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Grand Hall,
Dorking Halls
Vivace
Chorus
The Dream of Gerontius
Sir Edward Elgar
1857 -1934
P
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et QbR Nl )
e
Gerontius
Rhys Batt
Tenor
The Priest / Angel of the Agony
Thomas NieBer
Baritone
The Angel
Rebekah Jones
Mezzo-soprano
Vivace Chorus
Epsom Chamber Choir
West Forest Sinfonia
Conductor: Jeremy Backhouse
Edward Elgar: The Dream of Gerontius
Elgar's great musical drama The Dream
of Gerontius was first performed at the
Birmingham Triennial Festival of 1900,
and just over seven weeks later, on a
bright November day, the composer
received
Music
an
in
honorary
the
Senate
His
wife
Cambridge.
described
Elgar's
scene
eighty-year-old
Greening,
Photo: May Grafton
the
the
Doctorate
of
House
at
Alice
lovingly
in
letter
a
mother,
daughter
to
Ann
of
a
Herefordshire farm labourer:
'l wish you could have seen E. he looked so perfectly
beautiful, really it is the only word, in his robes with a strong
light on his face."
Alice's words, with their moving echoes of the atmosphere and
even the imagery of some radiant moments in Gerontius, are a
reminder of the importance to Elgar of his family, with its
humble social origins, but also of the extraordinary lifetime
journey that he made from his father's music shop and piano
supply-and-repair
culminated
in
Broadheath,
business
in
Worcester.
his final eminence as
Baronet,
OM,
KCVO,
That
journey
Sir Edward
Elgar of
with
an
international
reputation and a secure position at home as one of the most
popular composers of the age. For Elgar, his down-to-earth
provincial
roots
and
his
eventual
world-wide
cultural
recognition became the two poles that anchored his creative
life.
The Birmingham Festival was much more than a 'provincial'
affair. performers, critics and composers came from Europe
2
Vivace Chorus
Three Hundred Years
of Composer Instruments
The heart of the Cobbe Collection at Hatchlands is formed of instruments
that were chosen by composers themselves. Owned or played by Purcell,
Johann Christian Bach, Mozart Haydn, Beethoven, Cramer, Chopin, Liszt,
No. 10613338)
Grand piano by Conrad Graf, Vienna, 1%19-20
A very rare model with quadruple-stringing, like the Graf owned
by Beethoven that survives in the Beethoven-Haus, Bonn
treatment of the death and journey into eternity of a ‘dearly
ransomed Soul, Elgar was determined to animate the story in
music securely grounded in the world of everyday reality:
‘I imagined Gerontius to be a man like us and not a Priest
or a Saint but a sinner, no end of a worldly man in his life, &
now brought to book. Therefore I've not filled his part with
Church tunes & rubbish but good, full-blooded romantic,
remembered worldliness.”
It is Elgar's own 'worldliness’, that of a touchy, great-hearted,
passionate, subtle and complex man, that gives Gerontius its
extraordinary directnhess and power.
Elgar's inscriptions on the sounding-board of his piano.
Elgar was
fascinated
by
gadgets,
experiments
and
new
technologies - he is said to have made more recordings than
any other composer of his time. He delighted in the materials
and the tools of craftsmanship, whether constructing a mighty
musical score or tackling a domestic task that needed skill,
precision
and
patience.
In
August
1901,
perhaps
after
completing the Pomp and Circumstance Marches 1 and 2 on
6
Vivace Chorus
the Hatchlands Broadwood, he repaired it with the help of his
eleven-year-old daughter Carice, as carefully as his father's
firm had once repaired it for Mrs Skelton in 1867. Father and
daughter left an inscription written on the sounding-board, in
its
way
even
more
touching
than
the
list
of
his works
composed on that piano that Elgar wrote there. It reads
Carice and Edward Elgar pianoforte repairers & Co, Augt. 1901
An affectionate joke? Maybe, but surely also a sign of this great
man's steady commitment to skill and authenticity, and his
readiness to be judged on his work. As he wrote of Gerontius,
‘I've seen in thought the soul go up & have written my own
heart's blood into the score”, and again, even more famously,
quoting John Ruskin at the end of the manuscript score:
“This is the best of me; for the rest, | ate, and drank,
and slept, loved and hated, like another: my life was as
the vapour and is not; but this | saw and knew; this if
anything of mine, is worth your memory."
“An act of courage”
Setting the text of Newman's The Dream of Gerontius was for
the Roman Catholic Elgar "an act of courage,”" Diana McVeagh
argues in her book Elgar the Music Maker; “almost defiance: a
personal identification.” The poem's account of the emotional
and spiritual struggles endured by a dying man, then of his
journey under the care of his Guardian Angel into God's Court
of
Judgement,
ending
with
his
gentle
consignment
to
Purgatory, is specifically Catholic at every point, from the pleas
for Jesus and Mary to intercede for his soul, the essential role
of the Priest at the deathbed, the prayers of the Universal
(Catholic) Church, the invocation of St. Francis of Assisi and his
stigmata,
to
the
doctrine
of
purification
necessary prelude to his acceptance in
issues
hampered
Vivace Chorus
the work's
acceptance
in
Purgatory,
Heaven.
-
at
a
Doctrinal
Gloucester
7
Cathedral its performance was forbidden by the Dean at three
consecutive Three Choirs Festivals. Elgar's comment in a letter
to August Jaeger reveals pain as well as anger: “.. them as don't
like it can be damned in their own way"; but when his creative
energies were once engaged, nothing so trivial as a fear of
clerical disapproval would deter this dedicated craftsman from
the work he had undertaken.
A powerful stimulus to Elgar's radical imagination was the form
of
Newman's
text.
Dora
Penny,
Elgar's
friend
and
the
'Dorabella’ of the Enigma Variations, pointed out that Elgar was
careful not to call Gerontius an oratorio:
“The principal characteristic of oratorios is that they are
episodic, and normally have words taken from Holy
Scripture. Gerontius has continuous dramatic unity, and this
places it, as Elgar was well aware, in a different category.”
