The Golden Age - Summer Concert
Magnificent Magnificat
Last Saturday a packed Christ Church, Skipton, thrilled to the sound of mid-17th to early 18th-Century sacred music, beneficiaries of Skipton Choral Society’s enterprising policy, under its Director, Robert Webb, of performing lesser known masterworks of the choral repertoire. Here was an exploration of operatic contrasts and audacity from ‘The Golden Age’ of the Italian Baroque. Mr Webb’s musical expertise was evident throughout, as was the quality of the vocal soloists and the Otley Baroque Ensemble, led by violinist Asuka Sumi, playing on period instruments.
The programme opened with two Monteverdi motets: Beatus Vir with its lively, dance-like rhythms and quasi minimalist repetitions, preceded by Christe adoramus te - mystical fervour conveyed by the block chordal opening, followed by climbing chromatic lines. In Beatus Vir the choir were complemented by two violins playing quick intertwining lines. A little raggedness notwithstanding, the work was well sung.
In Purcell’s early verse anthem, My Beloved Spake, soloists alternated with instrumental ‘symphonies’. The performance was well paced and stirring. Small inconsistencies in vocal style, rhythmic detail and attack possibly reflected the lack of a conductor. Striking harmonies, together with ‘blue note’ clashes, illustrated the sensuality of a text drawn from the Song of Solomon.
The youthful confidence of Pergolesi’s Confitebor tibi Domine was energetically projected. Sopranos and altos sang strongly against fast moving strings. Momentary uncertain pitching was quickly turned round and forgotten amidst distinguished singing by soloists Dominique Simpson (soprano) and Csenge Kosaras (alto), characterised by strength and clarity of tone, together with confident realisation of operatic passages. After a majestic start to the Gloria, the opening music returned, with some lovely duetting by the soloists. The work drew towards its triumphant conclusion in a breathless series of Amens.
Isabella Leonarda, Mother Superior of her convent, was also a composer. In Gloriosa mater domini the soloists (including Jennifer Webb (soprano)) formed a choir to give a well balanced account of this complex and lively music.
Skipton Choral Society brought incisiveness to Alessandro Scarlatti’s Magnificat, from the astonishingly beautiful opening with its overlapping voices to the complex counterpoint of the Gloria. Individual soloists had some operatic coloratura. They sang beautifully in trios, alternating with full choir on top form. The final moments had a transcendental quality which left one in no doubt as to the greatness of the work or to the high quality of the performance.
Dr Timothy Raymond
Photos courtesy of Alan Hassey
Spring Concert 2026
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Winter Concert 2025
Dvorak - Mass in D, Parry - Hear My Words
Summer Concert 2025
Spring Concert 2025
SKIPTON Choral Society, joined by pupils from Ermysted’s Grammar School and Skipton Girls’ High School, presented a richly varied and engaging programme under the direction of musical director Robert Webb.
The afternoon at Christ Church, Skipton, opened with three works by Howard Goodall, including the much-loved “The Lord is My Shepherd”, performed with warmth and sensitivity. The choir demonstrated great finesse in tackling the intricate harmonies of Ola Gjeilo’s “Dark Night of the Soul” and the ethereal beauty of Eric Whitacre’s “The Seal Lullaby”.
A standout moment came with Felix Mendelssohn’s “Hear My Prayer”, featuring soprano soloist Nina Parkes. Her radiant and expressive delivery of ”O for the Wings of a Dove” was particularly moving, drawing the audience into the emotional depth of the piece.
Brahms’ “Vier Quartette” was performed with care, though there were moments of hesitation. While the choir captured the richness of the Romantic textures and interplay of voices, there was a slight lack of confidence in places. Nevertheless, the lyrical beauty of Brahms’ writing was conveyed well, making for an enjoyable rendition.
The concert concluded with Christopher Tin’s” Sogno di Volare”, an exhilarating finale that encapsulated the afternoon’s sense of musical exploration. Accompanist Robin Terry and the supporting string ensemble provided excellent backing throughout, enhancing the choir’s expressive range.
The school choirs contributed ably to “The Lord is My Shepherd” and “Sogno di Volare”, and, under the lively direction of Sarah Evans with accompaniment from Ed Cox, brought vibrant energy to Cy Coleman’s “Rhythm of Life”. Their performance was a joyful and dynamic contrast to the more reflective moments of the afternoon.
