THE Ebor Singers serve up a festive treat of choral favourites in A Christmas Celebration – Handel, Chilcott and Rutter at St Olave’s Church, Marygate, York, on Sunday.
Directed by Paul Gameson and accompanied by organist David Pipe, the York choir will be joined by a string quartet for Part One of Handel’s Messiah. Solos will be taken on by choir members Amy Walker, Hugo Janacek, Jason Darnell and Jonty Ward.
“Part One of Handel’s Messiah takes us from prophecy to the birth of Jesus, and Handel draws on the most popular musical genres of the day for his Messiah: part-German passion, part-Italian opera, part-English anthem,” says Paul.
Messiah Part One will be complemented by carols by John Rutter and Bob Chilcott. “The Christmas music of Rutter and Chilcott carols, both highly distinctive and accessible, have been a perennial feature of Christmas concerts and services for the past 40 years,” says Paul.
“We will perform some of their favourites, including Rutter’s The Angels Carol and Chilcott’s The Shepherds’ Carol.”
The Ebor Singers’ 20th -anniversary season will continue next year with Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater on March 8 and music from the English Civil War and the Siege of York May 17, both at York Minster.
Tickets for Sunday’s 7.30pm concert are on sale at eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-ebor-singers-messiah or on the door.
Isobel Staton’s beatific Mary in York Mystery Plays Supporters Trust’s A Nativity for York. Picture: John Saunders
YORK Mystery Plays Supporters Trust’s new interpretation of the Nativity moves on to St James the Deacon Church Hall, Acomb, tonight (5/12/2024) and tomorrow, then St Oswald’s Church Hall, Fulford, on Saturday.
This chimes with the need to move in a story set in a time of threat when a homeless couple and their newborn baby are driven from home by oppressors.
Past productions have taken place in the Spurriergate Centre in York city centre, but taking a community production out into the community is a potent way to spread the message, all the more so in a year when taking flight has regularly been in the headlines.
CharlesHutchPress attended the Saturday matinee at The Tithe Barn in Nether Poppleton, the most spartan of the three locations, with its bare brickwork and stone-flagged floor, and therefore the closest in spirit to the stable in Bethlehem, albeit bigger and warmer, once the mulled wine served on arrival settled in.
Minstrel/balladeer Jonathan Brockbank sets the tone on Early Music whistle and drum instruments, later accompanying the Angel Choir of Emily Hansen, Trisha Campbell, Val Burgess, Wilma Edwards and Julie Speedie and leading the closing carol, The Bells Of Paradise I Heard Them Ring, with audience participation to boot.
Director Paul Toy’s inspiration for his latest Nativity production was the 1609 prosecution of a troupe of Catholic actors for performing a play that ridiculed a Protestant minister. Based at Egton on the North York Moors, they had established a safe circuit of Catholic gentry households they could tour, but a spy had infiltrated the audience and reported them.
There will surely be no spying, no reporting in 2024, save of the reviewing variety, but Toy’s programme note warrants quoting. “As we are touring a version of the Plays for the first time, I was inspired to set the production as if the Mystery Plays had continued their suppression [banned for ‘Catholic content’ in 1568] but as an underground, illicit activity – depending on secrecy for support of these clandestine performances of a play promoting banned religious doctrine in a time of oppression, always vulnerable to the outside authorities.
“The actors’ interpretation of the plays is influenced by their experience as outsiders.” You can debate whether actors are “outsiders” in today’s world, but reduced arts funding and cuts in arts provision in schools and colleges point to that status returning.
Division and destruction in the actions of Herod are as much at play in A Nativity for York as the message of great joy and hope. Toy’s direction favours the minimalist, the focus falling on the delivery of text and human interaction, rather than a box of theatrical tricks, bells and whistles (except for Brockbank’s).
He has his cast omnipresent, sitting on the benches that line the barn walls when not in scenes, with a raised stage at one end to accommodate stable scenes and Herod’s edicts.
James Tyler’s Herod is both hot-headed and chilling, with Wilma Edwards’s viperous Counsellor urging him to ill action at every opportunity. By way of contrast, Helen Jarvis’s Angel Gabriel has a suitably radiant presence.
The chemistry of Nick Jones’s aged Joseph and Isobel Staton’s young Mary is crucial, and their combination of contrast and yet connection works well. Jones portrays Joseph’s disbelief, puzzlement, yet support with typical attention to detail from this experienced hand, who adds a second woodwind instrument on occasion too. Staton’s Mary is the essence of devoted duty, resolute and loving in all she does.
Michael Maybridge, Sally Maybridge and David Denbigh take on the shepherds’ roles with banter and wonderment, while the Kings – or Wise Men – are played by three Wise Women (Val Burgess, Emily Hansen and Janice Newton). At the play’s close too, when everyone else has left the stage, it is Mary who leads off Joseph.
Amid the starkness of design, one moment has particular resonance: in the soldiers’ slaughter of the innocents, each bairn’s death is signified by a cloak being turned from its black side to its red side. No image is more striking. Models of two cow’s heads in the manger were a rare but welcome artistic flourish.
The choice of music pays dividends for studious research. The Kyrie, for example, was written by Roman Catholic composer William Byrd for a recusant household while the folk carols are suffused with Catholic sensibility too: the outsider in Protestant times.
York Mystery Plays Supporters Trust presents A Nativity for York, St James the Deacon Church Hall, Acomb, December 5 and 6, 7.30pm, then St Oswald’s Church Hall, Fulford, December 7, 2.30pm and 7.30pm. Suitable for adults and children aged 11 plus. Box office: 0333 666 3366, at ympst.co.uk/nativityticketsor on the door, subject to availability.Donations will be welcomed after each performance for the work of UNICEF.
Dani Harmer as Fairy Bon Bon on the Grand Opera House stage in Beauty And The Beast. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick
BAFTA award-winning Dani Harmer will appear in Beauty And The Beast for a second time on a York stage from Saturday.
Best known for playing the title role in the CBBC series Tracy Beaker and its sequel Tracy Beaker Returns, from the age of 13, and later My Mum Tracy Beaker in 2021, Harmer will wave her wand as Fairy Bon Bon in UK Productions’ third pantomime season at the Grand Opera House.
In March 2015, she had played Beauty in two performance of the Easter pantomime at York Barbican, where she had taken the title role in Cinderella in December 2012, when she had to miss two shows that clashed with her commitments competing in BBC One’s Strictly Come Dancing that season.