The drama
is acted
out with
thrilling
immediacy by four
characters, all built on an epic scale yet able to modulate into
passages of touching intimacy, and a chorus who take a wide
variety of dynamic and contrasting roles. This dramatic rather
than narrative structure gives Gerontius an emotional impact
and drive that can be overwhelming, and has been compared
to the effect of Wagner's great music dramas, all of which Elgar
and Alice
had
seen
performed
in
Bayreuth,
Leipzig
and
Munich, and which affected him profoundly.
Part |
The extended prelude explores Gerontius's state of mind as he
slumbers fitfully on his deathbed. By turns solemn, turbulent,
confident and yearning, the melodic motifs reveal his fear of
God's judgement,
his longing for forgiveness in the great
Miserere (Have mercy) theme, his unquiet sleep and the 'beat of
time' as he nears death. The texture clarifies as he awakes, and
the tenor's first solo begins, operatic in scale and in its subtle
8
Vivace Chorus
psychological drama.
Jesu, Maria - | am near to death: Gerontius's vocal line veers
between
confidence
and
fear,
the
orchestra
not
just
‘accompanying' but developing his feelings of abandonment
and passionate longing for rest.
When he senses that Death,
represented as a terrifyingly real figure with its 'dire summons,,
is coming for him, the music becomes agitated and desperate,
and the semi-chorus begins a tender, dignified Kyrie eleison
(Lord, have mercy) which is developed with fugal entries of the
full chorus, who play the parts of Gerontius's friends, the
world-wide
company
of
Christian
believers
and
the
Communion of Saints, all of them Assistants or 'witnesses' to
his struggle. Their prayers support him as he wills himself to a
ringing
statement
of his
faith,
Firmly | believe and truly,
followed by the heart-rending moment when his strength fails
at I can no more. The score fills with terror and the chorus
intensify their efforts, first begging desperately for help, then
chanting an ancient litany of supplication before the novissima
hora, Gerontius's final hour, comes in
a moment of eloquent
silence.
The Priest’s Proficiscere (Go forth) is a dramatic coup, theatrical
and thrilling.
His broad
phrases follow in a
tradition of bass-voice priests, speaking
power
and
the
compelling
launches a superb Elgarian
authority
long
operatic
here with Verdian
of the
Church.
He
march, with a kind of sacred
swagger, as Gerontius's soul sets out on its journey to the
ultimate land of hope and glory. Part | ends, however, in a new,
gentler sound-world, marked by heavenly harps and massed
human voices consigning him to the Holy Mount of Sion, the
heavenly Jerusalem.
Programme notes © Jon Long 2021
Flash photography, audio and video recording are not permitted without
the prior written consent of the Vivace Chorus. Please also kindly switch
off all mobile phones and alarms on digital watches. Thank you.
Vivace Chorus
9
The Dream of Gerontius
Text by John Henry Newman
Part I
Gerontius
Jesu, Maria — I am near to death,
And Thou art calling me; I know it now,
Not by the token of this faltering breath,
This chill at heart, this dampness on my brow —
(Jesu, have mercy! Mary, pray for me)
"Tis this new feeling, never felt before,
(Be with me, Lord, in my extremity!)
That I am going, that I am no more.
"Tlis this strange innermost abandonment,
(Lover of souls! great God! I look to Thee.)
This emptying out of each constituent
And natural force, by which I come to be.
Pray for me, O my friends: a visitant
is knocking his dire summons at my door,
The like of whom, to scare me and to daunt
Has never, never come to me before;
So pray for me, my friends, who have not strength to pray.
Asstistants
Kyrie eleison.
Holy Mary, pray for him.
All holy Angels, pray for him.
Choirs of the righteous, pray for him.
All Apostles, all Evangelists, pray for him,
All holy Disciples of the Lord, pray for him.
All holy Innocents, pray for him.
All holy Martyrs, all holy Confessors,
All holy Hermits, all holy virgins,
All ye Saints of God, pray for him.
10
Vivace Chorus
Gerontius
Rouse thee, my fainting soul, and play the man;
and through such waning span
Of life and thought as still has to be trod,
Prepare to meet thy God.
And while the storm of that bewilderment
Is for a season spent
And, ere afresh the ruin on me fall,
Use well the interval.
Assistants
Be merciful, be gracious; spare him, Lord,
Be merciful, be gracious; Lord, deliver him.
From the sins that are past;
From Thy frown and Thine ire;
From the perils of dying;
From any complying
With sin, or denying
His God or relying
On self, at the Last;
From the nethermost fire;
From all that is evil;
From power of the devil;
Thy servant deliver,
For once and for ever.
By Thy birth, and by Thy Cross
Rescue him from endless loss;
By Thy death and burial,
Save him from a final fall;
By Thy rising from the tomb,
By Thy mounting up above,
By the Spirit’s gracious love
Save him in the day of doom.
Vivace Chorus
11
Gerontius
Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus,
De profundis oro te,
Miserere, Judex meus,
Parce mihi, Domine.
Firmly I believe and truly
God is Three, and God is One;
And I next acknowledge duly
Manhood taken by the Son.
And I trust and hope most fully
In that Manhood crucified;
And each thought and deed unruly
Do to death, as He has died.
Simply to His Grace and wholly
Light and life and strength belong.
And I love, supremely, solely,
Him the holy, Him the strong.
Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus,
De profundis oro te,
Miserere, Judex meus,
Parce mihi, Domine.
And T hold in veneration,
For the love of Him alone,
Holy Church, as His creation,
And her teachings, as His own.
And T take with joy whatever
Now besets me, pain or fear,
And with a strong will I sever
All the ties which bind me here.
Adoration aye be given,
With and through the angelic host,
To the God of earth and heaven,
Father, Son and Holy Ghost.
Sanctus fortis, Sanctus Deus,
Vivace Chorus
De profundis oro te,
Miserere, Judex meus,
Mortis in discrimine.
