Phoenix Choir

Having arisen in September 2002 from two former, well-established, Eastbourne choirs, Phoenix Choir is now locally acclaimed in its own right.

Since our inception we have covered a wide range of choral music. The most modern was Praise & Revelation by Stuart Johnson, while in December 2004 our programme included Leonard Bernstein’s Chichester Psalms.

Other composers featured at our concerts have been: Bruckner, Brahms, Faure, Purcell, Handel, Schubert, several works from Haydn and Mozart and most recently, Elgar.

On September 5th (2007) we commence our sixth year reharsing for the January 27th concert, comprising: Haydn -Te Deum and Bruckner - F Minor Mass. We shall also include a programme of Carols from November, for December performances.

As the choir reaches the close of its fifth year it looks back over a tremendous range of musical experiences, as well as a variety of social and fundraising events

The inaugural concert, in Autumn of 2002 established a precedent for a broad spectrum of classical concerts, when it included an early 18th century piece - Vivaldi’s Gloria - alongside a late 20th century composition - Stuart Johnson’s Praise and Revelation.

This year the choir received a full audience for their January performance of Handel’s Messiah, presented with a small orchestra in St. Saviour’s Church. The choir’s current concert season spectacularly culminated on June 2^nd, when it combined with Battle Choral Society and Battle Abbey School Choir to celebrate Elgar’s 150th birthday anniversary at Bexhill’s de la Warr Pavilion. With a fifty-piece orchestra and international soloists, this performance of The Dream of Gerontius conducted by John Langridge, received a highly appreciative capacity audience.

Since then some choir members have continued leading monthly Silver Songs sessions at Eastbourne’s Age Concern Centre. They completed the current season in mid-July with a celebratory cake – appropriately inscribed “Good bye-ee”, since when the Sing for your life programme resumes in September it will be with another group.

Choir members have the opportunity to celebrate the season’s achievements in a social gathering on July 30^th, prior to the August break. On September 5^th the choir’s sixth year will begin, with rehearsals of works by Haydn and Bruckner. Further information contact us on 01323 507190 or 01323 731260

An age-old theatrical tradition, rarely invoked except notoriously by a famous comedian of yesteryear, is that should there be more artistes than audience the performance need not take place.

At the De la Warr Pavilion on exactly the one-hundred-and-fiftieth anniversary of Edward Elgar’s Worcestershire birth, one hundred and seventy singers and fifty musicians assembled to celebrate the occasion with his choral work  - he insisted it was not an oratorio - the Dream of Gerontius.

No danger of ‘no show’ here as the auditorium of the De la Warr was full to capacity with over six hundred  patrons and a lengthy waiting list of hopefuls for ‘returns’, as was the restaurant for the pre-concert meal.

And what an occasion this was!  So much of Elgar’s music tugs at the heart strings and this quality was exploited to the full in a work of incredible magnitude and complexity.

Director John Langridge undertook the mammoth task of welding his three groups of choristers, Battle Choral Society, Eastbourne’s seventy-strong Phoenix Choir, and youthful singers from Battle Abbey School where John is Director of Music, the orchestra led by the ever-meticulous Jennifer Shepherd and soloists mezzo-soprano Louise Winter, tenor Andrew Staples and bass Graeme Broadbent into one seamless ensemble. (Even the mundane matter of getting everyone together for rehearsal is mind-boggling.)  That the performance went without a hitch musically or technically is a tribute to everyone concerned.

The source of the work was a poem by the Roman Catholic Cardinal Newman, and as such reflected Elgar’s own religious views, though he decided not all the text was suitable to orchestrate.  It tells of Gerontius’s vision when near to death of the Day of Judgement, of purgatory with its demons, or the heavenly hosts of angels. The lengthy role of Gerontius gave Andrew Staples opportunities to present a variety of emotions which he seized triumphantly, whilst in the less showy roles of the Priest and the Angel of the Agony the glorious tones of Graeme Broadbent revealed hidden depths of emotion.   As the Angel who guides Gerontius on his journey and brings him after is tribulations to the gates of glory Louise Winter demonstrated every nuance of the musicality of the writing.  Louise’s reputation is such that she had at short notice made a flying visit – literally – the previous day to Birmingham BBC  to record this role  broadcast on Radio 3 also on Saturday.         

The choral support throughout was magnificent, reflecting months of intense preparation.  The orchestra, augmented on keyboards by Keith Warne, whose connection with Battle Choral remains even though now West-country based, and by young players such as celebrity harpist Anna Wynne responded to John Langridge’s every direction.  To us who remember John from his BBC days with musicals and ‘light’ music, his interpretations of the classics are always a revelation.

