Concert: Gloria!
Making their concert debut, the St Margaret’s Choristers of Westminster Abbey perform Vivaldi’s perennial favourite with the renowned period instrument ensemble, The English Concert.
St Margaret’s Choristers and Consort
The English Concert
Grace Davidson soprano
Greg Morris conductor
Vivaldi’s well-known setting of the Gloria remains as fresh and effervescent today as when he first composed it, probably for the girl choristers of the Ospedale della Pietà in Venice, where he was music director. Alongside this exuberant work by the Italian maestro are two youthful masterpieces from the pens of the greatest baroque composers of England and Germany respectively, Henry Purcell (himself an Organist of Westminster Abbey) and J.S. Bach.
St Margaret's Choristers
Singing their first service in October 2023, the 500th anniversary year of St Margaret’s Church, the St Margaret’s Choristers (girls aged 12-17 from across London) have quickly established themselves as an integral part of the Abbey’s life, taking their place in the sung liturgy of both St Margaret’s and Westminster Abbey. Sandwiched between the Abbey and Houses of Parliament, with which it has a longstanding relationship, St Margaret’s Church is often overlooked; but as anybody who has stepped over the threshold can testify, it is an architectural gem hidden in plain sight, and will provide a spectacular backdrop for this special concert.
Programme
Henry Purcell: Sing unto the Lord
J.S. Bach: Christ lag in Todesbanden
Antonio Vivaldi: Gloria
About the English Concert:
“The best Baroque orchestra in the business”
i newspaper
"Exemplary in their grace, enthusiasm and elan"
Guardian
About Grace Davidson, soprano:
“A voice so radiantly pure in colour and tone that you might think yourself in heaven.”
Geoff Brown, The Times ★★★★