In the “craziest fortnight of my life”, Dani had to combine rehearsing each morning at the Barbican and spending each afternoon and evening at the University of York, practising routines with partner Vincent Simone, first for the semi-final, then three for the final: a tango, jive and show dance (Bohemian Rhapsody). “It’s been the best thing I have ever done,” she said at the time.
“I’m super excited to be back in my favourite panto of all time, Beauty And The Beast, which I’d be happy to do each year!” says Bracknell-born Dani, who appeared in the same role at Mansfield Palace Theatre last winter.
Beauty And The Beast principals and ensemble in rehearsals at Central Methodist Church, including Dani Harmer, second from right, back row
“For those that don’t know, I have always been completely obsessed with this story, so it’s a real joy for me to be bringing it to life on stage. And I adore playing the loveable and slightly bonkers Fairy Bon Bon, so cannot wait to put on my wings once more.
“And it’s even more exciting to be coming to the gorgeous city of York! I’m very, very happy to be here. I can’t think of a better place to be spending the Christmas period. So, bring on the Yorkshire puddings.”
Dani has a long history of performing in pantomime. “My first panto was when I was six, as a juvenile. I’m 35 now,” she says. “I went to theatre school from the age of six. It didn’t put me off! Most of what I learnt was on the job.
“I grew up on camera. Your teenage years can be your most difficult, but all my teenage days were spent on camera [filming Tracy Beaker] – and I’m very grateful that social media was not around then. I don’t know if I’d still be an actor now if it had been.”
Now she is waving her wand as Fairy Bon Bon for the second year running. “Playing Fairy, you can take the role two ways. You can be a Fairy Godmother, like a mother figure to a princess, or you can go the more non-traditional fairy route, where I’m loud and energetic and not quite sure what’s going to come out of my mouth!
Dani Harmer as Beauty in Beauty And The Beast at York Barbican in 2015
“So you can expect the unexpected with this show. You get the story but there are also twists and turns you won’t expect.”
The script comes from the pen of 2019 Great British Pantomime Award winner Jon Monie. “I’ve had the pleasure of working with him a few times,” says Dani. “He was my Buttons when I was Cinderella – I just adore that man.”
Dani will forever be associated with Tracy Beaker, the childhood role she resumed as an adult in My Mum Tracy Beaker. “We were one of the first shows to go back into the studio after the pandemic, having been postponed,” she recalls.
“Playing Tracy again was like wearing a nice, comfy pair of slippers. I loved playing her. I’m a fan, like everyone else, where I’m desperate to see where she goes next!”
What first made Tracy so popular, Dani? “I think she just came around at a good time when TV was male dominated and comedy was male dominated, where we grew up with the Chuckle Brothers – I was a fan – but along came this female-led series, just when Grange Hill had finished,” she says.
Beauty And The Beast cast members Phil Reid, Dani Harmer, Leon Craig and Phil Atkinson pose by Clifford’s Tower. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick
“I was 13 years old and Jacqueline Wilson’s stories were just magical. You always found something to relate to – and the way the BBC adapted stories, they just nailed it in the scripts. It might make me feel old now but I love the stories and there’s a lot to be said for nostalgia.”
Dani recalls an eye-opening role that brought her to Yorkshire in 2013 to play timid, naive but maybe not-so-innocent Janet Weiss in The Rocky Horror Show in 2013 at Leeds Grand Theatre. “She really does go through a transition, doesn’t she!” she says.
“It was such a joy to do because it couldn’t have been further from anything I’d done before, going from being a teenage lass on a TV show to being in my underwear on stage with a transvestite scientist seducing me!
“The producers took a leap of faith with me and my fans loved it! Rocky Horror fans will stick with you so I was really thankful that they loved it as they’ll tell you when they don’t rate you!”
UK Productions presents Beauty And The Beast at Grand Opera House, York, from December 7 to January 5 2025. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Meet the Grand Opera House pantomime stars: Phil Atkinson’s Hugo Pompidou, left, Jennifer Caldwell’s Belle, Dani Harmer’s Fairy Bon Bon, Leon Craig’s Polly La Plonk, Samuel Wyn-Morris’s Prince and Phil Reid’s Louis La Plonk
Intesa’s Lucine Musaelian and Nathan Giorgetti: Baroque Around The Books mini-tour
MUSICAL duo Intesa will embark on a Baroque Around The Books mini-tour of four community libraries after their appearance at this month’s York Early Music Christmas Festival.
This National Centre for Early Music cultural wellbeing initiative on December 16 and 17 is a partnership between the NCEM and Explore York Libraries and Archives.
Suitable for all, the initiative began early this year and now returns with the involvement of NCEM Platform Artists Intesa, the young European viol and voice duo of Lucine Musaelian and Nathan Giorgetti, who will be staying on in York for a short residency and library musical tour after their December 15 festival performance at Bedern Hall, Bedern.
At 11am that day, Intesa will present A Merry Conceit, exploring the theme of seeking light in the midst of dark and wintry weather in a programme of Dowland, Hume and Cuccini works alongside a selection of Armenian folk songs.
Musaelian and Giorgetti, who met at the Royal Academy of Music, formed their musical partnership in 2023, Intesa being the Italian word for ‘understanding’ or ‘a meeting of minds’. They share a passion for the sound of the viol and its combination with the voice.
Intesa’s Lucine Musaelian
The workshops will provide the communities of York with an opportunity to celebrate and discover Early Music with these two talented young performers. In turn, Baroque Around The Books reinforces the NCEM’s ongoing commitment to support, encourage and nurture the skills of emerging artists in the UK and beyond.
On December 16, Intesa will tour Tang Hall Explore at 12 noon and York Explore at 2.30pm (both free entry, no booking required); on December 17, Acomb Explore, 11am (booking required; acquire free ticket at Acomb Explore or online at tickettailor.com/events/exploreyorklibrariesandarchives/1145052), and Clifton Explore, 1.30pm (free entry, no booking required).
Tickets are free for these informal concerts thanks to an initiative by the NCEM, working in association with Explore York, supported by the Mayfield Valley Arts Trust.
NCEM director Delma Tomlin says: “Intesa are one of three ensembles from Europe performing at this year’s York Early Music Christmas Festival, and it’s a pleasure to welcome them to York for this brilliant tour.
“Baroque Around The Books concerts are free of charge and it’s wonderful to be working with our partner Explore York once again. We look forward to sharing the wonderful world of Early Music with new audiences from York communities.”
