LATEST NEWS
Tickets are now on sale for our summer concerts
Click here for more details & tickets
Announcing our exciting line up of soloists
for J S Bach Christmas Oratorio
Click here for more details & tickets
Thank you to everyone who came to our For Those We Loved concert to remember in St Philips Cathedral, 2 April.
It was uplifting, comforting, thought-provoking, triumphant and a minor miracle that it happened at all after so many covid disruptions during its preparation.
But finally the performance came together starting with the emotional: A Prayer to Ukraine.
Beautiful works by Vaughan Williams, Parry, and Holst were performed in addition to the world premiere of Paul Spicer’s moving
Sound the Invisible Trumps composed during the first lockdown spring 2020.
The baritone soloist, Ed Ballard, organist Martyn Rawles, and Choir soloists: Emily Matthews (soprano), Georgina Gardner (soprano), Jonathan Spencer (alto), Isaac Boulter (tenor) & Philip Bellshaw (bass) were all applauded by both reviewers and audience (see Reviews below) but above all praise goes to Paul Spicer for his new composition and the high quality of the whole programme.
Ed Ballard
"seductive and magnetic at all times”
Bachtrack.
Read the Reviews here…..
Chris Morley
“A wonderful return to live music…..heartwarming”
To read: https://t.co/8rKe25XANk
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David Barton
"Be under no illusion, this is an amateur choir who achieve professional standards….everything you could wish for. Outstanding soloists, a first-class organist and a passionate choir, but equally, none of last night would have been possible without their conductor, and also composer, Paul Spicer.
To read: https://www.davidbartonmusic.co.uk/concert-review-for-those-we-loved/
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Rosemary Philips
"The Choir sang so musically throughout with great commitment to the text and the phrasing….”
Click here to read
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Keith Horsfall
“(The choir) embraced the whole work with skill and dedication”.
Click here to read
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Paul Gray
"Paul Spicer’s deep immersion and understanding of the works of British composers of the late 19th and early 20thcentury was evident throughout the evening. The characteristic long phrases were exquisitely shaped. The choir’s excellent diction highlighted the close relationship between text and music…"
To read: http://reviewsgate.com/
Our sincere thanks to The Roughley Trust for their generous support for this performance
Premiered Saturday 2 April, St Philip’s Cathedral
LISTEN HERE
LISTEN HERE to Movements from this world premiere,
(recorded live on a phone by an audience member)
Movement 2 : Brief is our Life 5.01 mins
Movement 3 :An Ancient Olive 2.43 mins
Soloist; Ed Ballard (baritone)
Movement 5 Beside an altar of stone 1.38 mins
Soloist: Emily Matthews (soprano)
About Sound the Invisible Trumps by Paul Spicer
World Premiered 2 April
Commissioned by the Choir, generously funded by our past President, the late Pauline Round in her will.
It stands as a testament to this very moment in time of pandemic crisis and to Pauline’s close relationship with us.
Each movement uses a different poem for the libretto (including anonymous texts from the 12th century, the Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore, Walter de la Mare, and Pauline Round).
The title, Sound the Invisible Trumps is from the poem by Walter de la Mare.
Paul says of the work:... it is essentially a ‘darkness to light’ theme with the pandemic as the backdrop.
A very big and satisfying job resulting in 7 movements and 23 minutes of music.
I am particularly happy with the final movement which really dances its way through and should be quite exciting.
These quick, upbeat movements are always the hardest to do and it was very important that this one should be a complete release from all that has gone before.
Pauline is the overall dedicatee of course, and I am very pleased to have been able to use two of her poems.
These are what I call the ‘sorbet’ courses between bigger, fully-fledged pieces. They are both unaccompanied.
Mike Lloyd is the sub-dedicatee of the second movement, husband to Merryn, soprano, and close friend of the Choir, who tragically did not survive the covid virus.
Click here to hear the entire work
More about Paul Spicer
Read more about Paul’s work with The Royal Conservatoire Chamber Choir…..
Paul Spicer conducting Birmingham Bach Choir 4 Dec 2021
Sok szerencsét Dominic
Dominic Faux performed his last concert with us this spring, having first joined in 1970 as a medical student, and then rejoined in 2008 as a ‘prelude’ to retirement.
A retired GP he now spends more time with family in Hungary.
We wish him every joy with them, and will miss his voice & humour.
"There is a special feel about singing in a choir, not only as a creative action, but also as a social activity.
I shall especially miss my Bass 1 friends - the ‘Heldenbasses’ as I call them - and I shall also miss the intellectual and musical challenge of singing complex music.
The highlights in my second spell in the choir include the trips abroad, and the big Bach works (B-Minor Mass, St Matthew passion, St. John Passion).
Bach is the greatest. Singing James MacMillan in Birmingham Oratory was also a great experience.” (Dominic April 2022)
Another new singer joins the Fabulous Five
We welcome Stephanie Lau who joins our 1st soprano section
To find out more about her click here
Our new singers (but Lucy’s spaniels will not be performing!)
If you would like to join the choir click here for details
Would you like to join us ?
Next auditions: Weds 28 September .
