secular and sacred elements in the score: on one
hand brilliant, witty and extrovert; on the other the deeply religious inner man is
outwardly expressed in grave and contemplative passages.
Although one of Poulenc’s most readily accessible works, it remains infrequently
performed in the country of its origin, despite its popularity on this side of the Channel.
Gabriel Fauré
Requiem
Fauré’s Requiem as we know it today did not take on its final form until the early
1890s, almost thirteen years after the first sections of it were composed. The ‘Libera
me’ had been written in 1877 while Fauré was in Germany, where he met, amongst
others, Franz Liszt. This was originally scored for baritone solo and accompaniment
alone, being adapted to include choir only in 1891. The majority ofthe Requiem was
written in the mid-1880s and was completed in 1887.
It was Fauré’s first and only large-scale setting of a religious text and was inspired, it
has been suggested, by the death within the space of two years of both his parents.
This could explain why the text that Fauré set for his Requiem does not include the
‘Dies irae’ section, thereby prompting suggestions of a breach of liturgical ordinance
and comments that here was a Requiem without a Last Judgement. But with the
inclusion of the ‘Pie Jesu’ movement, Fauré made his intentions quite clear: this was
not to be a Requiem depicting the anguish and agony of death, but rather one that
shows death as a welcome release from mortal struggle, marking the beginning of a
heavenly life of serenity and love. Fauré’s music entirely suits this interpretation of
the text, gently lulling the listener with beauty of melody and harmony alike. Fauré
himself said of this work: “My Requiem, they say, does not express the terror of
death. Someone has called it a lullaby of death. But that is how I envisage death: as
a felicitous deliverance, a yearning for the happiness of the other world, rather than
a painful transition.”
o
10
o
ol o
o
P
o
P
o
o
P
Helen Neeves gained a BA (Hons) in music at the University of York.
Whilst studying there she became a member of the Yorkshire Bach Choir and
performed regularly with Yorkshire Baroque Soloists. She has recently
completed a two-year postgraduate course at the Royal College of Music and
is now based in London studying with Linda Esther-Gray.
Helen’s performance experience includes work in and around both York and
London. Last October Helen made her solo debut in St John’s, Smith Square,
performing works by Purcell and Telemann. Recent engagements include
Poulenc’s Gloria and Philip Moore’s De Profundis in Guildford Cathedral
with the Guildford Philharmonic Choir and Surrey University Choir and
Orchestra. Earlier this month, Helen performed Mozart’s Litanie de Venerabili
Altaris Sacramento with Froxfield Choral Society.
Helen’s recording experience includes broadcasts for BBC Radio 3 and West
German Radio, both as a soloist and as a member of Corona Coloniensis,
conducted by Peter Seymour. Engagements with the group have included a
concert in the Beverley Early Music Festival and a CD recording directed by
William Christie.
Solo recordings include Italian cantatas and duets by
Handel, which were subsequently broadcast live on Radio 3’s In Tune
programme. Helen’s voice features in a recent television advertisement for
British Airways.
David Ashman was born in Kent and trained at the Royal Academy of
Music, where his many roles included Badger/Parson (The Cunning Little
Vixen), Baron Zeta (Die Lustige Witwe), and Figaro (Le Nozze di Figaro).
He has a wide repertoire of opera, oratorio and song ranging from Monteverdi
to Penderecki. Operatic roles have included a Deputy in the British premiere
of Richard Strauss’ Friedenstag with the Chelsea Opera Group, Alidor in the
German premiere of Liszt’s Don Sanche at the 1986 Bayreuth Festival as
well as Belcore (L Elisir d’Amore), and Falke (Die Fledermaus). He has
also worked with English National Opera where he covered the title role in
the world premiere of David Blake’s The Plumber’s Gift. He has been a
member of New Sadler’s Wells Opera (with whom he has sung Ajax in La
belle Héléne and Giuseppe in The Gondoliers) and performs frequently with
London Opera Players in their touring productions of The Magic Flute, The
Barber of Seville and The Marriage of Figaro.
