Wymondham Choral Society is busy preparing for a concert on 22 July, a triumphant return to Wymondham Abbey with beautiful music by Mozart.
The choir was formed in September 1980 and they perform a wide range of choral works from early music to the present day. The choir managed to keep going during the pandemic and has since welcomed many new members. Over the past year three concerts have been performed. Last summer the musical director, Claire Dixon, chose a delightful selection of folk songs by well known composers and Tippett’s gorgeous spirituals from ‘A Child of our Time’. Karen Harries, the soloist in the Tippett, included three beautiful solos by Grieg, Hahn and Vaughan Williams.
Bob Chilcott’s Christmas Oratorio, the central work in the December concert, featured William Falconer’s fine tenor voice. The performance was enhanced by flautist Grace Duthie whose solo, Debussy’s Syrinx, was a delightful addition to the concert. A pleasing selection of pieces suitable for the season was enjoyed after the interval.
The Choral Society received many congratulations for their March concert. Claire Dixon’s choice of Puccini’s Messa di Gloria seemed to meet with everyone’s approval and showed the choir singing with confidence and joy. Fauré’s Requiem after the interval was equally stirring.
The upcoming concert features two works by Mozart. Firstly, Vesperae Solennes de Confessore - Solemn Vespers - composed in 1780 for Salzburg Cathedral. The setting of the five Vespers psalms and a concluding Magnificat, scored for chorus, soloists and a modest orchestra, is much loved for its joyous choral writing. This will be followed by one of the most famous musical compositions ever written, Mozart’s final project, Requiem. The story of the uncompleted Requiem is well known: Mozart died before he had finished the work. Austrian composer Franz Xaver Süssmayr completed the Requiem in what we could now call its “traditional” version.
The choir will be joined by four soloists and an invited orchestra for this, much anticipated, performance. Tickets, £15 (under 16s free) are available on the door or online: www.trybooking.com/uk/events/eventlist/eventListingAccount/wcs