Explore York chief executive Jenny Layfield says: “This partnership with the NCEM is truly inspiring. There’s something wonderful about bringing such talented musicians into library spaces, offering our communities the chance to stumble upon a high-quality experience.
“I had the pleasure of attending one of the sessions organised by NCEM earlier this year and I absolutely loved it. If you have the opportunity to attend a performance at one of our Explore centres this December, I wholeheartedly recommend it!”
The Brook Street Band: Working with young composers at the 2025 award day
THE National Centre for Early Music Young Composers Award 2025 has been launched on BBC Radio 3’s Early Music Show and BBC Sounds.
Each year, the award is presented by the NCEM in association with BBC Radio 3. For the 2025 award, young composers will be working with the baroque instrumental group The Brook Street Band.
Composers are invited to create a short work for two violins, cello and harpsichord – one of the most popular chamber music groupings of the late 17th and early 18th centuries, reflecting the extraordinarily inventive musical heritage of Purcell, Corelli and Handel – wrapped in a 21st century response.
The Award Day will take place in York on Thursday, May 15 2025 when Dr Christopher Fox will lead a daytime workshop for shortlisted candidates. In the evening, the compositions will be performed by The Brook Street Band at the NCEM, St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate.
The winning works will be premiered by The Brook Street Bandin October 2025 as part of the love:Handel festival and will be recorded for broadcast on BBC Radio 3’s Early Music Show and BBC Sounds.
This major national annual award is open to young composers up to the age of 25 resident in the United Kingdom and is divided into two categories: 18 years and under and 19 to 25 years.
NCEM director Delma Tomlin says: “We’re very excited to welcome The Brook Street Band as our partner for the Young Composers Award 2025. This ensemble is not only one of the leading exponents of Handel’s music, but also has set up its very own festival, love: Handel, where the winning 2025 compositions will be performed.
“The Young Composers Award is one of the most important dates on the NCEM’s calendar and continues to grow from strength to strength, attracting more and more entries from aspiring young composers from all over the UK.
“Taking part in the award has been an important step in the careers of many successful composers and we are looking forward to hearing this year’s new compositions.”
Les Pratt, producer of The Early Music Show, says: “BBC Radio 3 is delighted to continue to support this award, now looking ahead to its 18th edition. It’s hugely important to challenge and nurture young talent, and what’s most gratifying is seeing past winners and entrants who are now making their way in the professional world.
“We are really looking forward to sharing next year’s compositions for The Brook Street Band with our audiences at home on The Early Music Show.”
Tatty Theo, cellist and director of The Brook Street Band, says: “We’re thrilled to have the privilege of working with young composers, giving life to brand new music that will showcase the varied colours and rich character of our old baroque instruments.
“Handel’s music is at the heart of our music-making, and we cherish this opportunity to explore the creativity it inspires and unleashes in a new young generation of composers.”
Registration closes at 12 noon on Friday, February 7 2025, with the deadline for submission of scores on Friday, March 7. Shortlisted candidates will be informed by Friday, April 4 and will be invited to attend the Award Day May 15. The NCEM will meet reasonable travel and accommodation costs from within the UK.
The Brook Street Band cellist and director Tatty Theo
NAMED after the London Street where George Frideric Handel lived from 1723 to 1759. Formed by baroque cellist Tatty Theo, rapidly establishing itself among the UK’s leading Handel specialists, winning grants, awards and broadcasting opportunities from organisations including BBC Radio 3 and the Handel Institute.
Enjoyed an unusually stable core membership, its players working together for more than 20 years in the form of violinists Rachel Harris and Kathryn Parry, cellist Tatty Theo, harpsichord player Carolyn Gibley and flautist Lisete da Silva Bull. This longevity has enabled it to develop a style of performing and music-making that is precise and spontaneous, the musicians able to react instinctively to each other and play as one.
18th century chamber repertoire has always been The Brook Street Band’s driving passion, focusing particularly on Handel’s music, building up a reputation for its fresh, innovative performances, zingy communication style and sense of fun.
Alongside its chamber music schedule, The Brook Street Band works regularly with soloists, conductors, choirs and venues for larger-scaled orchestral and vocal projects.
Passionate about exploring new repertoire written especially for period instruments. Composers including Errollyn Wallen and Nitin Sawhney have written for the band with repertoire ranging from songs to trio sonatas, with commissions for UK festivals, including London International Festival of Early Music.
As part of a large-scale education project, the band commissioned Matthew King’s Il Pastorale, L’Urbino e Il Suburbano, a community-based oratorio for chamber group, electronics, vocal soloists and choir, composed in response to Handel’s L’Allegro, Il Penseroso ed Il Moderato.
The band performs and teaches throughout the UK and Europe. Established love: Handel music festival, held biennially in Norwich, incorporating wide-ranging educational work supported through its charitable trust.
Regularly broadcasts for BBC Radio 3 and Classic FM. World premiere recording of Dragon Of Wantley, an English opera by Handel’s bassoonist J F Lampe, won the Opera Award in the 2023 BBC Music Magazine Awards.
The band featured in “Handeliades”, immersive four-day events of concerts, masterclasses and talks given by Handel experts in 2021 and 2023. More information: www.brookstreetband.co.uk.
Shepherd Brass Band and NCEM win National Award for Band Project of the Year for I Can Play with Brass Roots
SHEPHERD Brass Band and the National Centre for Early Music have scoopedthe National Award for Band Project of the Year at the Brass Bands England Conference for I Can Play with Brass Roots.
The annual conference, held at the City of London School, London, was attended by more than 150 delegates representing brass bands from all over the United Kingdom.
Based in York, I Can Play with Brass Roots began in September 2023, inspired by the National Centre for Early Music’s long-running I Can Play, an innovative project that creates music-making opportunities for D/deaf young people.
Led by Sean Chandler, Deaf musician, professional trumpeter and qualified teacher of the Deaf, these sessions take place each month at York Music Centre.
Sean, who is principal cornet in Shepherd Brass Band, had the idea for I Can Play with Brass Rootsand works closely with Brass Roots leader Audrey Brown to deliver the project.
Together they ensure that the young D/deaf musicians receive additional support before and throughout rehearsals to help them become fully integrated into the band.
Audrey has been teaching families to play brass instruments for many years in the York area, most of whom continue to play today. At the age of 80, she took on the challenge of learning BSL in preparation for welcoming D/deaf musicians to Brass Roots and the Shepherd band family.
During the past year, the flourishing project has enabled several young D/deaf musicians to become members of the junior group Brass Roots, where they have the exciting opportunity to develop their musical skills as a vital part of mainstream music-making.