I can no more; for now it comes again,
That sense of ruin, which is worse than pain,
That masterful negation and collapse
Of all that makes me man.
And, crueller still,
A fierce and restless fright begins to fill
The mansion of my soul. And, worse and worse,
Some bodily form of ill
Floats on the wind, with many a loathsome curse
Tainting the hallowed air, and laughs, and flaps
its hideous wings,
And makes me wild with horror and dismay.
O Jesu, help! pray for me, Mary, pray!
Some Angel, Jesu! such as came to Thee
In Thine own agony ...
Mary, pray for me. Joseph, pray for me.
Mary, pray for me.
Assistants
Rescue him, O Lord, in this his evil hour,
As of old so many by Thy gracious power: —
Noe from the waters in a saving home; (Amen).
Job from all his multiform and fell distress; (Amen).
Moses from the land of bondage and despair; (Amen).
David from Golia and the wrath of Saul; (Amen).
... 90, to show Thy power,
Rescue this Thy servant in his evil hour.
Gerontius
Novissima hora est; and I fain would sleep,
The pain has wearied me... Into Thy hands,
O Lord, Into Thy hands.
Vivace Chorus
13
Priest and Assistants
Proficiscere, anima Christiana, de hoc mundo!
Go forth upon thy journey, Christian soul!
Go from this world! Go, in the Name of God,
The Omnipotent Father, Who created thee!
Go, in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord,
Son of the living God, Who bled for thee!
Go, in the Name of the Holy Spirit, who
Hath been poured out on thee! Go in the name
Of Angels and Archangels; in the name
Of Thrones and Dominations; in the name
Of Princedoms and of Powers; and in the name
Of Cherubim and Seraphim, go forth!
Go, in the name of Patriarchs and Prophets;
And of Apostles and Evangelists;
Of Martyrs and Confessors; in the name
Of holy Monks and Hermits; in the name
Of holy Virgins; and all Saints of God,
Both men and women, go! Go on thy course;
And may thy place today be found in peace,
And may thy dwelling be the Holy Mount
Of Sion: through the Same, through Christ
Our Lord.
Interval
(20 minutes)
Vivace Chorus
JoN Di
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Part Il
Part Il begins with what ‘Dorabella’ called “that strangely aloof,
ethereal music’, which tenderly evokes the eternal world in
which Gerontius (now called 'Soul’ because he has left behind
his physical life) continues his journey. The lightly dancing %4
rhythm of the strings gives a sense of freedom that combines
the circling of eternity with a sense of buoyant movement
onward. He is actually being carried along by his Guardian
Angel (sung by a mezzo-soprano but referred to as "‘my Lord"
in this unrestricted, ungendered dimension), who protected
him in his mortal life and is now his Dantean guide to Paradise.
The Angel's
beautiful Alleluia
phrase
is
hinted
at
in
the
orchestra, then quoted in full just before he/she begins to
sing, though not yet with its glorious leap from A to high E,
heard later. It is as if the two eternals float together on the
music itself. Their dialogue *has a touch of courtesy that
resolves eventually into a duet’ (Diana
delightedly
between
recitative
and
McVeagh),
arioso
moving
until they
sing
together. This purposefully lyrical episode helps Elgar through
some
slightly
knotty
theological
doctrines
that
Newman
included and that the composer decided to keep in after
discussions with authorities at the Birmingham Oratory.
In
another
dramatic
coup,
the
sudden
entrance
of
the
Demons who fly around outside God's Court of Judgement,
hoping for a last chance to seize lost souls and carry them off
to Hell, is both threatening and ridiculous, the music here a
brilliant
passage
paradoxically
of
created
grotesque,
in
a
highly
chaotic
energy,
yet
ordered
structure,
an
elaborate double fugue. Dramatically they make an exciting
contrast with the sweetness and light of the holy dialogue, and
Elgar achieves an almost cinematic effect as the Soul and the
Angel fly on, leaving the Demons to fade into the distance, still
16
Vivace Chorus
lamenting that they were “chuck'd down" from Heaven when
they rebelled against God, and their thrones given to the loyal
Angels and appropriately qualified psalm droners and canting
groaners - better known to God as redeemed Christian souls.
Elgar responds wittily to the mischievous vitality of Newman's
text.
After a grave passage in which the Angel explains that the
sight of God will be agonising as well as joyful (illustrating this
with the story of St. Francis receiving the stigmata of Christ),
come the first steps towards the great Blaze, as Elgar called it:
his complex setting of Praise to the Holiest in the Height. He
was especially irritated by the many "asses” who asked him if
he was going to use the familiar 'Hymns Ancient and Modern'
tune by John Bacchus Dykes, a question which brought out a
briskly ‘demonic’ aspect of his own character and is surely
blown away by this magnificent episode. The vast ensemble is
initiated
by
the
semi-chorus,
now
singing
as
Angelicals,
essentially child-angels. As the full chorus joins them the vocal
lines of Gerontius and the Angel are heard as if passing
through
the
throngs
of
immortals,
again
a
sensationally
dramatic, even cinematic effect as the score builds to the great
triple forte-plus repeat of the first line and the superb fugue
O loving wisdom of our God.
The final movement of the great work is also shaped by
contrasts: the mighty Blaze is followed by a return to the
sombre mood of the prelude, and the Angel of the Agony's
stark phrases, weighted by brass and woodwind, create an
extraordinary effect of painful interiority combined with urgent
declamation. Sung by the bass, they seem to counterbalance
the human confidence of the Priest earlier with the awe-struck
veneration and humility of one who has seen God directly. The
vision of God that follows, after a climactic series of triple forte
chords, is communicated to the listener, Elgar insisted, not
Vivace Chorus
17
directly, but in the tenor's harrowing vocal line at Take me
away. This moment of stupendous emotional power then
moves on into a wonderfully consoling final section: Gerontius
sinks willingly into a new sleep; the Angel, with gloriously rich
and eloquent phrases in the mezzo-soprano's lower register,
says a loving Farewell to Gerontius, promising to wake him “on
the morrow” from the cleansing waters; and the chorus, now
singing as Souls in Purgatory as well as Angels, look forward
with touching confidence to the fulfilment of God's loving
purposes for mankind.