He has sung regularly with
the Royal Opera, Covent Garden, and has been a member of Glyndebourne
since the opening of the new theatre in 1994, since when he has covered
roles in Yevgeny Onegin, The Second Mrs. Kong, The Makropulos Case, Le
Nozze di Figaro, Le Comte Ory and Capriccio; for Glyndebourne Touring
11
Opera he has performed the Notary in I/ Barbiere di Siviglia and Baron
Douphol in La Traviata.
He has given concerts all over Britain and in Europe and made his solo debut
at the South Bank Centre in 1987 singing Brahms’ Liebeslieder Waltzes with
the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Antal Dorati. He made his
Purcell Room debut in 1992, singing a piece written for him commemorating
the ‘Marchioness’ disaster which was subsequently repeated in Southwark
Cathedral and recorded for Meridian Records.
Jeremy Filsell was awarded an FRCO with all the major prizes and the
Silver Medal from the Worshipful Company of Musicians at the age of 19,
and read Music as Organ Scholar at Keble College, Oxford. As a post-graduate
he studied Piano Performance under David Parkhouse and Hilary McNamara
at the Royal College of Music. An established piano recitalist, he has appeared
at many major UK concert venues (including the Wigmore Hall and St John’s,
Smith Square) and festivals, has worked regularly with the BBC Singers,
Pimlico Opera, the European Contemporary Music Ensemble, the City of
London Sinfonia and the New London Orchestra and has performed concertos
by Bach, Mozart, Beethoven, Shostakovich and John Ireland both here and
in the USA.
As a concert organist (he won 2nd prize in the 1993 St Albans International
Competition and has studied under Nicolas Kynaston and Daniel Roth in
Paris) he has recorded recitals and concertos for BBC Radio 3, and performed
throughout the UK and extensively in France, Germany, Russia and the USA.
Jeremy has recorded many CDs for various labels including a disc of Vierne
& Widor Symphonies which was a Gramophone Critic’s Choice in 1992.
Recent releases have included the complete solo piano music of English
romantic composer Eugene Goossens and a disc of French organ concertos
with the BBC Concert Orchestra.
Last year, Jeremy performed at St Peter’s, Eaton Square on nine consecutive
Wednesdays the complete organ works of Marcel Dupré, a UK first. He was
also involved in a 12 CD project to record the works for Guild in the USA,
due for release in 1999 and 2000. “I must register a certain shock at the sheer
brilliance of Jeremy Filsell's playing.
Technically, he is outstanding...
but
what impresses me most is his uncanny musical insight and the sheer persuasive
power of his performances .. he paces the music splendidly .. every musical
nook and cranny is carefully illuminated... here is playing of the very first
order on a disc no lover of French organ music should be without . The
Gramaphone.
12
Jeremy Backhouse began his musical career in Canterbury Cathedral where
he was Head Chorister, and later studied music at Liverpool University. He spent
five years as Music Editor at the Royal National Institute for the Blind, where he
was responsible for the transcription of print music into Braille. In 1986 he joined
EMI Records as a Literary Editor and since April 1990 he has combined his
work as a Consultant Editor for EMI Classics with his career as a freelance
conductor and record producer.
From 1991 to 1995 he was Music Director of both the Streatham Choral Society
and the BBC Club Choir. With these choirs he conducted many of the major
works of the choral society repertoire and in doing so built close relationships
with the Kensington Symphony Orchestra and the Surrey Sinfonietta.
Jeremy is the conductor of the Vasari Singers, widely acknowledged as one of
the finest chamber choirs in the country. Since winning the prestigious Sainsbury’s
Choir of the Year competition in 1988, they have performed regularly on the
South Bank and at St John’s, Smith Square as well as in the cathedrals of
Canterbury, Chichester, Winchester, Hereford, Ely and Peterborough. Jeremy
and the Vasari Singers have broadcast frequently on BBC Radios 3 and 4, and
have made a number of recordings on the EMI Eminence, United and Guild
labels.