Director of the De la Warr Alan Haydon welcomed among the many VIPs honouring the occasion H. M.’s Lord Lieutenant of East Sussex Mrs Phyllida Stewart-Roberts OBE and the newly-elected Mayor of Bexhill, Cllr. Paul Lendon. The event enjoyed the sponsorship of solicitors Stephen Rimmer & Co, accountants Messrs Price & Co, and Bonner’s Music, who provided the keyboards, all of Eastbourne.

A wonderful evening which will assuredly linger for ever in the memory of all fortunate enough to be present.                                                 

by MARRION  WELLS

WHATEVER NEXT for PHOENIX CHOIR?

Our 2006-7 season will spectacularly culminate on June 2nd 2007 commemoration of Sir Edward Elgar’s 150^th birthday anniversary. – In the year ahead our choir will enjoy a full programme in Eastbourne. Our concert rehearsals are on Wednesday evenings in the Church Room of St Saviour’s & St Peter’s Church in South Street: 7.30 – 9.30 p.m. We would welcome new members when we resume rehearsals on September 5^th.

Our first major concert of the season is in January. However, in late Autumn, those members who wish will prepare a programme of Christmas Carols. Performance of these includes a session in the Arndale Centre, collecting for a local charity. Some social events are also arranged. Besides this, groups of members take part on a monthly basis in prompting community singing at our local Age Concern centre, as part of the “Sing for Your Life” initiative with “Silver Songs”.

Our main programme which rehearsals begin in September 5th will comprise:

Haydn: Te Deum

Bruckner: F Minor Mass

This will take place in St. Peter’s Church on January 26^th 2008.

Our Spring concert works are:

Schubert: Mass in G

Brahms: Nanie & Dvorak Mass in C

The performances will take place on May 31^st 2008.

Both concerts will be accompanied by a small orchestra and will take place at 7:30pm in the Church of St. Saviour’s & St. Peter’s, Eastbourne. Further detail will be published in the local press nearer performance dates and from our website.

We should be pleased to hear from anyone wishing to support the choir through participation; by sponsoring musicians or as a patron of the choir.

The early part of this year has been an exceptionally full one. Opening for this term just three days into January gave four weeks to complete rehearsals for Handel’s Messiah. Performed in St. Saviour’s and St. Peter’s Church on January 28^th with a fine 18-piece orchestra and four splendid soloists before a full church, the occasion was made more truly auspicious by the presence of The Deputy Lieutenant of East Sussex – Lady Lloyd of Berwick and Lord Lloyd, as well as both Mayor Colin Belsey and MP Nigel Waterson.

The month concluded with a practice which incorporated a brief social session and music distribution for the June 2^nd concert: Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius. Phoenix Choir will be joined for this lavish celebratory concert by Battle Choral Society and members of Battle Abbey School Choir – each of which also have John Langridge as their Musical Director. Along with a 50-piece orchestra and international soloists, this will be performed on the 150^th anniversary of Elgar’s birth at Bexhill’s De La Warr Pavilion.

Another venture, by some choir members, was a visit to Eastbourne’s Age Concern Centre for a session of Silver Songs under the Sing for Your Life scheme. In this, members of the choir joined with folk attending the centre, for an enjoyable session of songs from yesteryear. This project will continue monthly through the year. Members were very well received and look forward to subsequent sessions.
In the meantime the choir continue to practice Elgar’s glorious music each Wednesday.

Phoenix Choir’s full programme resumes on the tenth day of Christmas - Wednesday, January 3rd.

December has been an especially busy and varied month. The choir were introduced to scores for the summer concert - Elgar’s The Dream of Gerontius which will be performed with Battle Choral Society (also directed by John Langridge - Director of Music for Phoenix) on June 2nd 2007, the 150th Anniversary of the composer’s birth.

On December 6th the choir rehearsed all the works to be performed in the January concert from Handel’s Messiah, while on the following Saturday many of the choir members sang carols in the Arndale Centre on behalf of St. Wilfrid’s Hospice - raising almost £400. The season concluded with a truly enjoyable Christmas social event at the home of a member.

With just a few weeks to the Messiah performance in St. Saviour’s and St. Peter’s Church on January 27th, Wednesday rehearsals, commencing at 7.30 in the Church room of the same South Street Church from January 3rd will be reaching a climax for the choir’s seventy plus members.

There will be no let-up following the concert, since rehearsals for the Elgar concert will get underway on January 31st. Any singer who would be interested in rehearsing for the new season practising for The Dream of Gerontius should contact our membership secretary on 01323 731260.

At the beginning of June, Phoenix Choir received official confirmation of our charity status.
We are registered with the Charity Commission: No. 1114422.