For more info please click here
Read here about our concert, O Clap Your Hands, on 4 December
Birmingham Bach Choir conducted by Paul Spicer, St Philip’s Cathedral 4 Dec 2021
The programme was kicked off with Vaughan Williams "O Clap Your Hands" and followed by Walton, Leighton, Britten, Dvorak plus the world premiere of David Bednall’s "The Dear Bargain" commissioned by the choir for our centenary celebrations 2 years ago
Despite being down to only 47 singers on the day Paul Spicer wrote:
”a really terrific concert. David Bednall was thrilled with your performance of his beautiful work. A really brilliant restart after 2 years”
Congratulations to our lovely soloists and organist from Royal Birmingham Conservatoire: Isabella Abbot Parker, Hope Pugh, Timothy Burton, Alex Pratley & Callum Alger
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"what singing! This is not easy repertoire but a high standard was set from the outset with a truly atmospheric and expressive opening"
(Prof David Saint)
Click here to read more
(Click to open and close)
Prof David Saint
It was unfortunate for me that appalling weather and a traffic gridlock made me late for this concert, and so I missed the first three items. As I came in, Callum Alger was just beginning what proved to be his scintillating performance of Whitlock’s Fanfare, played with authority and sensitivity in the middle section.
The first singing I heard was therefore Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb. And what singing! This is not easy repertoire but a high standard was set from the outset with a truly atmospheric and expressive opening in which every word could be heard. The celebratory second section requires agility and exuberance which the choir provided in abundance; even the infamously tricky runs were well-executed, especially those on the word ‘dance’
I particularly enjoyed the dismissive venom which the choir brought to the words “Silly fellow” and the final section was sublime. Fine performances were given by the four soloists and Callum Alger’s accompaniment was impeccable.
Commissioning a work always has an element of risk – buying without seeing! Happily, David Bednall’s The Dear Bargain suited the choir to the core and obviously spoke deeply to the conductor. Bednall’s idiom is immediately attractive and the care with which he sets words was matched by the choir’s care in performance. Unaccompanied passages were sung with passion and faultless tuning, and the performance was overall beautifully shaped.
To end such a demanding concert with Dvorak’s Mass in D was the final challenge and there were a few moments where the choir sounded slightly tired, such as the opening of the Sanctus and the ‘qui tollis’ section of the Gloria. However, these are minor quibbles in the face of a performance of such verve and style. The grand sweep of the Kyrie (my favourite movement, as it happens)….the fanfare-like opening of the Gloria….the drama of ‘Crucifixus’….and the power of the lower voices in, for example, the antiphonal sections of the Credo….all brought the evening to a wonderful conclusion.
After a very difficult eighteen months, it was super to hear the Bach Choir – and at only 60% strength – in such great form, further increasing my regret at missing the beginning of the programme. Paul Spicer devised a really challenging programme for this ‘re-entry concert’ and he can only have been very proud of the choir’s response. Congratulations all round and a special mention of Callum Alger’s superb playing throughout.
David Saint is an organist and choral director. He is Organist and Director of Music at St Chad’s Cathedral and until 2015 he was Principal of the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.
"what a celebration! The work of most interest was the premiere performance of David Bednall’s The Dear Bargain, commissioned by the choir for its centenary. It played to the strengths of the choir, who sang confidently and captured all the moods of the piece, especially the radiant ending“
(Peter Morris)
Click here to read more
(Click to open and close)
Review by Peter Morris
O clap your hands indeed that Birmingham Bach Choir is back after such a long silence; they have been much missed. Pouring rain and ‘noises off’ from the Christmas revellers outside Birmingham Cathedral did not dampen the audience’s enjoyment.
It was a depleted choir (60% of its normal size) but as Paul Spicer commented, it was ‘a step back to normality’. And what a celebration! The work of most interest was the premiere performance of David Bednall’s The Dear Bargain, commissioned by the choir for its centenary. It played to the strengths of the choir, who sang confidently and captured all the moods of the piece, especially the radiant ending. The words were carefully illustrated by the music and also by the singers. David Bednall said ‘I was keen that the chorus should enjoy the work’. So did the audience.
The other particularly successful performance was that of Britten’s Rejoice in the Lamb. It was rhythmically crisp and limpidly fluent by turns. The choir was idiomatically incisive and particularly expressive of the agonies suffered by the visionary poet Christopher Smart. Here and elsewhere the excellence of alto soloist Hope Pugh and the organist Callum Alger contributed hugely to the success.
Welcome back!
Peter Morris is a conductor and organist with a long career in teaching music, conducting orchestras and choirs, organ playing (and getting organs rebuilt) and examining.
Photos by Frank Wood
Memories of our Centenary Concert in Lichfield Cathedral
photo: Frank Wood
Our last concert before the pandemic hit was such a wonderful celebration for our 100 years.
We remember our superb orchestra (The Musical and Amicable Society), soloists (Anita Watson, Samantha Price, Mark Wilde and Felix Kemp) and our own Martyn Rawles (on the chamber organ) performing with us to an absolutely packed cathedral.
Aaah happier times!
Pictures below of the hardworking final rehearsal and actual concert
(with gratitude to Frank Wood & Dave Freak for their photos)
So many thanks to all who helped keep us together singing during the long lockdown for singers
A Covid secure rehearsal with Paul Spicer
We spent most of our time together on zoom sessions.
Many thanks to Paul & Martyn for their perserverance with the technology - not easy for Paul to conduct us without hearing us, nor for us to sing each in isolation in our own homes.
Paul conducting us on zoom with regular accompanist Martyn
Our sincere thanks go to:
The Grimmitt Trust, The Saintbury Trust, The S&D Lloyd Trust, The John Feeney Charitable Trust, and the W.E. Dunn Trust who have all supported us recently.
We also acknowledge with thanks the work of professional photographers Adrian Burrows, Frank Wood and Rob Gillespie, whose photographs appear on this website.
SAVE THE DATES
Saturday 25 June:
Lux Aeterna - A Summer Concert
St Paul’s, Birmingham
Saturday 2 July:
Lux Aeterna - A Summer Concert
Malvern Priory, Malvern
Saturday 19 November:
J S Bach - Christmas Oratorio
Lichfield Cathedral
Sunday 18 December 3.30pm:
Nine Lessons & Carols
St Albans, Birmingham B12