Five different bands, who all operate under the umbrella of Shepherd Bands and rehearse on Mondays, are extremely proud of gaining this award. Brass Roots leader Audrey Brown says: “We are very excited to receive this prestigious award recognising the importance of the work of I Can Play with Brass Roots.
“This important initiative enables D/deaf young musicians to develop their musical talent and gives them the valuable opportunity to perform with fellow brass musicians.
“I would like to say a special thank you to the Shepherd Brass Bandfor their invaluable support with getting the project off the ground. I would also like to thank Sean, whose amazing idea has gone from strength to strength, and the I Can Play team at the National Centre for Early Music for their ongoing support and encouragement.”
Did you know?
I Can Play is run by the National Centre for Early Music with support from the Mayfield Valley Arts Trust, Harrogate Deaf Society and Ovingdean Hall Foundation.
Quinn Richards in Be Amazing Arts’ promenade production of A Christmas Carol in Malton
’TIS the season for pantomime, festive exhibitions, ghost stories, a snow bear and an elf as Charles Hutchinson welcomes winter.
Promenade festive experience of the week: Be Amazing Arts in A Christmas Carol, Malton’s streets and buildings, starting at Kemps Books, until December 23
MALTON theatre-makers Be Amazing Arts return for a fourth season of immersive A Christmas Carol performances “truly made for all the senses”, where Charles Dickens invites you to a reading of his latest work, transforming into Ebenezer Scrooge (Quinn Richards) for a promenade production, written by Roxanna Klimaszewska, with a cast featuring Katy Rattigan, Kirsty Woolf and David Lomond.
The ticket price includes a food platter from The Cook’s Place as revellers celebrate with the ghost of Christmas Present and a warm winter drink to toast to the goodwill of Christmas. Ticket advice: book promptly as past years’ shows sold out. Box office: tickettailor.com/events/beamazingarts/1275175.
Isobel Staton’s Mary in York Mystery Plays Supporters Trust’s A Nativity for York. Picture: John Saunders
Christmas message of hope of the week: York Mystery Plays Supporters Trust presents A Nativity for York, St James the Deacon Church Hall, Acomb, tomorrow and Friday, 7.30pm; St Oswald’s Church Hall, Fulford, Saturday, 2.30pm and 7.30pm
PAUL Toy’s community production recalls when the Mystery Plays were banned in the 17th century for being too Roman Catholic. Performers were forced to perform illegally in the houses of sympathisers, always looking out for establishment forces.
“Although A Nativity for York reflects the experience of those dedicated but frightened performers, the story itself mirrors the trouble many people are experiencing today: a homeless couple, seeking shelter, with their new-born child being forced to flee to another country, but there is news of great hope and joy,” says Toy. Box office: 0333 666 3366, ympst.co.uk/nativitytickets or on the door.
Wicked return: Paul Hawkyard takes to the dark side again as Abanazar in Aladdin at York Theatre Royal
Look who’s back: Aladdin, York Theatre Royal, until January 5 2025
PAUL Hawkyard’s villain returns to York after a winter away doing panto in Dubai to renew his Theatre Royal double act with Robin Simpson’s dame, playing bad-lad Abanazar to Simpson’s Dolly (not Widow Twankey, note) in the fifth collaboration between Theatre Royal creative director Juliet Forster and Evolution Productions script writer Paul Hendy. Look out for CBeebies’ Evie Pickerill as the Spirit of the Ring. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Dani Harmer’s Fairy Bon Bon in Beauty And The Beast at the Grand Opera House, York. Picture: Charlie Kirkpatrick
Changing of the old guard to the new: Beauty And The Beast, Grand Opera House, York, Saturday to January 5 2025
EXIT the Dame Berwick Kaler, Martin Barrass, David Leonard, Suzy Cooper and AJ Powell era. Enter Tracy Beaker star Dani Harmer as Fairy Bon Bon; Jennifer Caldwell, from SIX The Musical, as Belle; Samuel Wyn-Morris, from Les Miserable, as The Prince; comedian Phil Reid as Louis La Plonk; dame Leon Craig, from Everybody’s Talking About Jamie, as his larger-than-life mum, Polly La Plonk; Phil Atkinson, from The Bodyguard, as dastardly Hugo Pompidou and David Alcock, from SAS Rogue Heroes, as Clement. George Ure directs 2019 Great British Pantomimes Award winner Jon Monie’s script. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
The principal players in Rowntree Players’ pantomime Mother Goose at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre
Let the egg puns get cracking: Rowntree Players in Mother Goose, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, Saturday, 2pm and 7.30pm, Sunday, 2pm and 6pm; December 10 to 13, 7.30pm; December 14, 2pm and 7.30pm
MEET Jack (Gemma McDonald), head of hens at Chucklepatch Farm, with its newest addition to the coop, Priscilla the goose (Abbey Follansbee). Joined by mum Gertrude Gander (alias Mother Goose, Michael Cornell) and his sister Jill (Laura Castle), they head out on their panto adventure.
Frustrated with life on the farm and desperate for showbiz, Gertrude gives up the Wolds for the bright lights of Doncaster. However, ever-nasty landlord Demon Darkheart (Jamie McKeller, alias Dr Dorian Deathly from the Deathly Dark Tours ghost walk) and his assistant Bob (Laura McKeller) will stop at nothing to collect rent, but dishy farmer Kev, the King of Kale (Sarah Howlett) and Fairy Frittata (Holly Smith) will not let the dark side rule in a rollicking romp directed by co-writer Howard Ella. Tickets update: Down to last few tickets or limited availability for most performances on 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Tom Mordell’s Polaris the Snow Bear and Danny Mellor’s Sammy the Seal in Badapple Theatre Company’s Polaris The Snow Bear. Picture: Karl Andre
Children’s play of the week: Badapple Theatre Company in Polaris The Snow Bear, The Mount School, York, Saturday, 3pm and on tour in Yorkshire and beyond until January 5 2025
MEET Polaris, the travelling snow bear and star of Kate Bramley’s new family Christmas show for Green Hammerton’s Badapple Theatre Company. On his journey to find renowned naturalist Mr Hat-In-Burrow, many complicated and comedic adventures ensue as Polaris (Tom Mordell) tries to put everything right, saving the Polar world in time for Christmas with the help of reluctant sidekick Sammy the Seal (Danny Mellor). For Yorkshire dates and tickets, go to: badappletheatre.co.uk or 01423 331304.
