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Details
St Mark's Church
St Mark's Square
Regents Park
London
NW1 7TN
England
Programme
George Frideric Handel – Messiah, HWV 56
Performers
Rhona McKail – soprano
Lilly Papaioannou – mezzo-soprano
Matthew Pochin – tenor
Benjamin Seifert – baritone
Royal Free Music Society Choir
Hampstead Sinfonietta
Programme Note
After two years of singing on Zoom, the Royal Free Music Society Choir is delighted to be back doing proper rehearsals and will soon be putting on its much-delayed performance of Handel’s Messiah.
Formerly housed within the Royal Free Hospital, the choir found itself at the eye of the storm when the pandemic hit in March 2020 – and soon realised that they could no longer meet at all, let alone in the hospital’s Peter Samuel Hall.
Like many others, the choir explored rehearsing on Zoom, and although far from satisfying, the long-term devoted core members were very pleased to see familiar faces every week online – and to welcome a few new ones.
The choral work that the RFMS was rehearsing in March 2020 was Handel’s magnificent and much-loved Messiah and, exactly 2 years later, the choir is at last able to revive the cancelled performance. Our Musical Director of the last twelve years is Ben Wolf, professional conductor, musician and teacher. Ben took over directing the choir when founder, Andrew Rochford, left to concentrate on his medical career. Andrew is now a consultant gastroenterologist at the Royal Free but continues to lead the choir’s sister orchestra, the Hampstead Sinfonietta, who regularly join the RFMS Choir in concert.
In the past we have performed to full houses and, despite the two-year time lapse, look forward once again to seeing many of our stalwart supporters in the audience as well as welcoming new faces.
