Britain's What's On Event Guide
A free Christmas Concert by the South London Singers.
We are delighted to invite you to attend our free Christmas Concert!
We want to welcome the whole community to our concert this Christmas - so we have decided to make tickets for this concert free as in the last two years.
The main work this time will be the much-loved ‘Fantasia on Christmas Carols’ by Ralph Vaughan Williams. As the basis for the piece, he picks three carols recorded during the early 20th Century movement to collect traditional folk songs before they were lost. These are: 'The Truth from Above' (from Herefordshire), 'Come All You Worthy Gentlemen' (from Somerset) and 'The Sussex Carol' (On Christmas Night).
The work rises and falls in tempo and volume as it tells aspects of the Christmas story. It starts and ends quietly (if you think the choir have gone on strike, the final marking is ‘pppp’!)
The S.L.S. will also be including a number of shorter carols including Herbert Howells’ beautiful setting of ‘A Spotless Rose’, based on words which may date back as far as the 14th Century. This poem makes analogy between, on the one hand, a perfect rose bud borne by a strong root, flowering in the cold, and Christ and the Virgin Mary on the other. Bizarrely, the composer said that he was idly watching shunting steam trains from his window when he was inspired to write this lovely piece which is much admire, especially for the final slightly unexpected, set of chords
Needless to say, amongst other items by the choir, there will also be opportunities for the audience to join in (loudly!)
We want to welcome the whole community to our concert this Christmas - so we have decided to make tickets for this concert free as in the last two years.
The main work this time will be the much-loved ‘Fantasia on Christmas Carols’ by Ralph Vaughan Williams. As the basis for the piece, he picks three carols recorded during the early 20th Century movement to collect traditional folk songs before they were lost. These are: 'The Truth from Above' (from Herefordshire), 'Come All You Worthy Gentlemen' (from Somerset) and 'The Sussex Carol' (On Christmas Night).
The work rises and falls in tempo and volume as it tells aspects of the Christmas story. It starts and ends quietly (if you think the choir have gone on strike, the final marking is ‘pppp’!)
The S.L.S. will also be including a number of shorter carols including Herbert Howells’ beautiful setting of ‘A Spotless Rose’, based on words which may date back as far as the 14th Century. This poem makes analogy between, on the one hand, a perfect rose bud borne by a strong root, flowering in the cold, and Christ and the Virgin Mary on the other. Bizarrely, the composer said that he was idly watching shunting steam trains from his window when he was inspired to write this lovely piece which is much admire, especially for the final slightly unexpected, set of chords
Needless to say, amongst other items by the choir, there will also be opportunities for the audience to join in (loudly!)
Saturday 13 December
Tickets free with donations welcome.However, please do reserve your place to avoid disappointment. Do this by going to our online box office.
Doors open 18:30 and the concert will run from 19:00 until about 21:00
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