Saturday 14 May 2016

7.30pm

(ends 9.20pm approximately)

St Edmundsbury Cathedral, Bury St Edmunds 

Elgar:             The Music Makers, Op. 69

Elgar:             Sea Pictures, Op. 37

Parry:             I was glad

Harris:            Bring us, O Lord God

Valerie Reid mezzo-soprano

Prometheus Orchestra  

Bury Bach Choir

Philip Reed conductor    

In celebration of the Queen's 90th birthday, this final concert in our season brings together the music of three English composers.

Much of Elgar’s music revolves around dreams and the inaccessibility of the “world beyond reach”.  The Music Makers is a setting of ‘Ode’ by Arthur O’Shaughnessy. Its central theme is the role of the artist who, through his dreaming in isolation, has the responsibility to shape the future of mankind. The complex ebb and flow of Elgar’s music adds many layers of emotional imagery to the text, and famously includes quotations from several of his other pieces including The Dream of Gerontius, Sea Pictures and the Enigma Variations.  Prepare to be enthralled!

In his song-cycle Sea Pictures, Elgar sets five poems.  In each, the music evokes the sounds and endless movements of the sea, and the threat posed by its unpredictable moods.  These songs will be performed this evening by Valerie Reid, who performs regularly in leading roles at the English National Opera.

In Bring us, O Lord God, W. H. Harris set a poem by John Donne for unaccompanied 8-part choir which paints a radiant picture of heaven that builds gloriously to the final ecstatic Amen.

Hubert Parry’s anthem derived from Psalm 122, familiar to all from its frequent use at royal occasions, never fails to send a tingle down the spine with its opening choral cloudburst of the words I was glad.

Booking opens 22 February 2016

Tickets £25 and £20 (reserved) and £14 (unreserved)