Dear Friends
Our new season has got off to a busy start, with rehearsals for our autumn concert commencing in early September. We're tackling Beethoven's Missa Solemnis, one of the peaks of the Classical choral repertoire, and a real challenge for us! But, under Marcio's patient and insightful direction, we're beginning to make headway, and are looking forward to performing it for you in November!
Before that, though, there's an opportunity to hear us revisit some of our favourite choruses from Mendelssohn's Elijah when we take part in the 'Big Sing' this coming Saturday, 7th October. This annual fundraising event for St Michael's Hospice brings together twenty local choirs in a whole day's worth of singing at St John's Church, Brittany Road, St Leonards. We have the 5.30pm slot - why not drop in and listen to us?
The Big Sing - St Michael's Hospice (stmichaelshospice.com)
Read on for more information about our season's concerts ...
Table of Contents - Autumn concert, 11 November 2023, 7pm - St John's Church, Brittany Road, St Leonards
- Carols for All, Saturday 16 December 2023, 5pm - Christ Church, Silchester Road, St Leonards
- Dates for your diary, 2024
- Support us!
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| Autumn concert, 11 November 2023, 7pm - St John's Church, Brittany Road, St Leonards |
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'From the heart - may it go again - to the heart'.
Composed 1819-23, with the turmoil and bloodshed of the Napoleonic Wars still fresh in his memory, Beethoven's monumental Missa Solemnis ends with a touching prayer for peace. Join us on this Remembrance weekend for our performance of this glorious and powerful work.
Beethoven: Missa Solemnis, Op. 123
Hastings Philharmonic Choir
Helen May, soprano
Marta Fontanals-Simmons, contralto
Leonel Pinheiro, tenor
Edwin Kaye, bass
Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra
conducted by Marcio da Silva
For ticket information/purchases, visit https://www.hastingsphilchoir.org.uk/autumnconcert2023
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| Carols for All, Saturday 16 December 2023, 5pm - Christ Church, Silchester Road, St Leonards |
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Our always popular Christmas concert. Come and enjoy your favourite carols, and some less familiar ones, too.
Hastings Philharmonic Choir, with the choir of St Thomas' School, Winchelsea
Francis Rayner (piano), conducted by Marcio da Silva
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| Dates for your diary, 2024 |
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Looking ahead, our Spring Concert will take place on Saturday 6 April 2024, at Christ Church, Silchester Road, St Leonards. We'll be singing J.S. Bach's dramatic and moving St Matthew Passion, with top quality soloists, accompanied by the expert instrumentalists of Ensemble Orquesta.
And on 13th July we look forward to seeing you back in St John's Church, Brittany Road, for a summer evening of music both joyful and reflective: Vaughan Williams' Five Mystical Songs, and Puccini's Messa di Gloria.
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HPC has been mounting top-quality concerts featuring large-scale choral masterpieces since 1928! No choir of our longevity can survive without the constant generosity of its supporters. We are grateful, as ever, to Christ Church and other local churches who provide us with the wonderful settings in which we perform. As well as giving audiences the opportunity to hear high-class musical performances in local venues, our concerts also provide young vocal soloists and orchestral musicians with essential experience as they establish and further their careers. Such concerts are expensive to put on, and we cannot hope to cover the considerable costs involved from our members' subscriptions or from ticket sales alone.
We are extremely grateful to those Friends who have generously supported us with donations in the past. For those who would like to give additional financial support this season, we are continuing our current schemes: you may choose to become a Patron of Hastings Philharmonic Choir with a minimum donation of £25, or to Sponsor a Musician (£150 sponsors an orchestral player, £300 a soloist, or £500 the conductor).
For further information about these schemes, or to make a donation, please either visit our website: https://www.hastingsphilchoir.org.uk/donate
or email Maggi on
patronsadmin@hastingsphilchoir.org.uk
Donations may be made by card payment, directly via our website, or by cheque or bank transfer.
Any donation, large or small, helps us to present the high-quality performances that you expect and love, and that so enrich the musical life of our town.
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1.jpg "Carols for All, Saturday 16 December 2023, 5pm - Christ Church, Silchester Road, St Leonards")