Time to deliver: E(s)mereld(a) The Elf And Father Christmas at Milton Rooms, Malton
Festive family show of the week: Epic Adventure Parties present E(s)mereld(a) The Elf And Father Christmas, Milton Rooms, Malton, Saturday, 12 noon, 2pm and 3.30pm; Sunday, 10.30am, 12 noon, 2pm and 3.30pm
IN Malton company Epic Adventure Parties’ interactive show, E(s)mereld(a) The Elf And Father Christmas, the friendly Elf must sort out all the Christmas letters in time. She means well but alas she can become very muddled. Can your family help her?
Each show lasts around 20 minutes, to be followed by family visits to Father Christmas and a gift for every child. Box office: ticketsource.co.uk/epicadventureparties.
Guy Masterson in his solo performance of A Christmas Carol, on tour at Kirk Theatre, Pickering
Solo ghost storyteller of the week: Guy Masterson in A Christmas Carol, Kirk Theatre, Pickering, December 11, 7.30pm
OLIVIER Award winner Guy Masterson, veteran of such solo works such as Under Milk Wood, Animal Farm and Shylock, presents his spellbinding take on Charles Dickens’s festive fable, adapted and directed by Nick Hennegan with original music by Robb Williams.
Noted for bringing multiple characters to life, Masterson conjures Scrooge, Marley, the Fezziwigs, the Cratchits, Tiny Tim et al in his dazzling, enchanting performance. Box office: 01751 474833 or kirktheatre.co.uk.
Prima Vocal Ensemble artistic director and producer Ewa Salecka
PRIMA Choral Artists will perform two Family Christmas concerts at St Olave’s Church, Marygate, York, on December 14 and 21.
“As the festive season approaches, I’m thrilled to present a new series of two very special 4pm concerts in the heart of York,” says Prima Vocal Ensemble artistic director and producer Ewa Salecka.
“Residents and visitors alike are warmly invited to join the Prima Choral Artists, New World String Quartet, pianist Greg Birch and guest musicians for two afternoons of Christmas music for all ages.
“These feel-good, one-hour concerts of instrumental and choral music guarantee high-spirited festive favourites, from Carol Of The Bells, Sleigh Ride and The Sussex Carol to stunning choral arrangements of much-loved seasonal pieces from respected contemporary choral composers.”
On the billboard: Prima Vocal Ensemble in New York
Uplifting music, including pieces by Tchaikovsky and Vladimir Rebikov, will be performed by New World String Quartet, while audience carols will include Hark The Herald Angels Sing, God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen and Ding Dong Merrily On High.
Under Salecka’s baton, Prima Vocal Ensemble, a progressive mixed-voice York choir with a reputation for musical diversity, have enjoyed a typically exhilarating year of events in 2024, fuelled by her desire to push the boundaries of choral performance.
“With consecutive sell-out events at home and exciting collaborations in the United States, Prima continue to attract talented singers and raise the bar for choir experiences in the area,” says Ewa, who combines all-embracing creative concert programming with modern and effective vocal coaching and more than 20 years of conducting experience.
“Since the pandemic, I’ve worked passionately on a gentle re-profiling of the choir. For the singers, this has meant embracing new challenges, with ever-higher standards of performance.
Prima Vocal Ensemble members in New York in June 2024
“And they rise to each and every challenge! When I reflect on the sense of excitement and commitment each person shows every week, superlatives fail me. I’m so extremely proud of this group and their constant open-minded approach to new ideas, new genres and new projects. I feel very fortunate to lead them in creativity.”
In June, the choir enjoyed a reunion concert with double Grammy-winning composer Christopher Tin at New York’s iconic Carnegie Hall, strengthening Salecka’s already phenomenal connections with American choral producers.
On November 23, Prima performed Opera Nights, Broadway Lights! at the National Centre for Early Music, York, showcasing the best of opera and musical theatre. “This concert sold out two months ahead of the event and due to its popularity may be repeated,” says Ewa.
Next year will mark the 15th anniversary of Prima Vocal Ensemble. “We are always happy to hear from new singers who wish to add their voices to this progressive group,” says Ewa.
Prima Vocal Ensemble taking part in a concert at Carnegie Hall, New York in June 2024
“All voice types are welcome to apply. There is a waiting list for sopranos and altos, but if any tenors or basses would like to sign up, you can be sure that I am always on the leading edge of contemporary choral trends. There are no formal auditions and you are guaranteed a brilliant time. Please email info@primavocalensemble.com for more details.”
To find out more about Prima and the opportunities to be enjoyed with the choir, visit primavocalensemble.com.
Family Christmas with Prima Choral Artists, St Olave’s Church, Marygate, York, December 14 and 21, 4pm to 5pm; doors 3.30pm.Tickets update: selling fast for both concerts, available from primavocalensemble.com in the final chance to experience Prima until 2025.
PHOTOGRAPHY, 3D imagery and video complement live performance in Art Sung’s exploration of Edith Sitwell’s iconic work Façade in Saturday’s concluding concert of York Late Music’s 2024 programme.
Edith Sitwell, Behind Her Façade is a semi-dramatised song recital that looks at the unusual and eccentric life of the flamboyant 20th century poet.
At 7.30pm, Art Sung tell Dame Edith Sitwell’s story in her own words, both spoken and sung, beginning with her troubled childhood at Renishaw Hall in Derbyshire, where she fell in love with a peacock, leading to a life of celebrity and notoriety in London, Paris and the United States of America.
It encompasses her encounters with various celebrities, most notably Noël Coward, with whom she was on non-speaking terms for 30 years after he parodied her in a West End revue, and Marilyn Monroe, with whom she got on famously, much to everyone’s surprise.
Edith also became a favourite subject for painters such as Wyndham Lewis, Roger Fry, and Russian painter Pavel Tchelitchew. The aesthetics of the art world from this period are the inspiration for the bespoke visual material that accompanies Saturday’s recital.
Woven through the narrative of the recital will be the story of Façade, the extraordinary musical entertainment that Sitwell created together with the then unknown composer William Walton.
His jazz-inspired music accompanied her poems that she recited through a megaphone from behind a curtain backdrop. The Sitwells saw this as an abstract method of providing poetry to an audience, without drawing attention to themselves. Ironically it had the opposite effect of turning them into celebrities.
“Saturday will be a multi-media performance with dance, animation and the interweaving of new music and poetry with excepts from Walton and Edith’s Façade and music by Britten, Bernstein and Satie, among others,” says Late Music co-programmer, composer and lecturer Hayley Jenkins, from the York St John University School of Arts.
