KARL JENKINS The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace
RACHMANINOV The Bells

Elena Ferrari Soprano
Tyrone Landau Tenor
Gavin Carr Baritone

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NOTTINGHAM HARMONIC SOCIETY

Conductor - Murray Stewart

Rachmaninov's The Bells is less well known. Written early in Rachmaninov's career it was his own favourite work. It was inspired by a poem of the same name by Edgar Allan Poe. Rachmaninov, wrote this as a choral symphony, each movement following a different verse of the poem and following a different aspect of human experience and emotion, as indicated by the use of different bells: Sleigh Bells, Wedding Bells, Alarm Bells and Funeral Bells.
This is wonderfully Russian, emotional music, written well before the revolution, when Russia was still enthralled by the Ballet, Opera and the music of Tchaikovsky, who was inevitably one of the great influences on Rachmaninov's work.

HANDEL Messiah

Charlotte Ellett Soprano
Anna Wall Mezzo soprano
Philip Sheffield Tenor
Andrew Slater Bass

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Conductor - Murray Stewart

NOTTINGHAM HARMONIC SOCIETY

Handel's inspired Messiah, written in only 21 days, also looks forward to Christmas, telling the story of Jesus' birth, life, death and resurrection, through prophetic, narrative and explanatory extracts from the Bible.

Although Messiah is the work by which most people in the world know Handel, it is almost a misfit in his output. He was not generally a religious composer and was not employed as a church musician, but rather wrote operas and music for royal occasions. His oratorios appear to be simply operas with religious themes. At the time they were written in England, they were not allowed to be staged nor acted. They could only be performed in a church, not in a theatre.

Handel's operatic techniques are apparent in Messiah. The choir plays parts ranging from a vituperative mob hurling insults round the Cross to a choir of Angels singing of Jesus' birth and praising Him in Heaven.

Many of the soloists' arias are familiar and well-loved, but they make even more impact in the context of the whole work.

If you have never heard the whole of Messiah before, or have only heard versions which are heavily cut and there is no sense of continuity, come and be prepared for a totally different, thrilling, emotional experience!

NOTTINGHAM HARMONIC SOCIETY

Conductor - Murray Stewart

THORESBY COLLIERY BAND

The Thoresby Colliery Band is one of the most exciting brass bands in Europe, and regularly wins countless accolades for its inspirational playing. Even if you think you don’t like brass bands, this one will convert you. Over the years they have played pieces ranging from Frosty the Snowman to Rossini's William Tell Overture , Tchaikovsky's 1812 Overture and Wagner's Procession to the Minster. If you get seats close enough to watch their percussion section, it is an amazing sight and sound.

When not joining forces with the band, or leading the audience in some of the familiar Christmas Carols, the choir provides some quieter interludes with some beautiful, though perhaps less familiar, carol settings.

There is always an opportunity for all the children to come down to the stage to sing carols. Some of them, if they are the first to answer a question, or sing really well, will get the chance to conduct the band or choir.

You are guaranteed to go home from this concert with a warm glow inside and a feeling of the fun of Christmas.

BACH St John Passion

Quentin Hayes Christus
Philip Salmon Evangelist
Nicki Kennedy Soprano
Katherine Allen Mezzo soprano
Daniel Auchincloss Tenor
Christopher Foster Baritone

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Conductor - Murray Stewart

NOTTINGHAM HARMONIC SOCIETY

The use of thier local language in services, rather than Latin, was something that had been fought over in Germany and was still regarded as a treasured right. The music was thus written, not for operatic show, but to support and dramatise the accounts of the Last Supper and Good Friday, and to give space for contemplation. The music is still as vibrant and powerful now as it was when it was first written.

The St John Passion was written a few years before the St Matthew Passion, and was the first Passion which Bach wrote at St Thomas Leipzig. He modified it a couple of times on subsequent Good Fridays, but the final version, performed some time in the 1740s was very close to the original in its form.

VAUGHAN WILLIAMS Seranade to Music

ELGAR Seranade for Strings

FINZI In Terra Pax

BRITTEN St. Nicolas

Colette Boushell Soprano
Angelica Voje Mezzo soprano
Christopher Steele Tenor
Vojtech Safarik Bass

Conductor - Murray Stewart

NOTTINGHAM HARMONIC SOCIETY

Choristers from Southwell Minster
Trinity School Choir

Elgar's Serenade for Strings was one of the first pieces he published.

Vaughan Williams Serenade to Music was written for eight specific soloists to sing, in a concert given as a tribute to Henry Wood, at the fiftieth anniversary of his first concert.

Finzi's In Terra Pax is usually associated with Christmas, but the sublime surroundings of Southwell Minster will be an ideal setting for this beautiful work.

Britten's dramatic St Nicolas was written for yet another celebration - the centenary of Lancing College in Sussex. Britten was fascinated by the variety of scale patterns used in folk music from different places. In St Nicolas he gives the various sections, which follow the different stages of St Nicolas' life, distinct moods by basing the themes on different scale patterns.

Colette Boushell, Angelica Voje and Vojtech Safarik are all supported by the Josephine Baker Trust.