Undeterred Faithful Flock to Christmas Concert (Dec 2009)

A WET, wintry evening could not keep more than 500 locals away from Henley Choral Society’s 2009 Carol Concert conducted by Will Dawes at St Mary’s Parish Church, Henley.

Both safe and challenging fare was on offer. Trinity School Choir and an organist were in the mix, and with a pinch of audience participation the ingredients promised something for everyone’s taste buds. Tradition was clearly a priority: Once in Royal, O Little Town, Unto Us is Born a Son, and the mandatory We Wish You a Merry Christmas — but there were some lesser known items as well.

The first of these, O Little One Sweet, its Old German melody harmonised by J S Bach, worked as a safe, opening warm-up. It was not vintage JSB, but had his hallmark harmonic invention even if no wow factor. It was enjoyable and nicely performed.

More in the groove was Deck the Hall, a traditional Welsh carol arranged by David Willcocks. It was lively and very positively sung. The choir attacked it with obvious relish, putting a solid stamp of confidence on the proceedings.

The choice of Jesus Christ the Apple Tree was particularly apt, since it is connected with a member of the choir. It was an auditory version of looking through a picture window: lots of light and various chord positions, creating a spacious, translucent landscape. The choir respected the work’s delicate fabric and sang with feeling.

The most substantial work of the concert (in four parts) was William Mathias’s Ave Rex. It was both technically and aurally challenging and the choir had clearly worked at it. However, for some in the audience, the shift from saccharin to savage was a bit of a shock. It was not easy listening, especially the Ave Rex and Alleluya, whose adventurous tonality tested singers and listeners in equal measure. There Is No Rose began deceptively gently and then became progressively more discordant, while sporadic chants of “gaudeamus” punctuated the air insistently.

The closing Sir Christémas saw the choir step up a gear, with even more committed singing and decisive, declamatory staccatos. The ornate, cadenza-like keyboard interlude was beautifully played by Michael Heighway, organ scholar from Christ Church Oxford and technically flawless to boot.

The two stand-alone organ solos were confidently introduced and played well. William Walton’s Façade was wittily danced off at absolutely the right tempo, while J S Bach’s In Dulce Jubilo was a much different animal, which Michael Heighway played with energy, power and conviction, ending on a real high.

The youngest performers were the members of Trinity School Choir under the baton of Maureen Smith. They sang three songs in unison, and very well too. Great diction, absolutely together with the words, and rhythmically as one. They were able to hand-jive while singing, much to everyone’s amusement. And they were not fazed by the power of 60 voices in harmony behind them when they had the tune in We Wish You a Merry Christmas.

The evening also featured three readings, all admirably brought to life by choir members Myles Carter, Jan French and Jo Farr.

Once again, this was a well organised and widely supported choral event with Will Dawes rock-solid as ever on the podium. Audience numbers seem to swell concert by concert. A generous collection raised £740 for the Footsteps Foundation.

Next on the agenda is a joint venture with Benson Choral Society and Henley Symphony Orchestra, to be given at the Hexagon in Reading on Sunday, March 14. The delights of Vaughan Williams, Parry and Puccini’s operatic Messa di Gloria are not to be missed, and so the date is a must for your diary.

Trevor Howell

Source: Henley Standard
Published 27/12/2009