geoffc posted on November 11, 2009 21:15
Allegri Singers' Fifth Birthday
The weekend of 24th October 2009, Allegri Singers celebrated their fifth birthday. Their first concert of Purcell’s Dido and Aeneas was the first in a long list of rarely performed works by composers including Byrd, Bruckner and Britten; Vivaldi and Vaughan Williams; John Tavener and his 16th century ancestor of the same name; and living Cumbrian composers.
Says Director Owen Davies. “We’ve developed into a very stable group with members from a large area bounded by Lancaster, Barrow and Sedbergh. We meet for intense periods to prepare for three pairs of concerts per year, with a small group of players joining us for the summer programmes.”
This weekend they perform a programme based around Palestrina’s Dies Sanctificatus mass. The programme also includes profound works by Gesualdo and Lassus, a celebratory anthem by local composer Gary Higginson, and gloriously rich compositions by Lotti, Monteverdi, Harris and Sweelinck.
Saturday’s performance is at 4:00 at Cartmel Priory, and Sunday’s at 7:30 at St Mary’s, Greenodd, both venues having been chosen so that their wonderfully resonant acoustics will perfectly match the simplicity of the Palestrina and the richness of the various anthems.