Programme notes © Jon Long 2021
Part 11
Soul of Gerontius
I went to sleep; and now I am refreshed.
A strange refreshment: for I feel in me
An inexpressive lightness, and a sense
Of freedom, as I were at length myself,
And ne’er had been before. How still it is!
I hear no more the busy beat of time,
No, nor my fluttering breath, nor struggling pulse;
Nor does one moment differ from the next.
This silence pours a solitariness
Into the very essence of my soul;
And the deep rest, so soothing and so sweet,
Hath something too of sternness and of pain.
Another marvel: Someone has me fast
Within his ample palm; ...
... A uniform
And gentle pressure tells me I am not
Self-moving, but borne forward on my way.
And hark! I hear a singing; yet in sooth
18
Vivace Chorus
I cannot of that music rightly say
Whether I hear or touch or taste the tones.
Oh, what a heart-subduing melody!
Angel
My work is done, My task is o’er,
And so I come, Taking it home,
For the crown is won,
Alleluia, For evermore.
My Father gave In charge to me
This child of earth E’en from its birth,
To serve and save,Alleluia,
And saved is he.
This child of clay To me was given,
To rear and train By sorrow and pain
In the narrow way,
Alleluia, From earth to heaven.
Soul
It is a member of that family
Of wondrous beings, who, ere the world were made,
Millions of ages back, have stood around
The throne of God.
I will address him. Mighty One, my Lord,
My Guardian Spirit, all hail!
Angel
All hail, my child!
My child and brother, hail! what wouldest thou?
Soul
I would have nothing but to speak with thee
For speaking’s sake. I wish to hold with thee
Conscious communion; though I fain would know
A maze of things, were it but meet to ask,
And not a curiousness.
Vivace Chorus
19
Angel
You cannot now
Cherish a wish which ought not to be wished.
Soul
Then I will speak. I ever had believed
That on the moment when the struggling soul
Quitted its mortal case, forthwith it fell
Under the awful Presence of its God,
There to be judged and sent to its own place.
What lets me now from going to my Lord?
Angel
Thou art not let but with extremest speed
Art hurrying to the Just and Holy Judge.
Soul
Dear Angel, say,
Why have I now no fear of meeting Him?
Along my earthly life, the thought of death
And judgement was to me most terrible.
Angel
It is because
Then thou didst fear, that now thou dost not fear.
Thou hast forestalled the agony, and so
For thee the bitterness of death is past.
Also, because already in thy soul
The judgement is begun.
A presage falls upon thee, as a ray
Straight from the Judge, expressive of thy lot.
That calm and joy uprising in thy soul
Is first-fruit to thee of thy recompense,
And heaven begun.
Vivace Chorus
Soul
Now that the hour is come, my fear is fled;
And at this balance of my destiny,
Now close upon me, I can forward look
With a serenest joy.
But hark! upon my sense
Comes a fierce hubbub, which would make me fear,
Could I be frighted.
Angel
We are now arrived
Close on the judgement-court; that sullen howl
Is from the demons who assemble there.
Hungry and wild to claim their property,
And gather souls for hell. Hist to their cry!
Soul
How sour and how uncouth a dissonance!
Demons
Low-born clods
Of brute earth, They aspire
To become gods,
By a new birth,
And an extra grace,
And a score of merits.
As if aught
Could stand in place
Of the high thought,
And the glance of fire
Of the great spirits,
The powers blest,
The lords by right,
The primal owners,
Of the proud dwelling
Vivace Chorus
21
And realm of light, —
Dispossessed,
Aside thrust,
Chuck'd down,
By the sheer might
Of a despot’s will,
Of a tyrant’s frown,
Who after expelling
Their hosts, gave,
Triumphant still,
And still unjust,
Each forfeit crown
To psalm-droners,
And canting groaners,
To every slave,
And pious cheat,
And crawling knave,
Who licked the dust
Under his feet.
Angel
It is the restless panting of their being;
Like beasts of prey, who, caged within their bars,
In a deep hideous purring have their life,
And an incessant pacing to and fro.
Demons
The mind bold
And independent,
The purpose free,
So we are told,
Must not think
To have the ascendant.
What’s a saint?
One whose breath
Vivace Chorus
Doth the air taint
Before his death;
Ha! Ha!
A bundle of bones,
Which fools adore,
When life is o’er,
Ha! Ha!
Virtue and vice,
A knave’s pretence.
"Tis all the same;
Ha! ha!
Dread of hell-fire,
Of the venomous flame,
A coward’s plea.
Ha! Ha!
Give him his price,
Saint though he be,
Ha! ha!
From shrewd good sense
He’ll slave for hire;
Ha! Ha!
And does but aspire
To the heaven above
With sordid aim,
And not from love.
Ha! ha!
(Dispossessed, Aside thrust.)
Soul
I see not those false spirits; shall I see
My dearest Master, when I reach His throne?
Angel
Yes, — for one moment thou shalt see thy Lord.
One moment; but thou knowest not, my child,
Vivace Chorus
23
What thou dost ask: that sight of the Most Fair
Will gladden thee, but it will pierce thee too.
Soul
Thou speakest darkly, Angel! and an awe
Falls on me, and a fear lest I be rash.
Angel
There was a mortal, who is now above
In the mid glory: he, when near to die,
Was given communion with the Crucified, —
Such, that the Master’s very wounds were stamped
Upon his flesh; and, from the agony
Which thrilled through body and soul in that embrace
Learn that the flame of the Everlasting Love
Doth burn ere it transform ...
Choir of Angelicals
... Praise to the Holiest in the height And in the depth be praise:
Angel
... Hark to those sounds!
They come of tender beings angelical,
Least and most childlike of the sons of God.
