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PRESS RELEASES
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ANNIVERSARY MESSIAH AT THE MONASTERY
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Poynton-based choir, St George's Singers, will be performing one of the most famous of all choral works on Saturday 26th November, when they sing Handel's Messiah in the splendid surroundings of Gorton Monastery. This is the first time the Choir has sung Messiah in its entirety for some years, and they are doing so now to celebrate the 400th anniversary of the publication of the 1611 King James Bible (or Authorised Bible), the words of which Handel used when composing Messiah.
St George's Singers will be joined on this occasion by Northern Baroque Orchestra, and four wonderful young soloists: Ruth Jenkins, Laura Kelly, Richard Dowling, and an old favourite of St George's Singers, baritone Marcus Farnsworth. Marcus was for a number of years the Choir's Assistant Conductor, whilst he was studying at Manchester University. He then went to study at the Royal Academy of Music in London, from where he launched his career as a recitalist and opera singer. In 2009 he won the Wigmore Hall International Song competition and more recently the Kathleen Ferrier Song competition, whilst opera roles have included an acclaimed performance in Turnage's Greek. Marcus is widely regarded as one of the most promising rising stars of the future.
Tickets for Messiah are available from 01663 764012, email tickets@st-georges-singers.org.uk, or online from the Choir's website at www.st-georges-singers.org.uk. Coach transport is available from Poynton/Hazel Grove to the Monastery (£5 or free to Friends), and group discounts are also available. As usual, St George's Singers will be donating profits from the concert to the Monastery to support the ongoing restoration work in this magnificent building. |
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YOGA-SING WORKSHOP A GREAT SUCCESS
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A group of singers assembled last weekend, Saturday 3rd September, in Brookside Primary School in High Lane for a most unusual event: a workshop that took the participants through a strenuous day of yoga combined with singing. The workshop was organised by Poynton-based choir, St George's Singers, and 30 singers took part, including members of St George's as well as singers from other choirs in the North West.
The workshop was the brainchild of Manchester-based singer and vocal coach Richard Strivens and Iyengar yoga teacher Carolyn Ferguson. Richard has been practising yoga with Carolyn for a number of years, and the two had been discussing the possibility of running a workshop for singers for some time, but had never taken it forward. Then in early 2011, Carolyn was approached by Susan Hodgson, a keen yoga practitioner who also sings with St George’s Singers, to write an article for the choir’s newsletter on the benefits of yoga for singers. In the course of preparing the article, Carolyn and Richard mentioned the workshop - and St George's Singers jumped at the chance.
Richard and Carolyn put the group through their singing and yoga paces, sometimes in full groups and sometimes splitting into sections doing a mix of singing and yoga, though not at the same time! The main things covered on the day were the importance of good posture as an aid to good singing technique, how to sit properly, place your feet, and also how to use yoga to relax, which greatly aids breathing in singing.
All in all, the day was most enjoyable, and feedback from participants was very positive. For anyone interested in hearing about future Yoga-Sing workshops, please contact Susan Hodgson on publicity@st-georges-singers.org.uk, or tel 0161 338 3013. |
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EASTERN VOICES RING OUT AT THE MONASTERY
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Following their triumph at the Bridgewater Hall in March with Bach's St John Passion, St George's Singers' next concert at Gorton Monastery on Saturday 25th June at 7.30 pm features a programme of beautiful choral music from the lands of Eastern Europe, in a concert entitled 'Eastern Voices'. The Choir will be joined by acclaimed harpist Louise Thomson, and tenor Richard Dowling who will be singing Dvořák's famous Songs my mother taught me and other items from the composer's Gypsy Melodies.
Much of the music composed in the early part of the 20th century in Eastern Europe was strongly influenced by the traditional folk music of the region, and the music in this concert reflects this resurgence of interest. The choral works to be performed include two by the Hungarian composer Zoltan Kodály: the Missa Brevis, a remarkably dramatic work, premiered during the Second World War when the composer was in hiding in Budapest Opera House during the siege of Budapest; and Pange Lingua, one of Kodály's most popular works.
The Czech Leos Janácek is better known as an opera composer, but one of his most powerful and dramatic works was his setting of the Lord's Prayer (Otce Nas) which St George's Singers will be performing for the first time. The work was written to accompany a series of 'tableaux vivants' based on paintings by a Czech artist, each of the five sections of the music illustrating one of the scenes - a choral equivalent of Mussorgsky's Pictures at an Exhibition. The other choral piece by Janácek is his Mass in E flat, an unfinished work that has recently been re-edited and completed for performance.
Poland is represented by Henryk Górecki, whose sublime Totus Tuus was written for the visit of Pope John Paul II to Warsaw in 1987. It was last performed by St George's Singers at the Monastery two years ago, and is a great favourite with the audience there.
St George's Singers' Chair, Anne Francis, believes that the Monastery is the perfect place to listen to this lovely music. "The wonderful acoustics of the building combined with the atmosphere of serenity and contemplation that surrounds it will make this an unforgettable concert for singers, musicians and audience alike. If you have never heard some of this music - in particular the Czech Lord's Prayer, and Górecki's Totus Tuus - then you are in for a real treat!"
Tickets are £12, £10 concessions, £2 students and children, and are available from St George's Singers Ticket Hotline: 01663 764012, email tickets@st-georges-singers.org.uk, or online at the Choir's website. Group discounts are also available.
Transport from the Poynton/Hazel Grove area to Gorton Monastery is also provided by St George's Singers, and seats can be reserved when buying tickets. |
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