In January 1995, he was appointed Chorus Master of the Guildford Philharmonic
Choir, working closely with conductors such as Jonathan Willcocks, En Shao
and Vernon Handley, as well as regularly conducting concerts with the choir and
orchestra alike. In November 1996 he conducted a performance of Howells’
Hymnus Paradisi and Szymanowski’s Stabat Mater as part of the Guildford
Philharmonic’s Subscription series, and in 1997 a performance of Britten’s St
Nicolas. 1995 and 1996 saw him conducting the Guildford Philharmonic in the
highly popular outdoor Summer Festival concerts in Shalford Park, complete
with firework display. In 1997 he helped establish a competition to find the
Guildford Philharmonic Choir’s Young Singer of the Year. Most recently he
conducted an exceptional performance of Mahler’s Resurrection Symphony (No
2) and Bruckner’s Mass in E Minor with the Guildford Philharmonic Choir and
the Forest Philharmonic Orchestra, which received great critical acclaim .......
“a masterly performance”.
In 1996 he established a close rapport directing the Kent Youth Choir and Kent
Youth Chamber Choir, with whom he toured Italy that summer, conducting the
group in moving performances in the Duomo and Santa Croce in Florence and in
St Mark’s, Venice.
Most recently he has been working with the Brighton Festival Chorus as an
assistant conductor, and in September 1998 became the Music Director of the
Wooburn Singers, only the third conductor in the distinguished 30-year history
ofthe choir, following Richard Hickox and Stephen Jackson.
13
The Guildford Philharmonic Choir was founded in 1947 by the Borough of
Guildford to perform major works from the choral repertoire with the Guildford
Philharmonic Orchestra.
Since this time, the Choir has grown both in stature and
reputation and can now rightly claim its place as one of the foremost Choruses in the
country.
The Choir grew to prominence under the batons of such eminent British musicians as
Sir Charles Groves, Vernon Handley and Sir David Willcocks.
Sir David remains in
close contact with the Choir as its current President.
As well as being well known in the South East for performing the set-pieces of the
choral repertoire, the Choir has developed an interesting specialisation in 20th Century
British music, and has recorded Gerald Finzi’s Intimations of Immortality and Patrick
Handley’s The Trees So High under the direction of Vernon Handley.
Notable
achievements in last year’s season included an acclaimed performance of Handel’s
Israel in Egypt with the Freiburger Bachchor in Freiburg in May 1998 and a rousing
performance of Elgar’s Dream of Gerontius at the Guildford Civic Hall in March
1998.
The Choir is currently enjoying rising to the challenge that a Choral Director of
Jeremy Backhouse’s stature brings.
Jeremy was appointed to the post in January
1995 and has continued the tradition of attracting an ever-wider audience to the joys
of choral music with recent memorable performances of Howells Hymnus Paradisi
and Britten’s St Nicholas.
This concert marks the end of the Choir’s 1998/1999 concert season, which has been
one of the most successful seasons in the Choir’s history. The undoubted highlight
of the season so far has been the brilliant performance in March of Mahler’s Sympnony
No 2 (the Resurrection) and Bruckner’s Mass in E Minor for which the choir received
a standing ovation - a first from the cathedral audiences. Comments following the
concert include “a real triumph” and “the enthusiastic appreciation of the audience
was richly deserved”.
Next season’s concerts are in the process of being finalised
and will, it is hoped, more than match this season’s selection. A special concert to
celebrate the Millennium is planned for March 2000 in conjunction with the Freiburger
Bachchor and further details can be obtained by either visiting our Web site hhtp://
ourworld.compuserve.com/homepages/rodcuff/gpc.htm. or telephoning the choir
officers mentioned below.
The Choir is always searching for new members to maintain its high standard and
auditions are held throughout the year. For further details about joining the Choir or
for any information about any of our future concerts, please contact Noreen Ayton
Tel: (01932) 221918.
Rehearsals are held on Monday evenings throughout term
time in central Guildford and prospective members are most welcome to attend
rehearsals on an informal basis before committing to an audition.
If you would like to find out more about how you can support the choir by becoming
a Benefactor, please contact Susan Ranft Tel: (01306) 888870.
