Leicester Philharmonic Choir’s inspirational performance ‘A Quest for Peace’ at De Montfort Hall hailed a great success!
During the event, the audience were presented with an emotive programme including ‘A Farewell to Arms’, ‘The Spirit of England’ and Karl Jenkins’ ‘The Armed Man: A Mass for Peace’.
The choir were accompanied by the Sinfonia Viva Chamber Orchestra and guest soloists Mark Wilde (Tenor), Idris Alli, (Muezzin) and Royal Birmingham Conservatoire students Samantha Lewis and Ivonne Porrasocampo (both Mezzo Sopranos) and Aaron Kendall (Baritone).
Also joining the choir for the second half were members of the public who had participated in a six-week course with the Phil choir, designed for new singers and which culminated in the evening’s performance.
Conductor on the night was Dr Stephen Bullamore, (Director of Music of the Leicester Philharmonic Choir) who said it was a performance to remember. “I was thrilled how well the concert came together. Sinfonia Viva were a wonderfully responsive orchestra, gelling with the Leicester Philharmonic Choir beautifully.
“The Choir themselves were on top form, delivering a vast variety of tonal colour to illustrate the music. They were joined in the first half by the mellifluous tenor, Mark Wilde whose rendition of Finzi’s ‘Farewell to Arms’ provided a sensitive and inspiring opening to the concert.”
Stephen said there was a thrilling performance of Elgar’s ‘Spirit of England’. “The rousing opening movement made my hair stand on end and the closing section with the choir’s repeated insistence of Binyon’s ‘We will remember them’ will live long in my memory.”
The second half was taken up by Karl Jenkins’ ‘Mass for Peace’ where the performers were joined by three student soloists from the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire and local Imam, Idris Alli, who provided the call to prayer to a spellbound De Montfort Hall.
Mezzo Soprano, Samantha Lewis, said she was delighted to be a part of the performance. “Singing Karl Jenkins’ ‘The Armed Man’ in such a beautiful space as De Montfort Hall was one of the most amazing performance opportunities I have experienced thus far.
“We were treated with the utmost respect and it was an absolute pleasure in performing alongside the wonderful Leicester Philharmonic Choir and the Sinfonia Viva Chamber Orchestra; the atmosphere and the rapport these musicians had was second to none, which created a relaxed space for us to perform.”
Audience member, Alan Bain said he had enjoyed the show, “The absolute highlight of the evening for me was the singing by the first mezzo in the Jenkins, Samantha Lewis, especially in the ‘Kyrie’ and ‘Now the guns have stopped’. It is terribly noticeable with singing in English how important the story telling in the voice becomes, and I thought her performance in this respect was so good that I would really like to hear her perform English solo song with piano.”
Mr Bain said he had only decided to attend the concert last minute on the way back from Leicester to London because of work commitments. “I thought that soloist Mark Wilde was excellent and there was some super trombone and cello playing, with a strong blended choral sound underpinning it all. There were so many other aspects I enjoyed about the concert – I am thoroughly glad I came!”
The next opportunity to see the Leicester Philharmonic Choir will be at St James the Greater on London Road on 19th December at 7:30pm. At this concert the choir will perform ‘Mr Fezziwig’s Christmas Party’, a suite of music composed by Jonathan Rathbone, telling of the lively events of the annual Fezziwig Ball in Dickens’s ‘A Christmas Carol’. The concert will include well-known carols and the audience is invited to join the Phil choir in their best party mood for singing, dancing and festive fare!
Anyone wishing to find out more about events, or looking to join the choir can find out more at www.thephil.org.uk