Overall, the concert was a testament to the choir’s versatility, moving seamlessly between sacred and contemporary works. The audience left uplifted, having enjoyed an afternoon of beautifully performed choral music.
Ian Butlin
Photos courtesy of Alan Hassey
Winter Concert 2024
Christmas Celebration, Voices and Brass at Skipton Town Hall and Selby Abbey
We were once again accompanied by the wonderful York Railway Institute Band, for a very Christmassy programme, including Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on Christmas Carols, excerpts from Handel’s Messiah, familiar carols and a few works from local composers.
Summer 2024 Concert
Winter 2023
Summer 2023
The Sprig of Thyme, Saturday, July 1 2023 Christ Church, Skipton.
SKIPTON Choral were in fine voice for their summer concert, under conductor Robert Webb and accompanied by a fine instrumental ensemble led by Louise Jones.
The first half consisted of “A Sprig of Thyme”, a sequence of British folk songs in generally unpretentious arrangements by John Rutter.
It was a real treat to hear these lovely melodies, more and less familiar, sung with such beautiful tone and phrasing; all sections of the choir shared the honours, but sopranos and tenors in particular stood out.
Sadly the words fared less well in the resonant acoustic of Christ Church; perhaps in future the choir could consider printing the words in the programme, even for music in English, and especially for songs which tell a story? The instrumental group accompanied with great sensitivity, with notable contributions from harp, flute and viola.
After the interval we exchanged rural England for 18th century Venice and Vivaldi’s ever fresh setting of the Gloria. Choir and orchestra brought fine verve and rhythmic drive to the fast movements and sensitive and expressive phrasing to the quieter “Et in terra pax” and “Domine Deus, agnus Dei”. Soloist Beth Mackay brought off a real tour-de-force by singing all the solo numbers, soprano and alto, and would no doubt have sung both parts in the duet “Laudamus te” had multi-tracking facilities been available (as it was, Robert’s flexible falsetto voice provided her “echo”).
Among the many nice touches from the instruments the string playing in “Laudamus te” and the oboe solo in “Domine Deus, rex coelestis” were outstanding. Altogether a most enjoyable performance, and a fine ending to a year’s music making.
Spring Concert 2023
SKIPTON CHORAL SOCIETY
Spring Concert 2023
A capacity audience, a ticket sell out and a few unlucky people turned away at the door marked the triumphant beginning of Skipton Choral Society’s Easter concert in Christ Church, Skipton.
The musical director, Robert Webb, began the concert with an intensely moving work by the American composer Morten Lauridsen, ‘Lux Aeterna’, a five movement requiem for choir and chamber orchestra. An ethereal opening by the orchestra was followed by a beautifully sung first entry from the choir enhanced by crystal clear diction. Just occasionally, in the fortissimo moments, the choir was obscured by the orchestral accompaniment, but otherwise they were sympathetically supported by the chamber orchestra. The first movement ended with a beautiful cello accompaniment. The unaccompanied singing in the other movements was moving. The men sang with depth and conviction, the sopranos soared and in ‘O Nata Lux’ were ably supported by the subtle alto parts. The ‘Veni, Sancte Spiritus’ was particularly uplifting.
In the second half of the concert we heard a work by the popular Welsh composer, Karl Jenkins, ‘Symphonic Adiemus’, consisting of twelve pieces from his ‘Adiemus’ series. The text used is a pseudo Latin ‘invented language’ created by Mr Jenkins, the lyrics themselves having no meaning. The layers of voices are used as another instrument.
This choral and orchestral creation follows the formula established with his ‘Mass for Peace’. Some of the twelve sections had beautiful orchestral opening passages, featuring sensitive playing from the brass and then the string sections. But much of Jenkins’ musical language is basic and repetitive, with a heavy use of percussive ostinato. The choir are to be congratulated on making these repetitive elements sound varied and fresh.
One heart warming element of this concert was the inclusion of a joint choir from Skipton Girls’ High School and Ermysted’s Grammar School They obviously relished the work and had been very well rehearsed. There were no heads in copies - take note, gentlemen of the chorus! Instead they watched the conductor and were accurate with their entries. The teaching staff must be congratulated for their meticulous preparation of these young people, who seemed to thoroughly enjoy being part of this performance.
Robert Webb, the musical director, has a sensitive and deep rapport with the chorus. His meticulous preparation is patently obvious, and the choice of programme items was inspired, given the participation of so many young choristers.
Val Middleton