Choir of Angelicals
Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depth be praise:
In all His words most wonderful;
Most sure in all His ways!
To us His elder race He gave
To battle and to win,
Without the chastisement of pain,
Without the soil of sin.
The younger son He willed to be
A marvel in His birth:
24
Vivace Chorus
Spirit and flesh His parents were;
His home was heaven and earth.
The Eternal blessed His child, and armed,
And sent Him hence afar,
To serve as champion in the field
Of elemental war.
To be His Viceroy in the world
Of matter, and of sense;
Upon the frontier, towards the foe,
A resolute defence.
Angel
We now have pass'd the gate, and are within
The House of Judgement ...
Soul
The sound is like the rushing of the wind —
The summer wind among the lofty pines.
Choir of Angelicals
Glory to Him, Who evermore
By truth and justice reigns;
Who tears the soul from out its case,
And burns away its stains!
Angel
They sing of thy approaching agony,
Which thou so eagerly didst question of.
Soul
My soul is in my hand: I have no fear.
But hark! a grand mysterious harmony:
It floods me, like the deep and solemn sound
Of many waters.
Angel
And now the threshold, as we traverse it,
Utters aloud its glad responsive chant.
Vivace Chorus
25
Choir of Angelicals
Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depth be praise:
In all His words most wonderful;
Most sure in all His ways!
O loving wisdom of our God!
When all was sin and shame,
A second Adam to the fight
And to the rescue came.
O wisest love! that flesh and blood
Which did in Adam fail,
Should strive afresh against the foe,
Should strive and should prevail;
And that a higher gift than grace
Should flesh and blood refine,
God’s Presence and His very Self,
And Essence all divine.
O gen’rous love! that He who smote
In man for man the foe,
The double agony in man
For man should undergo;
And in the garden secretly,
And on the cross on high,
Should teach His brethren and inspire
To suffer and to die.
Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depth be praise,
In all His words most wonderful;
Most sure in all His ways!
Vivace Chorus
Angel
Thy judgement now is near, for we are come
Into the veiled presence of our God.
Soul
I hear the voices that I left on earth.
Angel
It is the voice of friends around thy bed,
Who say the “Subvenite” with the priest.
Hither the echoes come, before the Throne
Stands the great Angel of the Agony,
The same who strengthened Him, what time He knelt
Lone in the garden shade, bedewed with blood.
That Angel best can plead with Him for all
Tormented souls, the dying and the dead.
Angel of the Agony
Jesu! by that shuddering dread which fell on Thee;
Jesu! by that cold dismay which sickened Thee;
Jesu! by that pang of heart which thrill'd in Thee;
Jesu! by that mount of sins which crippled Thee;
Jesu! by that sense of guilt which stifled Thee;
Jesu! by that innocence which girdled Thee;
Jesu! by that sanctity which reigned in Thee;
Jesu! by that Godhead which was one with Thee;
Jesu! spare these souls which are so dear to Thee,
Souls, who in prison, calm and patient, wait for Thee,
Hasten, Lord, their hour, and bid them come to Thee.
To that glorious Home, where they shall ever gaze on Thee.
Soul
I go before my Judge ...
Voices on earth
Be merciful, be gracious; spare him, Lord.
Be merciful, be gracious; Lord, deliver him.
Vivace Chorus
27
Angel
... Praise to His Name!
O happy, suff'ring soul! for it is safe,
Consumed, yet quicken'd, by the glance of God.
Alleluia!! Praise to His Name!
Soul
Take me away, and in the lowest deep
There let me be,
And there in hope the lone night-watches keep,
Told out for me.
There, motionless and happy in my pain,
Lone, not forlorn, —
There will I sing my sad perpetual strain,
Until the morn.
There will I sing and soothe my stricken breast,
Which ne’er can cease
To throb, and pine, and languish, till possest
Of its Sole Peace.
There will I sing my absent Lord and Love:
Take me away,
That sooner I may rise, and go above,
And see Him in the truth of everlasting day.
Souls in Purgatory
Lord, Thou hast been our refuge: in ev'ry generation,
Before the hills were born, and the world was:
from age to age Thou art God.
Angel
Softly and gently, dearly ransomed soul,
In my most loving arms I now enfold thee,
And, o’er the penal waters, as they roll,
I poise thee, and I lower thee, and hold thee.
28
Vivace Chorus
And carefully I dip thee in the lake,
And thou, without a sob or a resistance,
Dost thro' the flood thy rapid passage take,
Sinking deep, deeper, into the dim distance.
Souls in Purgatory
Lord, Thou hast been our refuge: in ev'ry generation,
Come back, O Lord! how long: and be entreated for
Thy servants.
Angel
Angels, to whom the willing task is giv'n,
Shall tend, and nurse, and lull thee, as thou liest;
And Masses on the earth, and pray'rs in heaven,
Shall aid thee at the Throne of the Most Highest.
Choir of Angelicals
Praise to the Holiest in the height,
And in the depth be praise.
Angel
Farewell, but not for ever! brother dear,
Be brave and patient on thy bed of sorrow;
Swiftly shall pass thy night of trial here,
And I will come and wake thee on the morrow.
Farewell.
Souls in Purgatory
Bring us not Lord, very low; for Thou hast said,
Come back again, ye sons of Adam.
Come back, O Lord! how long: and be entreated for
Thy servants.
Choir of Angelicals
Praise to the Holiest in the height.
Amen.
Vivace Chorus
29
Vivace
Chorus
Saturday
29 January 2022
at 2pm
vivacechorus.org
Registered Charity No. 1026337
Guildford Baptist Church,
Millmead.
Rhys Batt - Tenor
Welsh tenor Rhys Batt is currently a
soloist
with
Den
Norske
Opera
(Norwegian National Opera).
He is a graduate of Cardiff University
and the Royal College of Music and
currently studies with John
Evans,
having previously studied with David
Montague Rendall.
