2017 Concerts

Four Coronations and a Funeral

Saturday 4 March 2017

7.30pm

(concert ends 9.15pm approximately)

The Apex, Charter Square, Bury St Edmunds

Handel   Zadok the Priest

Handel   Let Thy Hand Be Strenghtened

Handel   The King Shall Rejoice

Handel   My Heart is Inditing

Purcell   Funeral Music for Queen Mary

Handel   Organ Concerto Op. 4 No. 6

James Recknell organ

Prometheus Orchestra

Bury Bach Choir

Philip Reed conductor

Less than a year after being naturalized British by the dying King George l, George Frideric Handel was commissioned to compose four anthems for the coronation of his successor King George ll and Queen Caroline on 11 October 1727. He elected to write all four anthems in a particularly bold and extrovert style, suitable for the grandness and importance of the occasion, and for the scale of the venue, Westminster Abbey. 

These four anthems were instantly popular and have remained so with concert audiences to this day. They are still frequently performed at Royal occasions and indeed Zadok the Priest has been performed at every coronation since 1727. Their festive pomp and glittering fanfares never fail to put a tingle down the spine. At this concert, unusually, you will be able to enjoy all four in one evening, in the beautiful acoustic of the Apex. This will be quite special for all choral enthusiasts, and will also be a wonderful introduction to classical choral music for those of any age who are unfamiliar with the excitement of a live classical concert. 

Purcell’s anthems for the ceremonial funeral of Queen Mary in Westminster Abbey in 1695 are among the composer’s finest vocal music. Together with the associated sombre processional music, Purcell manages to convey the profound sense of loss of a favourite monarch.

Booking opens 5 September 2016

Tickets £23, £19.50 and £14 (all seats reserved)

Early booking discount £1 off all tickets booked by 4 February 2017

Mendelssohn Elijah

Saturday 20 May 2017

7.30pm

St Edmundsbury Cathedral, Bury St Edmunds

Mendelssohn   Elijah

Fae Evelyn soprano

Valerie Reid mezzo-soprano

Michael Bracegirdle tenor

Tom Asher bass

Bury Bach Choir

Nayland Choir

Prometheus Orchestra

Philip Reed conductor

The prodigiously gifted Felix Mendelssohn first conceived of writing the oratorio Elijah in 1836, but it was not until ten years later that a commission from the Birmingham Festival gave him the opportunity to do so. Having determined that the work should present the characters as real people, he was unable to find a suitable librettist, and decided to write most of the libretto himself. The completed work was first performed on 26 August 1846 in Birmingham Town Hall to a packed audience of two thousand, and was an instant success. For many years Elijah was second only in popularity to Handel’s Messiah, but sadly Mendelssohn was to die only a year after its first performance.

Elijah, with its dramatic, almost operatic, style marks a significant step forward from the earlier choral masterpieces of Bach and Handel. From its imaginative and energetic orchestration, to the beauty of so many of the arias and choruses, to the dramatic portrayal of Elijah himself, this work deserves its place as one of the great choral masterpieces. We are delighted to be bringing it to Bury St Edmunds after an absence of many years. Please come and enjoy, with us, this wonderful music.

Bury Bach Choir is joined for this performance by members of Nayland Choir. This concert forms part of the 2017 Bury St Edmunds Festival.

Booking opens 27 February 2017

Tickets £25 and £20 (reserved), £15 (unreserved)

Early booking discount £2 off all tickets booked by 22 April 2017

Sing for Samaritans

Saturday 21 October 2017

7.30pm

(concert ends 9.10pm approximately)

St Mary's Church, Honey Hill, Bury St Edmunds

A charity concert for Samaritans

Fauré Requiem

and music by Bruckner, Lauridsen, Mozart and Tavener

Fae Evelyn soprano

Tom Asher baritone

James Recknell organ

Bury Bach Choir

Philip Reed conductor

For this special charity concert in aid of Samaritans, the Bury Bach Choir performs Fauré’s ever-popular Requiem. The consoling quality of this music, which depicts the reaching for eternal rest, has made it one of the best-loved choral works of the repertory. Prepare to be profoundly moved by the intimacy and ethereal beauty of this humble yet elegant masterpiece. Soloists Fae Evelyn and Tom Asher join us for this performance.

The programme also includes several of the choir’s favourite short pieces, including Mozart’s Ave verum corpus, motets by Bruckner, and John Tavener’s The Lamb and Song for Athene; the latter gained worldwide popularity when it was sung at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales in 1997. 

All the profits from this concert will go to Samaritans. There are no early booking or Friends discounts for this concert.

Booking opens 30 May 2017

Tickets £15 each

Bach Christmas Oratorio

Saturday 16 December 2017

7.00pm

(1st half 55 minutes, interval 20 minutes, 2nd half 50 minutes, concert ends at 9.15pm; please note earlier than usual start time)

The Church of St Peter and St Paul, Lavenham

Bach  Christmas Oratorio

Fae Evelyn soprano

Valerie Reid mezzo-soprano

William Wallace tenor

Tom Asher baritone

Bury Bach Choir

Suffolk Baroque Players

Philip Reed conductor

Bach and Christmas were made for each other. In a stream of festive choruses, chorales and arias, with some of the loveliest orchestral colours to be found in all Baroque music, Bach’s glorious oratorio is a life-giving, joy-enhancing experience – the perfect way to start your Christmas celebrations.

Bach composed the six parts of his Christmas Oratorio for performance as part of the Lutheran liturgy during the Christmas period 1734–5, beginning on Christmas Day and ending on the Feast of the Epiphany (6 January). We shall perform four parts: Parts 1-3, which describe Jesus’s birth, the announcement of his birth to the shepherds, and the shepherds’ adoration in the stable; and Part 6, which relates the story of Herod’s questioning of the Magi and the Holy Family’s flight to Egypt.

For this performance in the atmospheric surroundings of Lavenham Church, we are joined by the period instruments of the Suffolk Baroque Players and a stellar quartet of soloists, including international mezzo-soprano and Bury Bach Choir co-president Valerie Reid.

Drinks will be available during the interval.

Booking opens 4 September 2017

Tickets £20 and £15 (all seats unreserved)

Early booking discount £1 off all tickets booked by 18 November 2017

Tickets also available for cash from

Lavenham Tourist Office, Lady Street, Lavenham and

Lion House Gallery, High Street, Lavenham