TALENTED young soloists and a string quartet joined Oldham Choral Society for a concert of sacred music at the Royal Northern College of Music.
The attractive concert featured two works which spanned two centuries, writes Fred Jones.
The first – Lux Aeterna – was by American composer Morten Lauridsen. Written in 1997, it is a powerful but somewhat difficult work, and the choir had worked hard to produce an impressive performance.
In the second part of the concert was Mozart’s Solemn Vespers, another powerful work in which the choir was joined by four excellent soloists: Charlotte O’Hare (Soprano), Jess Conway (Mezzo), Michael Jones (Tenor) and Jonny Hill (Bass).
The soloists blended beautifully and really enhanced the performance of the choir.
The audience was also treated to three arias from Mozart operas from the soloists – a delightful surprise addition to the programme.
The accompaniment was provided by the choir’s regular pianist, Duncan Robertson, together with the Mercury Strings (Leader Alexandra Stemp) and Gary Hulme on the organ – an inspired combination.
Unfortunately, the audience was less than ideal, but those who attended were very enthusiastic in their appreciation of this excellent evening’s entertainment.
The choir is rather unbalanced at the moment, leaving the men a little out-gunned at times, but they are looking for more tenors and basses. So there’s an opportunity to join a wonderful choir with a great programme of singing to come.
- Oldham Choral Society performs about four concerts a year, often with an orchestra and soloists, in Oldham, Manchester and beyond. Its repertoire includes most of the major choral works by Bach, Elgar, Handel, Haydn, Mendelssohn, Rossini and many others.
The Society is keen to welcome new members (there are no auditions).
Rehearsals are held on Monday evenings (excluding July, August and bank holidays) at 7.20pm at Chadderton Town Hall.
To find out more, come along or contact Val Dawson on 07710 496096 or email valerie.dawson2@ntlworld.com
Find out more online: www.oldhamchoral.org.uk