Although
Rhys'
operatic
career
focuses
predominantly
on
19t-
century
repertoire,
he
has
performed in a wide variety of music on the concert stage,
ranging from the British premiere of Biber's Vespers in St
David's Cathedral and the world premiere of Lully's previously
undiscovered final composition -
Il faut mourir, pécheur - for
Radio 3, to the world premiere of Paul Mealor's Celtic Prayers
with the BBC National Orchestra of Xales, also for Radio 3.
Rhys is also a prize-winning interpreter of art song. Prior to his
post at Den Norske Opera, he was engaged by Glyndebourne
Festival Opera.
Recent and
upcoming concert and operatic engagements
include Verdi's Requiem with Harrow School, Mendelssohn's
Eljjah for the Sherborne Festival, J S Bach's Johannes-Passion
for the Cheltenham Festival and the roles of Le Remendado
(Bizet's Carmen), Jaquino (Beethoven's Fidelio) and Il Duca di
Mantova (Verdi's Rigoletto), all for Den Norske Opera.
Vivace Chorus
31
Thomas NieBer - Tenor
Welsh-German baritone Thomas
NieBer
was
University
of
educated
at
the
Bristol
and
the
Music
and
Guildhall School of
Drama, where he studied under
Professor Janice Chapman.
As
part
of
his
degree,
he
spent
a
where
he
Heidelberg
under
Ashley
undergraduate
Prewitt
year
Iin
studied
at
the
Staatsoper Stuttgart.
Recent opera roles include Dr Falke in Johann Strauss's opera
Die Fledermaus (Schlossfestspiele Ettlingen), Don Giovanni in
Mozart's opera of the same name (Berlin Opera Academy),
Guglielmo in Mozart's Cosi fan tutte (Love Opera) and Alfio in
Mascagni's Cavalleria Rusticana (North Wales Opera).
He is also in demand on the concert stage, his roles including
Elgar The Dream of Gerontius, Bach Weihnachtsoratorium
(Christmas Oratorio), Handel Messiah and the Requiems of
Mozart, Brahms, Duruflé and Faure.
A proud Welsh speaker, Thomas has a passion for Welsh song
and enjoys bringing this lesser-known repertoire to a wider
audience.
Vivace Chorus
Rebekah Jones - Mezzo soprano
Mezzo soprano Rebekah Jones read
music at King's College London and g
completed her Master's at the Roya
College
of
Music
(RCM)
under the
tutelage of Tim Evans-Jones.
Solo career highlights have included
the roles of Mrs Lovett in Sweeney
Todd
Opera
and
Waitress
Scenes
in
Greek
(RCM
2020
and
2019
respectively),
Alisa
Lammermoor
with
in
Lucia
di
@
Opera [ESSsecuams Poenicke
Fulham
(reprised at Grimeborn 2018), oratorio !
performances at the St Endellion Music Festival and with the
Vasari
Singers
(both
2017),
Bach's St Matthew Passion
at
Chichester Cathedral, masterclasses with Michael Chance and
Sir Thomas Allen (RCM, Summer 2019) and performing as part
of the Winter 2016-17 season at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre.
Rebekah sings with the Monteverdi choir and Siglo de Oro, as
well as working for the BBC Singers, the Gabrieli Consort and
the
choir of the
Orchestra
of the Age
of Enlightenment,
amongst others.
She made her solo debut at the Haus fur Mozart in Salzburg
with
the
Monteverdi
Choir
this
summer.
Rebekah
has
performed internationally as Solomon in Paris (2017) and at
music
festivals
across
Europe,
including
Switzerland,
the
Netherlands, Malta, Germany and Belgium.
She was selected to sing as a soloist in the Bach Cantata and
Chamber music festivals at the RCM for two years running, and
in June 2019 made her debut in the RCM International Opera
School as The Grand Duchess in A Dinner Engagement.
Rebekah's future plans include tours to Zurich and Barcelona.
Vivace Chorus
33
Epsom Chamber Choir
Epsom Chamber Choir performs three or four
concerts each year, mostly in St Martin's Parish
Church, Epsom.
-
Under the direction
Biggins,
of their conductor Mark
currently the chorus director of the
Olivier-Award winning ensemble at the English National Opera,
the choir aims for the highest standards and performs an
extensive repertoire, ranging from the 16th century to the 21st
and embracing a wide variety of styles.
The
choir
performs
orchestras,
bands
mostly
or
unaccompanied
instrumentalists
but
or with
small
welcomes
the
opportunity to join with other choirs to sing larger works.
The choir is delighted to have been invited to join with the
Vivace Chorus for this evening's performance of Elgar's choral
masterpiece.
Singers:
Caroline Bailey
Nic Ash
Stella Baylis
Dick Bacon
Becky Beresford
Malcolm Field
Mary Draffin
Jack Foster
Karan Humphries
Nick Landauer
Lynfa Landauer
Dominic Morris
Rachel Le Prevost
Stephen Ridge
Alicia Newell
Neil Thomas
Clare Stenner
Susan Waton
West Forest Sinfonia
}estmrgst
The West Forest Sinfonia has been giving
Sinfonia
reqular concerts in the Reading/Wokingham
area for over 30 years.
Under its principal conductor Philip Ellis, the
| ii;;&‘@i% orchestra has performed an eclectic selection of
Y
music,
/
from
Haydn
symphonies
to
(most
recently) Stravinsky's Rite of Spring.
The orchestra draws its membership from the extraordinary
pool of talent that exists in Berkshire. In addition to the series
of concerts in Reading, the orchestra is regularly hired to
accompany local Choral Societies.
Recent
appearances
Wycombe,
Wokingham
include
performances
and
Choral
Fleet
with
High
Societies,
and
Aliquando.