“Elizabeth Mucha, the director, has cleverly interwoven these elements to illustrate Edith’s story via multiple characters performed by tenor Michael Gibson and contra-alto Lucy Stevens as Edith.
“This will be an evening with a difference for Late Music: we haven’t had a production on this scale for a very long time,so we are very excited to host it after such excellent reviews from Buckingham Festival, Barnes, New Malden and London Song Festival.”
Here Art Sung’s founder, Scottish-Polish pianist Elizabeth Mucha, discusses Edith Sitwell, Behind Her Façade
Art Sung founder Elizabeth Mucha
What songs from this iconic work will be included in the programme?
“There will be movements from Façade by William Walton and Edith Sitwell, arranged for piano duet by Walton’s great friend Constant Lambert. These will include Popular Song, Fox-Trot, Swiss Yodelling Song, Scotch Rhapsody and Valse.
“There will also be music for piano duet, played by myself and Nigel Foster: extracts from the ballet Parade by Erik Satie and Leonard Bernstein’s America from West Side Story.
“The programme also includes songs by William Walton, Benjamin Britten, Ned Rorem, Michael Head and Noël Coward, as well as songs specially commissioned for this programme by Dominique le Gendre and York Late Music’s very own Hayley Jenkins.”
What is Art Sung?
‘”We are an ensemble of singers, pianist, actor and visual artists that creates connections between music, art and story in a series of semi-dramatised song recitals. Our projects have focused to date on women whose artistic careers have not received the recognition they deserve.
“Their stories are told in their own words drawn from first-hand sources, such as diaries and letters, with songs and music which reflect, comment or elaborate on the narrative, together with the creatively projected artwork.”
What is the story behind the Art Sung – Edith Sitwell: Behind Her Façade project?
“In 2022, I formed a piano duo with Nigel Foster (director of the London Song Festival). We are the London Piano Duo and one of our programmes that year included several movements from Façade by Walton.
“As we both have a huge interest in adding context to programmes through narrative and visuals, we thought it would be a great idea to join forces to create an Art Sung to tell the background story of how Façade came into being. And so, Art Sung – Edith Sitwell: Behind Her Façade was born as we joined forces with the London Song Festival in 2023 to create it.
“This is Art Sung’s fourth production and celebrates the premiere of Edith Sitwell’s collaboration with composer William Walton in 1923 on the musical entertainment Façade, as well as exploring her colourful and dramatic life.”
Who is involved in the Art Sung project?
“Lucy Stevens is both a singer and actor, who is touring with her one-woman show about singer Kathleen Ferrier. Last year, she was nominated for an OffFest Award (Edinburgh Fringe 2023) for her one-woman show about singer/actress Gertrude Lawrence.
“Michael Gibson is a tenor whose many roles have included: Borsa (Rigoletto), Young Servant (Elektra), Normanno (Lucia di Lammermoor), Heinrich (Tannhäuser), Pong (Turandot), Gastone (LaTraviata) and Ruiz (Il Trovatore).
“Pianist Nigel Foster is director of the London Song Festival, a prestigious festival that showcases the song repertoire and provides a performance platform for young singers. He has broadcast on BBC Radio 3 and on television in several European countries.
“Roxani Eleni Garefalaki is a performance artist, director and movement instructor from Athens, based in London. She has directed the previous three Art Sung productions and is part of the visual team that creates the bespoke imagery.
“James Symonds is the videographer. Under the guise of Symian, he mixes digital filmmaking, sound production, programming and 3D design to produce large-format exhibition work, theatre staging and ‘live’ visual events for companies.”
And yourself, Elizabeth?
“I am a pianist, scriptwriter and producer. I have been fortunate enough to perform throughout Europe, the Americas and the Far East as a song accompanist, chamber musician and solo pianist. I have broadcast on the BBC and other classical music stations in Holland, Brazil, Canada and the Philippines.
“I also had the great pleasure of performing at Late Music in 2019 with baritone Robert Rice. I’m very much looking forward to performing again at Late Music.”
For more information and tickets and to download a free programme, go to: latemusic.org. Elizabeth Mucha and composer Hayley Jenkins will give a pre-concert talk at 6.45pm with a complimentary glass of mulled wine and a mince pie. Box office:https://latemusic.org/product/art-sung-concert-tickets-sat-7-dec-730pm/
William Walton (1902-1983) and Edith Sitwell (1887-1964) – Popular Song (extract) from Façade
Hayley Jenkins (b.1990) and Olivia Diamond (b.1947) – Be A Strange Bird In A Tame Pond
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Fox-Trot (extract) from Façade
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Old Sir Faulk (extract) from Three Songs
Michael Head (1900-1976) and Edith Sitwell – The King Of China’s Daughter
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – En Famille (extract) from Façade
William Walton and Anon – Rhyme from A Song For The Lord Mayor’s Table
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Daphne from Three Songs
Ned Rorem (1923-2022) and Edith Sitwell – You, The Young Rainbow
William Walton and Charles Morris (1745-1838) – The Contrast from A Song For The Lord Mayor’s Table
Erik Satie (1866-1925) – Extracts from the ballet Parade: Prélude du Rideau Rouge; Petite Fille Américaine; Rag-time du Paquebot
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) and Anon – Rats Away (extract) from Our Hunting Fathers Op 8
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Tango-Pasodoblé (extract) from Façade
Hayley Jenkins and Olivia Diamond – Edith Regina
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Valse (extract) from Façade
Robert Marchant (1916-1995) and Edith Sitwell – When Sir Beelzebub
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Popular Song (extract) from Façade
Interval
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Popular Song (extract) from Façade
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Valse from Façade
Noël Coward (1899-1973) – Poor Little Rich Girl from On With The Dance
Ned Rorem (1923-2022) and Edith Sitwell – The Youth With The Red-Gold Hair
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Swiss Jodelling Song from Façade
Dominique le Gendre (b. 1960) and Olivia Diamond (b. 1947) – Pavel…You…
Benjamin Britten (1913-1976) and Edith Sitwell – Canticle III, Op 55 – Still Falls The Rain
Leonard Bernstein (1918-1990) – America from West Side Story
Lloyd Moore (b. 1966) and Edith Sitwell – Bells Of Grey Crystal
Joseph Horovitz (1926-2022) and William Shakespeare (1564-1616) – Lady Macbeth (extract)
William Walton and Edith Sitwell – Scotch Rhapsody from Façade
Roxani Eleni Garefalaki: Director and movement director
Edith Sitwell (1887-1964): the back story
BORN into an aristocratic family in 1887, she shot to fame in the 1920s through her unique and inventive collaboration with composer William Walton on her poems Façade. She was a favourite subject for portraitists of the 1920s, including John Singer Sargent, Roger Fry, Wyndham Lewis and Pavel Tchelitchew and was immortalised in black and white by society photographer Cecil Beaton.
