Thursday 27 April 2023 at 7:30pm
Sherborne Abbey

Sherborne Festival Chorus
Chameleon Arts Orchestra
Conductor Paul Ellis

Isabella Piggott, soprano
Lucy Thalange, mezzo-soprano
Henrik Enger Holm, tenor
Florian Störtz, bass

Haydn Mass in B flat, Harmoniemesse

Brahms Schicksalslied (Song of Destiny)
Schubert Symphony No. 8 (Unfinished)

We’re delighted to be part of the community of local singers which constitutes the Sherborne Festival Chorus again! After last year’s triumphant post-Covid performance of The Kingdom, the Festival Chorus returns to Sherborne Abbey Festival, this time on the opening night, with a concert journeying through the nineteenth century, from the trumpets of Haydn to the soaring melodies of Brahms via one of Schubert’s most popular works.

Haydn’s last major work, his mighty Harmoniemesse, forms the centrepiece of the programme, composed when he was celebrated as the greatest living composer. It was written for his employer’s wife’s birthday – quite a present! It has everything that the Princess could have wished for: Haydn at his most cheerful, with woodwind, trumpets and joyful choruses.

Schubert’s famous ‘Unfinished’ Symphony may only have two movements, but it punches well above its weight, with all the drama and emotion of a longer work, as well as unforgettable melodies, packed into it.

Brahms’ moving Song of Destiny takes the words of Friedrich Hölderlin, describing the contrast between our lives in heaven and earth: blissful calm contrasts with plunging uncertainty, but ultimately a mood of hope prevails – this is music for now just as much as then.

Find out more about the concert and all the other Festival events taking place on the Festival’s website.

Photo credit: Len Copland

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