Dear Subscriber,

Well, the end of our 50th Anniversary year is rapidly approaching, but what a fabulous year it has been!

Starting in November, we performed Richard Roddis’s own composition Lauda Creatoris. What an exciting work this proved to be! This was followed by our two Annual Christmas events in December at Patchings Art Centre and West Bridgford Methodist Church. In January we held an extremely well-supported Come and Sing/Play workshop when we studied Bach’s magnificent B Minor Mass.

The performance of this monumental work in Southwell Minster in March was the highlight of our year.

Under Richard’s excellent direction and supported by the Baroque Ensemble, led by Nicolette Moonen, the choir gave one of its most memorable performances. We all felt that it had been a privilege to be a part of such an event and judging from the many comments and tweets from the audience, they too felt it had been a very special occasion.

So now we reach our Summer events which bring our anniversary year to a close.

Sing Joyfully is the title of our concert on June 17th, at St Jude’s Church Woodborough Road, Mapperley, NG3 5HE at 7.30pm.

This will be a re-union event and we shall welcome back some of our former members. The programme will include some of the choir’s favourite pieces, both sacred and secular.

There will be English madrigals, including the Silver Swan and Hark, all ye lovely Saints above, Tudor Anthems Sing Joyfully and If ye love Me, European Sacred music Locus Iste and Crucifixus. From the twentieth century repertoire we have part of the G Minor Mass by Vaughan Williams, The Hymn to St. Cecelia by Benjamin Britten as well as pieces by Eric Whitacre, and arrangements by Richard Roddis – an altogether eclectic mix!

Tickets are £10 (£5 for students) and are available from Sandra Wakefield, Tel: 0115 960 6236, the Sinfonia Chorale website or at the door.

On the following day, Sunday June 18th we are performing for Waterworks – a charity providing clean water and hygienic sanitation systems in Malawi. This concert will be an hour long and will take place in Oxton Village Hall at 2pm. Admission is free but there will be a retiring collection.

As this season ends we are, of course planning the next. Our first concert of the 2017/18 season is at St John’s Church, Carrington on Saturday October 14th at 7.30pm. This will be a performance of Mozart’s Requiem in the Czerny piano arrangement for Piano Duet. Tickets are £12 (£5 for full time students) and will be available from the usual outlets.

As always, we are extremely grateful for your continued support and we hope you have enjoyed celebrating our 50th Anniversary with us.

We look forward to seeing you at our future concerts.

The Sinfonia Chorale

http://www.sinfoniachorale.uk

Dear Subscriber,

Preparations are fully underway for Sinfonia Chorale’s forthcoming 50th Anniversary Concert on Saturday 11th March at 7.30pm in Southwell Minster NG25 0HD. This performance of Bach’s Mass in B Minor promises to be one of the highlights in the musical calendar for 2017. It is a monumental composition which never fails to inspire the listener.

We have a magnificent line-up of soloists along with the Baroque Ensemble (Leader Nicolette Moonen). As usual, the Conductor will be Richard Roddis.

Tickets priced at £15, £12 and £10 (restricted view) available from:-

• Sandra Wakefield Tel: 0115 9606236
• The Cathedral Shop ,Southwell Tel: 01636 812933
• Sinfonia Chorale website
• Sinfonia Chorale Choir Members

Tickets for full time students U21 are £5.00

As usual, we look forward to seeing you there.

Sinfonia Chorale 

http://www.sinfoniachorale.uk

Dear Subscriber,

Sinfonia Chorale’s 50th anniversary year began with a superb concert at St. Giles’ Church, West Bridgford. The main work in the programme was Lauda Creatoris, composed by our Musical Director, Richard Roddis. This was very well received by both audience and choir alike.

Now, of course, rehearsals are in full swing for our Christmas performances.

On Sunday, December 11th the choir will be singing at Patchings Farm Arts Centre, Calverton NG14 6NU. Details and tickets for this are available from Patchings Tel: 0115 9653479 or from their website.

The following Tuesday, December 13th we shall be singing at West Bridgford Methodist Church, Musters Road NG2 7PQ starting at 7.30pm. Tickets are £8 and £5 for full-time students, available from Sandra Wakefield, Tel 0115 9606236, Jayline, Tudor Square, West Bridgford or from the Sinfonia Chorale website.

At this concert there will be a retiring collection in support of the Nottinghamshire Clubs for Young People.

The programme will contain the usual mix of Carols old and new, along with readings and, of course, audience participation.

The first event in 2017 is the Come and Sing/Play led by Richard Roddis and Nicolette Moonen. This will take place on Saturday January 21st, commencing at 10.00am and concluding at 5.00pm. The venue is Bramcote Parish Church,NG9 3HD. We shall be studying Bach’s Mass in B Minor. The cost for the day is £20 (£25 with a hot lunch)

Information and booking forms are available from the Sinfonia Chorale website.

Anyone who has been to these workshops before knows what stimulating and satisfying occasions they are, so we do hope you will come and join us.

On 11th March 2017 we have our major celebration concert in the magnificent surroundings of Southwell Minster. We shall be performing Bach’s Mass in B Minor.

The soloists will be: 

• Soprano - Lisa Cassidy
• Countertenor - William Purefoy
• Tenor - James Gallimore
• Bass - Michael Dewis

The Baroque Ensemble will be led by Nicolette Moonen.

Tickets are priced at £15, £12 and £10 and will be available in January from the usual outlets.

Do come and join us for what promises to be an exciting event. It will be a great opportunity to hear this magnificent piece performed with the kind of resources that Bach himself would have used – a chamber-sized choral group accompanied by Baroque instruments.