Together with her brothers, Osbert and Sacheverell, the Sitwell literary trio became trend setters in the 1920s and 1930s, considered by some to rival the Bloomsbury set.
Her address book read like a 20th-century Who’s Who. She knew poets and writers such as Siegfried Sassoon, Dylan Thomas, W B Yeats, T S Eliot, Aldous Huxley, D H Lawrence, Robert Graves and Virginia Woolf, along with Noël Coward, Alec Guinness and Marilyn Monroe.
Descended from Plantagenet royalty, she flaunted her unusual looks with her unique fashion sense. Her six-foot frame was encased in bohemian or medieval garb, complete with feathery hats and colourful turbans. Her hands, considered by her to be her best feature, were laden with enormous rings.
Her motto was: “Why not be oneself? That is the whole secret of a successful appearance. If one is a greyhound, why try to look like a Pekingese?”
Edith’s early poems developed from fantastical, whimsical experiments with rhythm, texture and sound during the Roaring Twenties, through to her more serious poetry of the 1940s, coloured by the Second World War and the dropping of the atomic bomb, in works such as Still Falls The Rain and The Shadow Of Cain.
In the latter part of her life, she wholeheartedly embraced a return to spiritual values, both in her poetry and by converting to Roman Catholicism. By the time she died in 1964 at the age of 77, she had been made a Dame, held five honorary literary degrees from Durham, Leeds, Oxford, Sheffield and Hull and was considered the high priestess of English poetry.
In 1962, not only was a memorial concert held for her at the Royal Festival Hall, London, attended by 3,000 people, but also she appeared on the ITV programme This Is Your Life. However, only a few years after her death, her reputation crashed. She had clashed with critics publicly for more than five decades (whom she dubbed the “pipsqueakery”) and was now no longer around to defend herself as she had done so colourfully during her life.
Last year marked the centenary of the premiere of Façade in 1923. This year marks the 60th anniversary of Edith Sitwell’s death.
Did you know?
WHEN Edith Sitwell recited her Façade poems through a megaphone at the private premiere in 1922, she did so from behind a curtain backdrop designed by English artist Frank Dobson. Art Sung are “immensely grateful to film director Tony Palmer for loaning us this curtain, which was entrusted to him by Edith Sitwell’s nephew, Francis Sitwell”.
A further three curtains were designed by different artists in Edith’s lifetime, of which the John Piper curtain, created in 1942, is now considered to be the iconic Façade curtain.
For Art Sung’s performance, video artist James Symonds continues this tradition of reinventing the background to Façade with his own digital version of a curtain. Symonds visually interprets Edith’s poetry by weaving in the experimental and abstract video work by photographer Etienne Gilfillan and creates a series of animated sketches to illustrate Edith’s reminiscences.
Graham Nash: Set spanning 60 years of songwriting. Picture: Ralf Louis
GRAHAM Nash will play York Barbican on October 5 2025 on the second night of his 11-date More Evenings Of Songs & Stories tour.
The Blackpool-born two-time Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and Grammy award winner will perform songs spanning his 60-year career, from The Hollies to Crosby, Stills and Nash, CSNY and his solo career.
Nash, 82, will be joined on stage by Todd Caldwell, keyboards and vocals, Adam Minkoff, bass, drums, guitars and vocals, and Zach Djanikian, guitars, mandolin, drums and vocals.
Nash’s set will be preceded by a performance from special guest and long-time friend Peter Asher.
Nash’s body of songwriting began with his contributions to The Hollies from 1964 to 1968, such as Stop Stop Stop and On A Carousel. The union of Crosby, Stills & Nash (and later & Young) yielded Marrakesh Express, Pre-Road Downs and Lady Of The Island, from the first Crosby, Stills & Nash album and Teach Your Children and Our House from CSNY’s Déjà Vu. His further contributions to CSN included Just A Song Before I Go and Wasted On The Way.
Nash’s career as a solo artist took flight in 1971, beginning with two landmark albums, Songs For Beginners and Wild Tales, featuring such favourites as Chicago/We Can Change The World and Military Madness. His latest album, Now, was released in May 2023.
Peter Asher’s 1964 debut single with Peter & Gordon was a cover of Lennon & McCartney’s A World Without Love. He moved in to record production in the late-1960s as head of A & R at The Beatles’ Apple Records and then at his own company, working for decades with James Taylor, Linda Ronstadt and others. His performance will share music and stories from those heady days to the present era.
Australian soprano Emilia Bertolini. Picture: David Caird
INTERNATIONAL young musicians will take centre stage in the York Early Music Christmas Festival from December 6 to 15.
The National Centre for Early Music (NCEM) continues to support exceptional young talent in the field of Early music by welcoming three ensembles from Europe under the NCEM Platform Artists spotlight.
Taking part will be Australian soprano Emilia Bertolini, winner of the 2024 Corneille Competition New Voices in Normandy, promoted by Le Poème Harmonique; Contre le Temps, a medieval vocal ensemble from France, supported by the EFFEA’s artist-in-residence Discovery programme, in partnership with AMUZ, and Intesa, a duo of Lucine Musaelian and Nathan Giorgetti, who met at the Royal Academy of Music.
Musaelian and Giorgetti will be staying on in York afterwards to work on Baroque Around The Books, a musical tour of York libraries in a short residency with Explore York. They formed the duo only last year and are already making their presence felt on the concert platform.
Contre le Temps: Medieval vocal ensemble from France
The NCEM has a hard-earned reputation for its support of emerging talent across Europe, running both the biennial International York Young Artists Competition and until recently they were a key partner within the Creative Europe EEEmerging programme.
Ensembles showcased by the NCEM over the past few years include Protean Quartet, Sollazzo Ensemble, winners of two Diapason d’Or de l’année awards, and BBC New Generation Artists Consone Quartet.
NCEM Delma Tomlin MBE says: “The York Early Music Christmas Festival is a firm favourite on the city’s calendar. This year I’m thrilled to welcome three ensembles to York who will no doubt be a fabulous addition to this year’s spectacular programme.