14
Sopranos
Jacqueline Alderton
Olivia Ames-Lewis
Joanna Andrews
Noreen Ayton
Penny Baxter
Elizabeth-Claire Bazin
Mary Broughton
Viv Chamberlin-Kidd
Elaine Chapman
Maura Dearden
Debbie Dring
Rachel Edmondson
Angela Hand
Melanie Hezzell
Nora Kennea
Jane Kenney
Mo Kfouri
Friederike Kraus
Judith Lewy
Pat McCully
Jacqueline Norman
Susan Norton
Altos
Tenors
Marion Arbuckle
Bob Bromham
Sally Bailey
Douglas Cook
Iris Ball
Bob Cowell
Mary Anne Barber
Leslie Harfield
Andrea Bathory Nemeth
Andrew Reid
Iris Bennett
Chris Robinson
Tamsin Bland
John Trigg
Jane Brooks
Amanda Clayton
Mary Clayton
Bass
Margaret Dentskevich
Peter Allen
Andrea Dombrowe
Peter Andrews
Valerie Edwards
Richard Austen
Celia Embleton
Roger Barrett
Mandy Freeman
John Paul Bland
Karen Halahan
John Britten
Ingrid Hardiman
Neil Burton
Jo Harman
Norman Carpenter
Susan Hinton
Neil Clayton
Sheila Hodson
Rodney Cuff
Joy Hunter
Philip Davies
Michael Dawe
Robin Onslow
Helen Lavin
Alison Palmer
Kay McManus
Simon Doran
Margaret Parry
Christine Medlow
Michael Dudley
Vivienne Parsons
Mary Moon
Terence Ellis
Jessica Pires
Brenda Moore
Geoffrey Forster
Rosalind Plowright
Jean Munro
Michael Golden
Susan Ranft
Sue O’Connell
Nick Gough
Kate Rayner
Penny Overton
Gillian Rix
Peter Herbert
Anne Philps
Laurie James
Gill Scott
Kate Plackett
Maureen Shortland
Lesley Scordellis
Dawn Smith
Catherine Shacklady
Judy Smith
Gillian Sharpe
Vicki Steele
Prue Smith
Kathy Stickland
Claire Strudley
Carol Terry
Enid Weston
Chirstine Wilks
Elisabeth Willis
Lucinda Wilson
Frances Worpe
Hilary Steynor
Rosie Storey
Hilary Trigg
Janice Wicker
June Windle
Maralyn Wong
Stephen Jepson
Tony Macklow-Smith
Neil Martin
Max New
Chris Newbury
Barry Norman
John Parry
Nigel Pollock
David Ross
Philip Stanford
Beatrice Wood
15
The Surrey Mozart Players Society was founded in 1970 by the late
Richard Temple Savage MBE, who had been a distinguished bass clarinettist
and librarian of the Royal Opera House Orchestra, and who directed the Players
until his retirement. Over the years it has developed to become one ofthe finest
of community orchestras, dedicated to music-making of the highest standard.
Many talented young musicians like Tasmin Little (violin) and Emma Johnson
(clarinet) have performed as soloists, as well as established international recording
artists such as Ronan 0’Hora (piano) and in July this year, Crispian Steele-Perkins
(trumpet).
The orchestra has performed in Woking and Chertsey, but since giving the
inaugural concert at the Electric Theatre, Guildford, in January 1997, this has
become its home venue.
The Musical Director, Paul Hoskins, is one of the most experienced and versatile
of young British conductors, having worked with leading symphony and chamber
orchestras, and contemporary music groups. He is currently Music Director of
Rambert Dance Company and principal conductor of Cambridge New Music
Players.
The orchestra’s next concert is in July 1999 (the Guildford Summer Festival)
when the soloist will be the internationally renowned trumpeter Crispian SteelePerkins. Future plans include the Electric Theatre (September 1999 and January
2000) and Farnham Maltings (March 2000) with guest conductor Peter Stark.
The Surrey Mozart Players are particularly happy to have been given the
opportunity to join the Guildford Philharmonic Choir in this concert in aid of
the CHASE appeal fund.
“The Surrey Mozart Players are a credit to the County” Surrey Advertiser
February 1997.