As usual we thank you for your continued support and hope to see you at our future concerts.

We wish you a Happy Christmas and send our best wishes for 2017.

Sinfonia Chorale

http://www.sinfoniachorale.uk

Dear Subscriber,

Once again the summer holidays are over and the new season of Autumn activities are upon us.

This 2016/17 season will be a particularly exciting one for Sinfonia Chorale as we celebrate 50 years of choral music making.

We have three major concerts which offer a wide range of varied choral music.

The first of these concerts is at 7.30pm on Saturday, 12th November 2016 at St Giles Church, West Bridgford, NG2 6AX.

The main work is a composition entitled Lauda Creatoris by our own Musical Director, Richard Roddis. It was originally composed for the 50th Anniversary of the Derby Bach Choir where it was extremely well received. The work celebrates all Creation through the words of the Canticle of St. Francis and the writings of Gerard Manley Hopkins. For this second full performance of his work, Richard has re-arranged the orchestral score for two pianos.

The soloists are Natalie Windsor (Soprano) and Dana de Waal (Baritone), with pianists Michael Overbury (our new accompanist) and Clive Pollard.

Also in the programme will be performances of some of Handel’s Coronation Anthems including the ever popular Zadok the Priest.

Ticket prices are £10 (£5 for all full-time students) and are available via the website or from Sandra Wakefield (Tel:- 0115 9606236)

Our annual Christmas Concert at Patchings Farm Arts Centre, Calverton, NG14 6NU (from where tickets will be available) takes place on Sunday, December 11th at 7.30 pm.

On Tuesday, December 13th at 7.30pm our second Christmas Concert will be held at West Bridgford Methodist Church, Musters Road, NG2 7PQ. There will be a retiring collection in aid of Nottinghamshire Clubs for Young People.

Tickets at £8 (£5 for all full-time students) will be available from Sandra Wakefield (Tel:- 0115 9606236) and the website.

As usual, the programmes for both these events will include new and traditional music and readings.

On Saturday, January 21st 2017, from 10am to 5.00pm our annual Come Sing and Play event will be held at Bramcote Parish Church, NG9 3HD. We shall be studying Bach’s Mass in B Minor and the day will be directed jointly by Richard Roddis and Nicolette Moonen.

Those who have attended our workshops in the past will know how exciting and exhilarating these days are. The cost of the day will be £20 (£25 with lunch).

Information and booking forms are available from our website.

Sinfonia Chorale thoroughly enjoys singing Baroque music, particularly when accompanied by authentic instruments. It is very fitting that we should celebrate our anniversary by performing what many consider to be J.S. Bach’s masterpiece, his magnificent B Minor Mass, in the glorious setting of Southwell Minster, NG25 0HD on Saturday, March 11th at 7.30pm.

The soloists will be:

• Lisa Cassidy (Soprano)
• William Purefoy (Counter-tenor)
• James Gallimore (Tenor)
• Michael Dewis (Bass)

The Baroque Ensemble will be led by Nicolette Moonen and the performance will be directed by Richard Roddis.

Ticket prices will be £15, £12, and £10 (£5 for all full time students)

They will be available from Sandra Wakefield (Tel:- 0115 9606236) and on the website nearer the time.

The conclusion to our celebrations will be a concert at St. Judes’ Church, Woodborough Road, Mapperley, NG3 5HE to be held on Saturday, 17th June at 7.30 pm.

This will be in the nature of a reunion with a programme chosen by Members both past and present

The culmination of the evening will be a performance of Thomas Tallis’ 40 part motet Spem in Alium.

Tickets for this concert will be £10 (£5 for full time students)

More details about the programme will be available in subsequent newsletters.

We are anxious to trace as many past Members as possible, so if you (or anyone you know) sang with the choir, please let our Secretary, Diane Roberts have the details via e-mail.

We do hope you will join us for our special celebrations and we look forward to seeing you at the concerts.

The Sinfonia Chorale

http://www.sinfoniachorale.uk

Dear Subscriber,

We are fast approaching the final two concerts of Sinfonia Chorale’s 2015/16 season.

On Saturday, June 25th, the choir will perform at Linby Parish church at 7.30pm and on July 9th the final concert will be at West Bridgford Methodist Church.

We shall be performing a variety of pieces, most of them inspired by William Shakespeare whose 400th anniversary we celebrate this year. His words have been set by numerous composers over the years and our programme includes a wide ranging selection, both serious and humorous. There are part songs by 19th century composers such as Charles Wood and George Macfarren and contemporary settings by Christopher Brown and Gyögy Orbán. The programme also includes selections from Leonard Bernstein’s musical West Side Story inspired, of course, by Shakespeare’s play Romeo and Juliet.

Our guest artist at Linby is the talented young Tuba player, Harry Smith. 

Harry was the Brass Finalist in the Nottingham Young Musician Competition 2015. He will be performing two movements from Edward Gregson’s Tuba Concerto, as well as Galop by Gordon Jacob and Czardas by Monti

At our West Bridgford concert we are delighted to welcome back the Saxophonist Alistair Parnell as our guest artist.

Tickets for the Linby concert are £8 (£9 if purchased on the door) students £5 and under 16 free.

Tickets for West Bridgford are £10, and £5 for students under 21.

Tickets for both concerts are available from Sandra Wakefield Tel 0115 9606236 or via the website.

As usual we thank you for your continued support and hope that you are able to come to one of these concerts. If not, we hope you have an enjoyable summer and that you will be able to support us next season in our 50th Anniversary events.

The Sinfonia Chorale

http://www.sinfoniachorale.uk