Details
St James' Priory
Whitson Street
Bristol
BS1 3NZ
England
Programme
Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco – Romancero Gitano, Op.152
Astor Piazzolla – Libertango
Friedrich Burgmüller – 3 Nocturnes for Cello and Guitar
Ernst Mahle – Suite Carimbó
Eriks Esenvalds – Stars
Gustav Holst – Come to me in the silence of the night
Samuel Barber – Sure on this shining night, Op.13 no.3
Anton Arensky – Serenade
Performers
Craig Ogden – guitar
Richard May – Cello
David Ogden – Conductor
Exultate Singers
Programme Note
As the sun sets on an early Spring day, Exultate Singers present an Evening Serenade of romantic music from around the globe. The choir is delighted to be joined by the internationally-renowned guitarist Craig Ogden and the cellist Richard May for performances of wonderfully atmospheric pieces that travel from the calm and stillness of Samuel Barber’s Sure on this shining night to the energetic samba rhythms of Brazilian folk songs set in a nightclub.
The central piece is a suite of seven vivid settings of Lorca poems for choir and guitar by the Spanish composer Castelnuovo-Tedesco, described by Segovia as ‘the first composer I have met who immediately understands how to write for the guitar’.
The Spanish fervour of much of the music is contrasted by reflective songs by Britten, Holst and the Latvian composer Ēriks Ešenvalds. Stars sets a poem by Sara Teasdale in which the choir not only sing but play chords on tuned wine glasses, creating a mystical, cosmic experience.