| Date and venue | Title |
|---|---|
| 23-May-2013 Frauenkirche | An evening of polyphony: The Tallis Scholars in Dresden |
 Singing polyphonic music requires a specific sound. To be truly effective there must be a beautifully rounded and well blended choral sound, but at the same time the individual lines must be clearly decipherable within the overall texture. This is a balance that The Tallis Scholars seem to find effortless. There is precision of intonation, of vocal blending, and of rhythm, and all the singers achieve this while maintaining their own personal vocal colour. Their concert in Dresden’s Frauenkirche began with a work by the composer who gave them their name, Thomas Tallis.Read full review... | |
| 17-Nov-2012 Canongate Kirk | Calton Consort: Translated Daughters |
 From the altar of their customary home in Edinburgh’s 1691 Canongate Kirk, Calton Consort presented an a cappella concert enigmatically entitled “Translated Daughters”. The enigma dissolved upon hearing W.H. Auden’s text for Britten’s Hymn to St Cecilia. It features the arresting couplet: “Translated Daughter, come down and startle / Composing mortals with immortal fire.” As though the transmission of musical inspiration from Heaven to Earth were not difficult enough, Britten experienced his own earthbound obstacles.Read full review... | |
| 5-Jul-2012 Cheltenham College Chapel | Première after Première: BBC Singers at the Cheltenham Festival |
 In most concert listings, premières seem to be thrown in as a one-off to offset a relatively risk-free billing. In this Cheltenham Music Festival concert, this was not the case. With no less than five premières in an evening of seven choral works, those present could be assured that they were hearing something new. The programme choice was engaging and enlightening, giving insight on different ways that the human voice can be used as an instrument.
Read full review... | |
| 9-Jun-2012 Durham Cathedral | Renaissance for Durham |
 In my notes for this evening’s concert by Renaissance, a chamber choir founded by the young singer, conductor and composer Ben Rowarth, one word kept recurring – “thoughtful”. This was a programme that had been carefully put together, and which was performed without any unnecessary flashiness or attempts to impress. The result was an evening of outstanding musicality and maturity; it was hard to believe that Ben Rowarth is just 20, and that almost all the singers were under 30.Read full review... | |
