A world-class choir in London
2019-20 programme
Prom 66 - John Luther Adams: In The Name of the Earth
Sunday 8 September 2019
The Royal Albert Hall, London SW7 2AP
Pulitzer Prize-winning American composer John Luther Adams is the master of large-scale musical spectacle. In the Name of the Earth is a musical meditation on nature, which will immerse the audience in the sound of more than 600 singers. More information
Beethoven: Missa Solemnis
Saturday 5 October 2019 7.30pm
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
Ian Lawson From the heart – may it return to the heart! *
Beethoven Missa Solemnis
Crouch End Festival Chorus
London Mozart Players
David Temple conductor
Sarah Fox soprano
Jess Dandy contralto
Robin Tritschler tenor
Neal Davies bass
‘From the heart – may it return to the heart!’ These words of Beethoven’s, written above the beginning of his Missa Solemnis manuscript, sum up perfectly the profound nature of this greatest of choral works. With this Mass he achieved a new musical, dramatic and liturgical synthesis and achieved an apotheosis comparable to that of his Ninth Symphony. Performed as a short prelude to the work will be the winning entry* of CEFC’s competition inviting composers to set the words of Beethoven’s inscription. More information
Sir Karl Jenkins: 75th Birthday Concert with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
Sunday 13 October 2019 3.00pm
The Royal Albert Hall, London SW7 2AP
Sir Karl Jenkins conducts a superb programme of his most popular works and the world premiere of his Miserere. More information
Andrea Bocelli: 'Si' World Tour
Saturday 19 October 2019 7.30pm
Resorts World Arena, Birmingham B40 1NT
Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli returns to the UK to perform once again from his chart-topping album. More information
Walton: Henry V – Live film screening with the Philharmonia Orchestra
Thursday 7 November 2019 7.00pm
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
Henry V is recognised as one of the greatest works of art in cinema history: see it with a live soundtrack from the Philharmonia Orchestra and Crouch End Festival Chorus. It brings together William Shakespeare’s play, acting and direction by Laurence Olivier and music by William Walton. More information
Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas – Live film screening with Danny Elfman
Wednesday 4 December & Thursday 5 December 2019 6.00pm
The SSE Arena, Wembley, London HA9 0AA
Multiple award-winning composer, songwriter and reigning Pumpkin King, Danny Elfman will be bringing Disney’s timeless classic, Tim Burton’s The Nightmare Before Christmas to life for two very special UK arena shows in December 2019 as part of the movie’s 25th anniversary celebrations. More information
Christmas with Kings College Cambridge Choir
Monday 16 December 2019 7.30pm
Barbican Hall, London EC2Y 8DS
The world-renowned Choir of King's College, Cambridge herald the Christmas season with a glorious programme of festive classics. More information
Sing Christmas!
Saturday 21 December 2019 7.30pm
St Michael’s Church, Highgate N6 6BJ
A selection of seasonal songs and carols.
Crouch End Festival Chorus
David Temple conductor
Peter Jaekel organ and piano
Glass, Stravinsky & Ives
Sunday 2 February 2020 3.00pm
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
Ives The Unanswered Question
Stravinsky Babel *
Stravinsky Symphony of Psalms
Philip Glass Itaipú
Crouch End Festival Chorus
Inner Voices
London Orchestra da Camera
David Temple conductor
David Horovitch narrator *
This concert represents the bold and imaginative programming that has been associated with Crouch End Festival Chorus since its inception – a feast of 20th-century works in diverse styles: Philip Glass’s astonishing, vivid choral–orchestral portrayal of the river passing through the colossal Itaipú dam and out to the sea; Stravinsky’s iconic Symphony of Psalms and rarely performed Babel; and orchestra alone, setting the scene, with Ives’s enigmatic The Unanswered Question.
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Britten: Saint Nicolas
Saturday 18 April 2020 7.30pm
Queen Elizabeth Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
Haydn Missa Sancti Nicolai ('Nikolaimesse')
Ben Heneghan From the heart... (competition runner-up)
David Knotts Von Herzen, zu Herzen (competition finalist)
Ian Lawson From the heart – may it return to the heart! (competition winner)
Britten Saint Nicolas
Crouch End Festival Chorus
Coldfall School Choir
London Orchestra da Camera
David Temple conductor
Aiofe Miskelly soprano
Emma Lewis mezzo-soprano
Mark Le Brocq tenor
Andrew Ashwin baritone
Originally conceived as a community project, Britten’s Saint Nicolas includes moments of fun, terror, suspension and togetherness. By turns refined and fierce, delicate and exuberant, Crouch End Festival Chorus, with its talent for story-telling, brings out the colour and vibrancy of Britten’s score. Complementing this are Haydn's colourful Nikolaimesse, and three of the best entries in our 'From the heart' competition, including a second performance the winning entry by Ian Lawson.
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Elfman Classical with the BBC Concert Orchestra
Tuesday 21 April 2020 7.30pm
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
Elfman’s Shostakovich-inspired concerto Eleven Eleven, is paired with Prokofiev’s dramatic music for the film Alexander Nevsky, with its climactic passage, ‘the Battle on the Ice’. More information
Playing the Game with the BBC Concert Orchestra
Wednesday 6 May 2020 7.30pm
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
Crouch End Festival Chorus join BBC Concert Orchestra with Principal Conductor Bramwell Tovey in a concert inspired by video games past and present. More information
Beethoven: 'Choral Fantasy' with the BBC Philharmonic
Saturday 16 May 2020 7.30pm
The Bridgewater Hall, Manchester M2 3WS
Part of BBC Philharmonic and the Hallé’s joint Beethoven celebrations. More information
Sir Karl Jenkins in Concert
Saturday 6 June 2.30pm
Royal Festival Hall, Southbank Centre, London SE1 8XX
One of the most performed living composers conducts a selection of his favourite works, with highlights from Miserere, Symphonic Adiemus, Palladio and The Armed Man. More information
Monteverdi & Ellington
Saturday 27 June 2020 7.30pm
St James’s Church, Piccadilly, London W1J 9LL
Monteverdi Beatus Vir
Monteverdi Dixit Dominus
Duke Ellington (arr. Høybye & Pedersen) Sacred Concert
Crouch End Festival Chorus
Blue Planet Orchestra
David Temple conductor
Roland Perrin bandleader
Zoë Brookshaw soprano
The combination of Monteverdi and Duke Ellington is one to savour. Both composers use the Psalms as their inspiration. Ellington’s Sacred Concert is enjoying a resurgence at present and its jazz style will suit the eclectic talents of Crouch End Festival Chorus and David Temple.
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