2014 Concerts
St John Passion
Saturday 29 March 2014
7.30 pm
The Apex, Charter Square, Bury St Edmunds
J S Bach St John Passion
Nicholas Mulroy Evangelist
Graeme Danby Jesus
Rachel Dyson soprano
Valerie Reid mezzo-soprano
Austin Gunn tenor
Tom Asher bass
Bury Bach Choir
Suffolk Baroque Players
Philip Reed conductor
This performance of Bach’s St John Passion comes during Lent, the period leading up to Easter.
It tells the story of an extraordinary week in Palestine – the Last Supper, Jesus’ trial before Pilate, and finally his crucifixion. Six vocal soloists, together with the choir and orchestra, dramatize these world-changing events with sensitivity, integrity and often, raw emotion. As the drama unfolds, prepare for rapid contrasts, for a verbal, spiritual, musical and indeed psychological roller coaster as we are dragged step by step towards the ultimate conclusion.
The soloists tonight are second to none, the orchestra pure baroque, and the choir will be at their best. This will be a performance to remember. Don’t miss it!
Ticket prices £21, £18.50 and £12 (all reserved)
The Glory of France
Saturday 7 June 2014
7.30 pm
St Edmundsbury Cathedral, Bury St Edmunds
Fauré Requiem
Cantique de Jean Racine
Duruflé Requiem
Poulenc Litanies à la Vierge Noire
Camilla Jeppeson soprano
Heather Jill Burns mezzo-soprano
Callum Thorpe baritone
Bury Bach Choir
Prometheus Orchestra
Philip Reed conductor
The major work in this concert of French music is the Requiem by Gabriel Fauré. Of the many settings of the Requiem, this is probably the most widely loved. This eloquent piece has a unique purity and directness of expression that make it a firm favourite with audiences. It has no sense of doom or angst but rather depicts the reaching for eternal happiness. Warm and comforting, this work is a rare gem in the French repertoire. Prepare to be profoundly moved by the intimacy and ethereal beauty of this humble and elegant masterpiece.
Written sixty years later in 1947, the Requiem by Maurice Duruflé fuses the unique language of plainsong with sensuous harmonies and tranquil melody, bringing us a work infused with timelessness and meditative spirituality. The central Pie Jesu is electrifying and as we reach In Paradisum the sense of peace and hope expressed throughout the piece comes to a truly breathtaking conclusion.
Two other short favourites of the French repertoire complete this concert. The music throughout is uplifting and profoundly satisfying and whether or not you know these pieces, we can guarantee a wonderful evening. Do come.
Ticket prices £20 and £16 reserved, £12 unreserved
Mozart Mass in C minor
Saturday 22 November 2014
7.30 pm
The Apex, Charter Square, Bury St Edmunds
Mozart Mass in C minor
Bach Cantata BWV56 (Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen)
Bruckner Three motets (Os Justi, Locus Iste, Christus factus est)
Sarah Fox soprano
Fae Evelyn soprano
Austin Gunn tenor
Tom Asher baritone
Bury Bach Choir
Prometheus Orchestra
Philip Reed conductor
Mozart’s Mass in C minor is the most grandiose and dramatic of his choral works. It is also the most demanding. He composed it initially as a ‘half mass’ in accordance with the liturgical practice of the day, as a wedding present to impress his wife Constanze, who sang one of the solo soprano parts at its first performance. He also left sketches and material suitable for the remainder of the full mass. This evening we are performing Philip Wilby’s reconstruction of the full work. Though Mozart is the most frequently performed classical composer in the world, in this one composition we experience a different Mozart, a supreme composer at his most mature. Breathtaking in its beauty, passion and drama, it explores the deepest levels of human feeling. The listener is unfailingly swept up in the music’s steady progression from tragedy through celebration to ever-increasing exaltation.
The concert opens with three of Bruckner’s motets which variously, through his innovative use of plainsong and blocks of contrasting sounds, build unexpected harmonic tensions that drive the music to exciting and memorable climaxes. This is followed by Bach’s cantata Ich will den Kreuzstab gerne tragen, a joyful piece which invokes an image of life as a sea voyage, with heaven as the final destination.
Tickets £23, £19.50 and £14 (all seats reserved)
Booking opens 8 September 2014
Early booking discount £1 off all tickets booked by 25 October 2014
A Christmas Celebration
Saturday 20 December 2014
7.30 pm
Holy Trinity Church, Long Melford
Jill Burrows reader
James Recknell piano / organ
Bury Bach Choir
Philip Reed conductor
Get Christmas off to a joyful start by joining us for a feast of Christmas music in the beautiful parish church at Long Melford. Lit by candlelight, this concert is always a highlight of the Christmas season! We will be singing a variety of seasonal music, mixing the familiar with some less known pieces, and including both new works and a series of Christmas readings.
Bring the family and join in with your favourite carols before enjoying mince pies and mulled wine.
Ticket includes refreshments.
Tickets £12 (all unreserved), under 21s free
Booking opens 8 September 2014
Early booking discount £1 off all tickets booked by 22 November 2013
Tickets also available for cash from 24 November from
Landers Bookshop, Hall Street, Long Melford
Elizabeth Gash Knitwear, The Market Place, Lavenham
Bury St Edmunds Bach Society, registered Charitable Incorporated Organisation in England and Wales, no. 1181842.
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