St Mary-le-Tower Civic Church Choir


	ST MARY-LE-TOWER - The busiest promoter of classical music in Ipswich 37th Annual Series Tuesday Lunchtimes 1.10pm to 1.50pm Admission Free Publicity sponsored by Birketts Solicitors For future local and national concerts, see www.organrecitals.com Click here to view this years concert series THE ORGAN IN ST MARY-LE-TOWER The main instrument featured in concerts at St Mary-le-Tower, the organ, was originally built by Henry Willis in 1864. It has been overhauled, extended and modified by various builders since then but this year's concerts will be the first to take place since the completion of the important work carried out by Richard Bower, of Weston Longville, Norwich. This has included extensive cleaning and repairing, some re-voicing, particularly of mutation stops, and great improvements in the comfort of the player, with an increased number of combination pistons and new bench and pedal-board. The blower and humidifier have also received attention by the firm of Watkins and Watson. To celebrate the successful conclusion of this project, the concert series begins with a performance of one of the major organ compositions of the twentieth century, Messiaen's cycle of nine movements meditating on 'La Nativite du Seigneur', the birth of our Lord. It will be played by James Thomas, Organist and Director of Music of St Edmundsbury Cathedral. The series continues with a strong emphasis on the organ and brings to Ipswich some of the most brilliant young players of our day as well as familiar friends. In line with our usual practice, there are also some exciting contrasts, with seven concerts being either choral or of chamber music. VAUGHAN WILLIAMS, MESSIAEN AND THE TWENTIETH CENTURY This year's theme for the concert series was immediately suggested by the juxtaposition of two important anniversaries, the fiftieth year since the death of the great English composer Ralph Vaughan Williams and the centenary of the birth of Olivier Messiaen. For many people, Messiaen is the most significant composer for the organ since J S Bach, but, as even this series partly shows, his profound originality is to be heard in many other genres, in for example the 'Quartet for the End of Time', composed in 1941 while he was a prisoner-of-war (to be performed here on June 24). Vaughan Williams, in contrast, wrote little for the organ though he was himself a competent player. As the next distinctive voice in English music after Elgar, however, he touched the hearts of thousands of people in masterpieces such as the Tallis Fantasia, Job: a Masque for Dancing, the Mass in G minor and 'The Lark Ascending', the last two of which are included in these programmes (June 10 and September 2 respectively). The music of these two giants of the twentieth century, so widely different both in their philosophical outlooks and their musical styles, has been set in a context provided by their fellow composers of the period, mainly English and French. The result is a fascinating cocktail, strongly laced with an enormous variety of other music from the sixteenth century to the present day. As always, each concert is presented as enjoyable and entertaining in itself. Please do come and enjoy the experience. May 6 - James Thomas Director of Music, St Edmundsbury Cathedral La Nativite du Seigneur Messiaen May 13 - Octave Vocal Ensemble Salve Regina Poulenc, O sacrum convivium Messiaen, 'Come away, Death' and 'Silence and Music' Vaughan Williams, and works by Gibbons, Morley, Lauridsen, Murrill and Mantyjarvi May 20 - John Keys Director of Music St Mary's Nottingham May 27 - Alan Loader baritone Christian White piano Songs of Travel Vaughan Williams, et al June 3 - Colin Walsh Organist Laureate, Lincoln Cathedral Te Deum Langlais, Offrande au Saint Sacrement Messiaen, Fugue sur le Carillon de Soissons Durufle, and works by Widor and Litaize June 10 - Tower Chamber Choir conductor Michael Nicholas Three Latin Motets Op 38 Stanford, Mass in G minor Vaughan Williams June 17 - Hans Hielscher Wiesbaden, Germany Suite du premier ton Bedard, Variations on an Old Dutch Hymn Cor Kee, Three American Folksongs arr Hielscher, Suite for Organ Pasini June 24 - Cliff Whybrow clarinet, Caroline Ball violin, Harriet Bennett cello, Jonathan Rutherford piano Quatuor pour le fin de temps Messiaen, et al. July 1 - Daniel Hyde Director of Music, Jesus College, Cambridge L'Ascension Messiaen, et al. July 8 - William Saunders Assistant Director of Music, St Mary-le-Tower Symphonie VI Widor July 15 - Nigel Kerry Director of Music, Church of Our Lady and the English Martyrs, Cambridge July 22 - Stephen Farr Director of Music, St Paul's Church, Knightsbridge Praeludium in E minor Buxtehude, Chorale Prelude on 'Schmucke dich' BWV 654 J S Bach, Le Banquet Celeste Messiaen, and works by Sanger, Alain and Durufle July 29 - Christopher Moore London Prelude and Fugue in C minor Vaughan Williams, et al. August 5 - Anthony Gowing Assistant Organist, Sheffield Cathedral Les Corps Glorieux Messiaen August 12 - Andrew Kirk Director of Music, St Mary's Church, Redcliffe, Bristol August 19 - Michael Nicholas Director of Music, St Mary-le-Tower Fugue, Chorale and Epilogue Howells, Prelude and Fugue in A minor BWV 543 J S Bach, Prelude, Scherzo and Passacaglia Leighton August 26 - Benjamin Nicholas Director, Tewkesbury Abbey Schola Cantorum Prelude and Fugue in X BWV xxx J S Bach, 'Puer natus et nobis' and 'Priere apres la communion' from Livre de Saint Sacrement Messiaen, and works by Saint-Saens and Maxwell Davies September 2 - Helen Ellison violin, David Ruddock piano The Lark Ascending Vaughan Williams, Penillion Howard Blake September 9 - William Fergusson, piano September 16 - Joseph Sentance Director of Music, St Stephen's Church, Walbrook, London September 23 - Richard Brasier, London Communion et Sortie from Messe de la Pentecote Messiaen, and works by Bach and Franck September 30 - Ben Giddens Organ Scholar, Norwich Cathedral Paean Leighton, Prelude and Fugue in G BWV 550 J S Bach, and works by Alain, Mathias and Reger October 7 - Rosemary Hawkins piano Works by Chopin, Debussy and Messiaen October 14 - Woodbridge School Chamber Choir Conductor Elspeth Davidson Movements from Five Mystical Songs Vaughan Williams, et al. October 21 - James Parsons Director, Oundle Festival Three Hymn-Tune Preludes Vaughan Williams, et al.