Other Choirs, Singers, Musicians that you like

[Luckdragon]

The above really does demonstrates just how many high quality choirs are in the UK, when you can put three together just for some small Royal Chapels! But again I suppose the prestige of singing for them attracts the talent.

Unfortunately, none with a regular stream that I can find. Christ Church looks fairly frequent but they trade off with the girls.

[Celt]

Unfortunately, none with a regular stream that I can find. Christ Church looks fairly frequent but they trade off with the girls.

Yeah, they share services with the Frideswide voices. Slightly late with this... but if we have any Swedes in... Christ Church Cathedral Choir, Oxford are on tour in Sweden starting today.

https://www.chch.ox.ac.uk/events/develo ... weden-trip

It looks like they will sing a concert Today! in Stockholm and on the 25th in Uppsala. With mass on the 26th alongside Uppsala domkyrkas gosskör. (Who I
heard in 2018 in the Swedish Church in London - excellent sound and one memorable soloist)

If you are over in Stockholm or Uppsala I can recommend going to hear them. Their regular Xmas concerts in SJSS have become a staple highlight of my xmas choral calendar! Steven Grahl is an excellent director.

[Celtic]

I also made it to the Choir of Westminster Abbey's St John Passion last night. It was a bit of a last minute purchase, which meant taking one of the unreserved aisle seats. I managed to get a seat just forward of the soloists, so I could hear them properly, but with direct line of sight/sound to about 1/2 of the choir. I've sat further up before, but then the soloists are singing away from you which is no good for a piece were most of it is recitatives or arias. But pretty much anywhere you sit in the aisle you are going to have a massive pillar blocking some part of the view!

Now, as much as I love CVMS, who sang the St John Passion excellently 3 weeks ago, the Choir of Westminster Abbey were once again a step above, with an absolutely wonderful sound and fantastic soloists. (including two treble arias and a third treble as Ancilla)

As if James O'Donnell leaving wasn't bad enough, the three fantastic soloists have all left the choir this summer. James, second from right, in particular was a fantastic singer and had solos in pretty much every major televised concert or service in the last year. Still clearly in his prime as a treble soloist too. I really hope he finds opportunities to sing some more.

[Luckdragon]

Retiring choristers are usually honored at their last performance in a ceremony called a Valedictory. Westminster Abbey didn't post one, but here are a few who did:

Christ Church Cathedral, Oxford:

► Show Spoiler

Escolania de Montserrat:

► Show Spoiler

St. Thomas 5th Avenue (the boys in black have become altar servers because their voices changed before graduation):

► Show Spoiler

[j8000]

As if James O'Donnell leaving wasn't bad enough, the three fantastic soloists have all left the choir this summer. James, second from right, in particular was a fantastic singer and had solos in pretty much every major televised concert or service in the last year. Still clearly in his prime as a treble soloist too. I really hope he finds opportunities to sing some more.

They were great, but he always seems to magic new soloists out of nowhere when the existing ones leave. It's perhaps the most challenging treble soloist role in the country, to step up on a podium alone in their concerts and sing a Handel/Bach aria to a packed abbey, as well as their occasional live broadcasts.

[j8000]

Is anyone going to the King's College Cambridge concert in London tonight? It doesn't seem to have been publicised much which is annoying as I'd definitely have gone if I hadn't only found out about it yesterday.

[Yorkie]

I was poking around on Youtube and found this recording by David Hill.



I thought it might be of interest because his grandson is of course Joseph Hill, current Libera soloist.

[Surpinto]

Thanks! Nice voice.

As I said before, it's sort of incredible that of ALL the choirs in the London area Joseph's family chose Libera for him to sing in. These are people in the know, as it were, and this speaks highly of Libera and their musical training.

[Celtic]

Over the advent period, I managed fourteen concerts/musical services (missed one due to illness) and saw four YCOTY finalists, Cormac (2021 finalist), Luca, Sam Brophy and Alice Platten and heard some quite stunning performances. Standout performances for me were Cormac singing Deep Peace at the Royal Albert Hall, DW singing O Little Town of Bethlehem in a freezing church in Kensington, James Tweedie (former Wabbey) singing O Holy Night at a charity concert in Chelsea, and of course Freddie singing Ave Verum Corpus at SJSS. Freddie definitely takes the title of standout live solo performance of 2022 for me, and that despite some very stiff competition!

In other news, after taking a break from LDF for the last couple of weeks, I have decided to extend the break for a bit longer. It's the bleak midwinter now, so there's nothing to post about anyway!

Have a Merry New Year...

[Luckdragon]

Over the advent period, I managed fourteen concerts/musical services (missed one due to illness) and saw four YCOTY finalists, Cormac (2021 finalist), Luca, Sam Brophy and Alice Platten and heard some quite stunning performances. Standout performances for me were Cormac singing Deep Peace at the Royal Albert Hall, DW singing O Little Town of Bethlehem in a freezing church in Kensington, James Tweedie (former Wabbey) singing O Holy Night at a charity concert in Chelsea, and of course Freddie singing Ave Verum Corpus at SJSS. Freddie definitely takes the title of standout live solo performance of 2022 for me, and that despite some very stiff competition!

In other news, after taking a break from LDF for the last couple of weeks, I have decided to extend the break for a bit longer. It's the bleak midwinter now, so there's nothing to post about anyway!

Have a Merry New Year...

Thanks for checking in. Did you happen to catch YCOTY finalist Sam Brophy singing with the London Forest Choir on the 22nd?

BTW, Sam has started a YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@sambrophymusic4546.

[Celtic]

Did you happen to catch YCOTY finalist Sam Brophy singing with the London Forest Choir on the 22nd?

BTW, Sam has started a YouTube channel at https://www.youtube.com/@sambrophymusic4546.

Yes, he sang the Once in Royal David's City solo, "That Yonge Childe" and "Balulalow" and the last verse of "In Freezing Winter Night" from Britten's Ceremony of Carols, Walking in the Air and Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas. Really fantastic.

He posted a new one yesterday to his YT which I really like:

[Luckdragon]

[Yorkie]

@surpinto recognises that colour of cassock?

[Luckdragon]

@surpinto recognises that colour of cassock?

To us, they're red. To Surpinto, they're probably crimson with a dash of scarlet (or something like that).

[Surpinto]

@surpinto recognises that colour of cassock?

To us, they're red. To Surpinto, they're probably crimson with a dash of scarlet (or something like that).

Point taken from Yorkie though about the red (crimson, scarlet, whatever ) color. But I do like that piece, as I do most compositions by William Byrd!