Violin
Nicholas Round
Bass
Giles Wade (leader)
Claire Larkin
Adrian Warrick
Vanessa Kershaw
Karen Burgess
Leo Bowsher
Viola
Harp
Rachel Marsh
Jenny Broome
Adrian Charlesworth
Mandy Sadler
lvanka Shama
Harold Kershaw
Kim Austen
Kitty Beales
Meidi Chalal
Laura Williams
Jenny Hopper
Flute
Simon Salisbury
Tess Hawken
David Amos
Cello
Angela Jessopp
Lorraine Deacon
Oboe
Sonja Nagle
Alison Wagland
Hazel Todd
Susan Knight
Molly Parsons-Gurr
Nicola Fairbairn
Fiona Richards
Hilary Plaskett
Vivace Chorus
Piccolo
Contra Bassoon
Trombone
Mary Thornaloe
John Athersuch
Nick Kershaw
Cor Anglais
Horn
Richard Stubbings
Helen Turnbull
Pamela Wise
Diana Prince
Lucy Head
Tuba
Clarinet
lan Stott
James Doherty
Karen Ayton
Ben Colyer
Barbara Salisbury
Timpani
Trumpet
Andrew Spiceley
Bass Clarinet
Kevin Ransom
Emily Goodman
Andy Smets
Percussion
Andy Holman
Neil Marshall
Bassoon
Andrew Cumine
Mike Johnstone
Organ
Michael Creech
Erica Tugwell
Brian Moles
Join Vivace Chorus for our much-loved Come & Sing!
Saturday 29th January 2022 2pm
It's a fantastic opportunity to get acquainted with Elgar's
wonderful Coronation Ode and Parry's Blest Pair of Sirens -
both fantastic pieces to learn and sing under the baton of
our Music Director Jeremy Backhouse and accompanist
Francis Pott.
This year, we'll be at our regular rehearsal venue, Guildford
Baptist Church, next to the River Wey in Central Guildford.
It's a large, well-ventilated space with plenty of room for
safe singing and open spaces for tea and cake!
Tickets are just £19, plus a small booking fee, and this
includes all music hire and drinks and cake during the
breaks. We are really looking forward to welcoming you
back to this popular event.
Tickets
are
available
at
wwwvivacechorus.org
and
numbers are limited, so book early!
Vivace Chorus
37
About Vivace Chorus
Jeremy Backhouse
Music Director
Francis Pott
Accompanist
Peter Norman
Chairman
Vivace Chorus is a flourishing, ambitious and adventurous choir
based
classics
in
Guildford,
alongside
Surrey. We
the
enjoy singing
challenge
traditional choral
of contemporary
and
newly-
commissioned music - there's something for everyone at Vivace!
The choir began in 1946 as the Guildford Philharmonic Choir and was
rebranded
as
Vivace
Chorus
in
2005.
We
have
an
enviable
reputation for performing first-class concerts across a wide range of
musical
repertoire.
performance
'Symphony
in
May
Particular
successes
2011
of
Mahler's
of a Thousand,
at
the
include
Symphony
Royal Albert
a
sell-out
No.
Hall,
8,
a
the
highly
acclaimed performance in November 2012 of Britten's War Requiem
and
another
Royal Albert
performed the Verdi
Hall success
Requiem.
In
in
May
2014 when we
2017 we celebrated our 70th
birthday with the Philharmonia Orchestra in the Royal Festival Hall
and 2018 saw a sell-out performance in G Live Guildford for our
‘Concert for Peace!
Vivace thrives under the exceptional leadership of this evening's
Vivace Chorus
39
conductor, Jeremy Backhouse. Jeremy's passion for choral music
and his sheer enthusiasm for music-making are evident at every
rehearsal and performance. He is supported by Francis Pott, who is
an
academic
and
composer
of
international
repute
and
an
accomplished concert pianist - who better to accompany our
rehearsals?
During the pandemic, we made considerable efforts to keep singing.
his
Francis shared
Jeremy ran weekly Zoom sessions,
encyclopaedic knowledge of composers, and we put together two
online films and a virtual Christmas Concert, raising money for the
Mayor of Guildford's chosen charity.
\We're very much looking forward to getting back to touring - we are
hoping to add Spain to the list of our tours, which have so far
included France, Italy, Germany, Austria and the Baltic States.
\We are always happy to welcome new members, so if you would
like to try us out, do come along to any of our regular rehearsals on
Monday evenings at 7.15 in the Guildford Baptist Church, Millmead,
Guildford.
Just contact our membership secretary Becky Kerby at
membership@vivacechorus.org or pay a visit to our website,
vivacechorus.org. You can also follow us on Facebook and Twitter @VivaceChorus.
40
Vivace Chorus
Vivace Chorus Singers
FIRST SOPRANO
Christine Wilks
Liz Hampshire
FIRST BASS
Sel Adamu”
Fiona Wimblett
Christine Lavender
Paul Barnes
Jane Barnes
Fran Worpe
Penny Macfarlane
Phil Beastall
Lois McCabe
Richard Broughton
Mary Broughton”
Victoria Cross’
FIRST ALTO
Catherine Middleton
Brian John
Becky Kerby”
Jackie Bearman
Kay McManus”
Jeremy Johnson
Elizabeth Limb"
Marion Blair
Mary Moon
Jon Long
Fran MacKay
Jane Brooks”
Sheila Rowell
Malcolm Munt
Suzie Maine
Amanda Burn
Prue Smith
Chris Newbery”
Michelle Mumford
Jean Leston
Rosey Storey”
Peter Pearce
Heather Newbery
Lis Martin
Pamela Usher
Chris Peters”
Sue Norton
Penny McLaren
Susie Walker
Robin Privett
June Windle
David Ross
Robin Onslow
Rosalind Milton
Gillian Rix
Lilly Nicholson
Sarah Smithies
Jackie Payne
FIRST TENOR
Joan Thomas
Linda Ross
Bob Bromham"
Hilary Vaill
Catherine Shacklady
Bob Cowell”
SECOND BASS
Marjory Stewart
Owen Gibbons
Peter Andrews
SECOND SOPRANO
Sue Thomas
Nick Manning
Norman Carpenter
Anna Arthur
Hilary Trigg”
Barbara McDonald
Geoffrey Forster
Suzanne Cahalane
Maggie Woolcock”
John Trigg
James Garrow”
Philip Stanford
Isobel Humphreys”
Rob Walker
Stuart Gooch
Mo Kfouri
SECOND ALTO
SECOND TENOR
Nick Gough”
Isabel Mealor
Valerie Adam
Ewan Bramhall
Keith Long”
Alex Nash
Geraldine Allen
Peter Butterworth
Neil Martin
Alison Palmer
Barbara Barklem”
Simon Dillon
Roger Penny
Gill Perkins”
Evelyn Beastall
Geoff Johns
Kate Peters”
Mary Clayton
Stephen Linton”
Jess Stansfield”
Liz Curry-Hyde
Charles Martin”
Valerie Thompson
Andrea Dombrowe
Peter Norman
Margaret Grisewood
Jon Scott”
Vivace Chorus
*
.