“The NCEM is dedicated to promoting the extraordinary array of talent from Europe’s vibrant Early Music scene and we are grateful to be able to continue to celebrate their music in York. We hope that this will be a regular feature in our festive programme in the years to come.”
York Early Music Christmas Festival director Delma Tomlin
The concerts from the NCEM Platform Artists will be led off by Love And Melancholy, featuring Emilia Bertolini, soprano, Sergio Bucheli, theorbo, and Lucy Chabard, harpsichord, in a musical journey into the complex world of human emotions at the NCEM on December 7.
Inspired by the haunting melodies of Henry Purcell and the French court tunes of the 17th century, this evocative 12 noon programme explores love in all its forms, from joyful ecstasy to poignant melancholy.
Contre le Temps, featuring singers Karin Weston, Cécile Walch, Julia Marty and Amy Farnell, present Ubi Sunt Mulieres at the NCEM on December 14 at 12 noon.
Women have inspired thinkers, poets and creators for thousands of years with tenderness and charm, beauty and dedication, fragility and sensuality, prompting this talented young vocal quartet to turn their gaze on to the Middle Ages, focusing on works by Guillaume Du Fay and Hildegard von Bingen, one of the most acclaimed women in music history.
Intesa’s Lucine Musaelian and Nathan Giorgetti
In the third concert, at Bedern Hall, Bedern, on December 15 at 11am, Intesa’s viol and voice duo of Lucine Musaelian and Nathan Giorgetti reflect on the theme of seeking light amid dark and wintry weather with music by Dowland, Hume and Caccini, alongside a selection of Armenian folk songs, in a programme entitled A Merry Conceit.
Spiritato, featuring University of York alumnus Nicolas Mendoza on harpsichord and organ, open the festival with Northern Light, their 6.30pm programme of Baroque works by Kirchoff, Thieme, Pachelbel and Bach on December 6 at the NCEM.
“This extraordinary jewel of baroque music comes from the Royal Court of Sweden, and the wealth of that court, with all the musicians and composers that flocked up there, and now these neglected pieces have been rediscovered and what glorious pieces they are,” says Delma.
Siglo de Oro will be joined by Spinacino Consort for Hey For Christmas! on December 7 at the NCEM for a 6.30pm celebration of carols, raucous ballads, beautiful folk sonhs and lively dances, as if “we arrived at your relatives’ London house in the mid-17th century for 12 days of revelry”.
Stile Antico: Performing This Joyful Birth: A musical journey through the Christian story at the National Centre for Early Music on December 12
The choral workshop led by Robert Hollingorth, founder/director of I Fagiolini, at Bedern Hall on December 8 from 10.15am to 4pm has sold out. Hollingworth will explore a soprano canon by Guerrero, darker-hued Gombert and music by Vivanco, Aleotti and Palestrina.
Solomon’s Knot, who perform everything learned off by heart, will perform Motets by Johann Sebastian and Johann Christoph Bach at the NCEM on December 8 at 6pm.
A new project brings together two Scottish musicians embedded in their own traditions: former BBC New Generation Artist Sean Shibe, who carries the torch for classical music on his guitar, and Aidan O’Rourke, the Lau fiddler deep rooted in Scottish folk culture. Together they present Luban at the NCEM on December 9.
Join them at 7.30pm to find out where they might meet midst Dowland, Johnson, O’Rourke and Cage as they share the language they find in the backstreets, byways and marginalia of ancient Scottish lute and fiddle manuscripts.
Green Matthews: Gaudete! concert at National Centre for Early Music
Green Matthews make a Christmas return to the NCEM with an expanded line-up for Gaudete!, featuring new arrangements of Chris Green and Sophie Matthews’s festive fare, embellished with Emily Baines on early woodwind and Richard Heacock on violin on December 11 at 7.30pm.
Their lush, rich and heart-warming music evokes the spirit of Christmas over 600 years from the Middle Ages to the 20th century in a riot of sound and colour.
Stile Antico take a journey through the Christian story to the manger in a glorious sequence of music from medieval and Renaissance Europe in This Joyful Birth at a sold-out NCEM on December 12.
The 7.30pm programme follows each scene of the Christmas story, beginning in Advent and moving through to the Nativity, the visits of the Shepherds and the Wise Men, and finally to the Feast of Candlemas. Highlights include Victoria’s O Magnum Mysterium, motets by Byrd, Lassus and Sheppard, medieval carols and dances from Spain and Germany.
Ensemble Augelletti: “How beautifully shines the morning star”
Ensemble Augelletti, BBC Radio 3’s New Generation Baroque Ensemble, return to York to present their new Christmas programme, The Morning Star, at the NCEM on December 13 at 7pm, with Olwen Foulkes on recorders, Ellen Bundy on violin, Toby Carr on lute and Benedict Williams on harpsichord.
On December 23 1784, a letter by York astronomer Edward Pigott, recounting his discovery of a new variable star, made York the centre of the astronomical world, prompting Ensemble Augelletti to celebrate extraordinary stories of 17th and 18th astronomers with music named after stars, angels and 17th-centyry sonatas. Works by Corelli, Schmelzer and Uccellini will feature alongside settings of How Beautifully Shines The Morning Star.
Festival regulars Yorkshire Bach Choir & Yorkshire Baroque focus on Bach’s Magnificat in D and two cantatas, Unser Mund Sei Voll Lachens and Gloria In Excelsis Deo, conducted by Peter Seymour at the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York, on December 14 at 7.30pm.
“With its exuberant choruses, colourful orchestration and beautiful solo writing, Bach’s Magnificat captures perfectly the divine joy of a pregnant Mary,” says Peter.
Spiritato: Opening York Early Music Christmas Festival on December 6 with their Northern Light programme
Jimmy Aldridge & Sid Goldsmith collaborate with Lady Maisery to close the festival with Awake Arise – A Christmas Show For Our Times at the NCEM on December 15. The 7.30pm programme “celebrates the riches of our varied winter traditions and reflects on the hope and resilience music and song that can bring joy to us all in the darkest season”.
“York Early Music Christmas Festival is the perfect choice for an atmospheric Yuletide evening away from the crowds, with this year’s festival featuring both Early and folk music performed by an array of talented artists,” says Delma.
“Most performances take place in the intimate surroundings of the National Centre for Early Music’s home, St Margaret’s Church, off Walmgate. Mince pies and mulled wine available at most concerts.”
York Early Music 210214 runs from December 6 to 15 at National Centre of Music (St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate), Bedern Hall and Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk. Full programme is available at ncem.co.uk.
