Musical fireworks
Fri, 01 Jun 2012 16:08:00 BST
Students serve up a Royal showcase – including the luscious anthem composed for William and Kate
A HISTORIC Huddersfield church-turned-concert hall is transformed into a miniature Westminster Abbey for a Diamond Jubilee event that recreates spectacular Royal events spanning almost 300 years.
And audiences will have the chance to hear again the sumptuous choral piece ‘Ubi Caritas’, composed by Paul Mealor, which proved a huge hit when sung at the wedding of Prince William and Kate Middleton in 2011.
The concert takes place at St Paul’s Hall at the University of Huddersfield on Monday 11 June (7.30pm). It opens a week of showcase concerts featuring dozens of students.
The Diamond Jubilee concert opens with compositions by Handel, including his Music for the Royal Fireworks plus the anthem ‘My Heart Is Inditing’, first performed in honour of Queen Caroline when her husband George II was crowned at Westminster Abbey in 1727.
The University’s choir and its baroque orchestra will perform these works, conducted by Professor John Bryan.
Then there is a leap of 284 years for a performance of the luscious ‘Ubi Caritas’, from the 2011 Royal wedding.
“It is a lovely piece, with beautiful, slow moving harmonies,” says Professor Bryan. “It works really well in a spacious acoustic such as St Paul’s Hall. The students have loved working on it.”
The second half of the 11 June concert is occupied by the University of Huddersfield Brass Band, conducted by Phillip McCann. Royal and patriotic music is the keynote, with numbers such as Elgar’s ‘Pomp and Circumstance’ – alias ‘Land of Hope and Glory’ – Parry’s ‘Jerusalem’, Walton’s coronation march ‘Crown Imperial’, an instrumental fantasy on ‘Rule Britannia’ and Philip Sparke’s ‘Jubilee Overture’.
After the opening Diamond Jubilee concert, the showcase series continues for the following three days:
- Tuesday 12 June (5pm) : St Paul’s Hall – University Saxophone Ensemble
- Tuesday 12 June (7.30pm) : Phipps Concert Hall – Music Technology Showcase
- Wednesday 13 June (12.15pm ) : St Paul’s Hall – Open Day Concert. Solo and chamber works from students' final recitals alongside works for electronics and video
- Wednesday 13 June (7.30pm) : St Paul’s Hall – String Orchestra, Chamber Choir, and solo and chamber items
- Thursday 14 June (7.30pm) : St Paul’s Hall – University Orchestra, Symphonic Wind Orchestra and Big Band
To book tickets online for any of the Summer Showcase events, please visit http://www.store.hud.ac.uk/ or contact 01484 473020 (email livemusic@hud.ac.uk).