= Semi-chorus
" - Guest singer
SING WITH THE BEST
It's official: singing
J Makes you feel happier
fi Reduces stress
D Improves memory
D Strengthens the lungs and
immune system
Photo © Carol Sheppard
Singing can also release endorphins, reducing our perception
of pain and acting in a similar way to morphine — but without
the danger of addiction.
So it's not just meeting friends, the music or the mid-rehearsal
cakes that tempt you out on a cold Monday night, but the
chance to be pain free!
Apart from singing in local
venues, we also tour abroad
and have a full calendar of
social events, including
walks and parties.
If you're tempted to join us,
just drop an email to our
=
Photo © Ben Potton
membership secretary,
Becky Kerby:
Advertising in our concert programmes is an effective
and economical way of reaching a discerning local
audience. If you're interested in finding out more, just
drop an email to 'programmes@vivacechorus.org’
42
Vivace Chorus
Vivace Chorus Patrons
The Vivace Chorus is extremely grateful to all patrons for their support.
Honorary Life Patrons
John Britten
John Trigg MBE
James Garrow
Life Patrons
Joy Hunter MBE
John and Jean Leston
Platinum Patrons
Peter & Clare Bevan
Lionel & Mary Moon
Robin & Jill Broadley
Peter Norman
Roger & Sharon Brockway
John Parry
Richard & Mary Broughton
Robin & Penny Privett
Amanda Burn
Geoffrey Johns & Sheila Rowell
Humphrey Cadoux-Hudson CBE
Jonathan Scott
Norman Carpenter
Catherine & Brian Shacklady
Tony & Sylvia Chantler
Prue & Derek Smith
Andrea & Gunter Dombrowe
Dennis & Marjory Stewart
Rosemary & Michael Dudley
Idris & Joan Thomas
Susan & Cecil Hinton
Pam Usher
Stephen Linton
Rob and Susie Walker
John McLean OBE & Janet McLean
Anthony J T Williams
Ron & Christine Medlow
Bill & June Windle
.......................................................................................................
BECOME A VIVACE PATRON
If you have enjoyed this concert, why not become one of our patrons? We
have a loyal band of followers whose regular presence at our concerts is
greatly appreciated. With the valued help of our patrons, we are able to
perform a wide range of exciting music, with world-class, professional
musicians in venues such as G Live, Dorking Halls, the Royal Albert Hall
and the Royal Festival Hall. For an annual donation, patrons can have
unlimited tickets at a 10% discount. If you are interested, please contact
Mary Moon on 01372 468431 or email: patrons@vivacechorus.org.
Vivace Chorus
43
Vivace Chorus dates for your diary
The Mayor of Guildford's Carol Concert
Sunday 12th December 2021 7:00 pm Holy Trinity Church, Guildford
One of the highlights of the Christmas season in Guildford is the
Mayor of Guildford's annual Carol Concert, in support of the Mayor's
selected charity. In the beautiful setting of a candlelit Holy Trinity
Church, Vivace Chorus's imaginative mix of favourite carols and
beautiful Christmas music will definitely help to put you in the
Christmas spirit.
Best of Broadway
Saturday 26" March 2022 7:30pm
G Live, Guildford
One of the most moving moments in our sell-out Concert for Peace
in 2018 was an arrangement of You'll Never Walk Alone for choir and
brass band. In 2022, we are delighted to be performing again with
the Friary Brass Band - Guildford's local brass band that ranks in the
top 25 bands in the world! We'll be singing and playing some alltime favourites from Broadway, including music from Bernstein,
Lloyd Webber and Rodgers and Hammerstein. A delightful
programme of music for a spring evening.
Majesty
Saturday 28" May 2022 7:30pm
G Live, Guildford
This celebration of royal music starts Guildford's celebrations of the
Queen's Platinum Jubilee and is promoted with the support of
Guildford Borough Council. Featuring music from the Queen'’s
coronation, including Handel's Zadok the Priest, Walton's Crown
Imperial and Parry's | was glad, this will be a rousing evening
featuring some of Britain's most popular composers.
Printed by IMPRINT COLOUR LTD
Pegasus Court, North Lane, Aldershot GU12 4QP. Tel: 01252 330683
Vivace Chorus is a Registered Charity No. 1026337
44
Vivace Chorus
FRI
ARY,
&
£
-
BRASS BAND |
Rodgersiand
|
HAffn
Saturday
26 March 2022
Tickets £18 £15 u18: £10,
plus an additional £3 per ticket GLive booking fee.
Book online GLive.co.uk or phone 01483 369350
vivacechorus.org
Registered Charity No. 1026337
at 7.30pm
FUTURE CONCERTS
|
12 Dec 2021
Saturday
29 January 2022
Holy Trinity Chzl:cT\
at 2pm
Guildford
vivacechorus.org
G A
Registered Charity No. 1026337
Guildford Baptist Church,
Millmead.
| majesty
Orchestra: West Forest Sinfonia
Conductor: Jeremy Backhouse
Coronatlon Ode
28 May 2022
Saturday
26 March 2022
at7.30pm
at7.30pm
vivacechorus.org
Pngstered Charity N 1026337
vivacechorus.org
et
hariy
. 1006737