First Violins
Second Violins
Philip Thorne
Sally Dewey
Tessa Welford
Sue Thomas
Judy Dudley
Jana Sims
Mervyn Grand
Gill Martin
Gill Herbert
Sonja Nagle
Philip McKerrocher
Janet Lewis
Heather Mathews
Amanda Dyas
Ken Fudge
Cello
Cathy Carson
Gerald Moss
Andrew Hoy
Karen Burgess
Diana Allanson
Michael Winkler
Alan Winn
Mary Sandbrook
Jill Sutton
Clare Elliott
David White
Viola
Sue-Anne Emerson
Camilla Alison
Adrian Lock
Hilary Taylor
Rebecca Hawkins
Richard Wood
Penny Heath
Maz Page
16
Double Bass
Bassoon
Trombone
April Prentice
Elizabeth Trigg
Mark Mulley
John Daniel
Andrew Norris
Elaine Browning
Stphen Browning
Flute
Ruth Chappel
Contra Bassoon
John Williams
Deidre Ball
Timpani
Sally Basker
Horn
Oboe
Mick Nagle
Percussion
Michael Grieff
Joe Harper
Roger Griffin
Pat Hopkins
William Watson
Derek Vickers
Raymond Lee
Clarinet
Alan Dewey
Trumpet
Melissa Brice
Michael Chapple
Harp
Victoria Davies
THE KEY TO PLAYING MUSIC
YOU ‘LL FIND EVERYTHING YOU NEED AT BRITTEN'S
=
We have the largest printed music displayin the
area including all examination music
Next day mail ordering service
Over 1000 musical instruments in stock
Cash sales at best prices, low cost monthly rentals
1000's of accessories, musical gifts
Instrument repair service
Teachers’ register
Yamaha Music School and Technics Music Academy
for Keyboard and Piano
HELPFUL CUSTOMER SERVICE IS OUR SPECIALITY
IBRITTEN’S MUSIC Ltd
Shops : 3-4 Station Approach, West Byfleet, Surrey KT14 6NG Tel: 01932 351165 (24 hrsj)
136 George Lane, South Woodford London E18 1AY Tel: 0181 530 6432
E-Mail: sales@britten.co.uk
17
CHRIS ALDERTON
DECORATOR
Why not let me
"orchestrate"
your decorating?
Interior & Exterior Work
Tel: 01932 343625
MOORE STEPHENS
CHARTERED ACCOUNTANTS
Wish the choir and orchestra every success
in their concert
in aid of
CHASE building a new Children’s Hospice for Surrey
Priory House, Pilgrims Court, Sydenham Road, Guildford GU1 3RX
Tel: (01483) 538881
18
GUILDFORD PHILHARMONIC CHOIR
President Sir David Willcocks CBE, MC.
Patrons
Beachcroft Wansboroughs Solicitors
Mr and Mrs Bill Bellerby MBE
Dr Rodney Cuff
Mr Michael Dawe
Mr and Mrs Norman Hobbs
Mr Ron Medlow
Mr and Mrs Maxwell New
PRR Partners
Mrs Jean Radley
Mrs Jean Shail
Friends
Britten’s Music Ltd
Miss Annie Chatterley
Dega Broadcast Systems
Mrs Mary Dodds
Dr William Dodds
Mrs Joyce Feather
M/s Carole Harding Roots
Dr Michael Kearsley
Mr and Mrs Michael Kilkenny
Management Simulations
Mr and Mrs John Oliver
The Earl of Onslow
Miss Elizabeth Ranft, Shakespeare’s Globe
Mr and Mrs James Ranft
Mr Ian Rayner
Miss Suzanne Rix
Mr Michael Sharpe
Mr Edward Varley
19
GUlLDFQRD
PHILHARMONIC CHOIR
20 November 1999 ~ Haydn’s Creation
-
.
_Guzldford szzc
96 November1999
Music for Chrlstmas f .
‘;;DorkzngHalls
'_
.
19 December 1999 _
. _ffi;fiMayorSCarol Concert
(
GuzldfordClvzc -
.
.
-
S
t
.
M
a
t
t
h
e
w
P
a
s
s
m
. iflf,::fi;‘G
n
uzl0dfrdCa thedr
al
10 June 2000
~
-
An Evening of Summer Musu: -
,:;Gmldf
ofd szzc .
.