Saturday October 7th 2006, Victoria Hall, Sheffield
-
Rachmaninov Vespers (excerpts)
-
Finzi God is gone up
-
John Tavener Two carols
-
Bruckner Two motets
-
Haydn Missa Brevis
-
Vaughan Williams Antiphon
Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus
Graham Eccles (organ), Darius Battiwalla
Saturday December 2nd 2006, Sheffield City Hall
Christmas Concert
Sarah Walker (compere)
Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus
Hallé Orchestra, Darius Battiwalla
Friday March 2nd 2007, 7.30pm, Sheffield City Hall
-
Orff: Carmina Burana
-
Vaughan Williams: Towards the Unknown Region
-
Vaughan Williams: Tallis Fantasia
Gillian Keith (soprano), Mark Milhofer (tenor), Jeremy Huw Williams (baritone)
Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus
Manchester Camerata, Darius Battiwalla
“Conductor Darius Battiwalla seemed to have a grasp of Orff’s eccentric musical architecture and his chorus sang as if they believed every word. […] The chorus’ diction was better than it had been in an otherwise superbly sung Toward the Unknown Region by Vaughan Williams.” Sheffield Telegraph
Sunday April 1st 2007, 4.00pm, Sheffield City Hall
-
Vivaldi: Gloria
-
Handel: Dixit Dominus, Zadok the Priest
-
Vivaldi: Spring
Bradley Creswick (violin)
Gillian Keith, Elizabeth Cragg (sopranos), Frances Bourne (mezzo), Ed Lyon (tenor), David Soar (bass)
Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus
Northern Sinfonia, Darius Battiwalla
Friday April 6th 2007, Audimax Hall, Universität Bochum, Germany
-
Mozart: Requiem
-
Mozart: Fantasie f-moll für Orgel solo
-
Dupré: Symphony for Organ and Orchestra [Harry Curtis (conductor)]
Wayne Marshall (organ)
Violet Noorduyn (soprano), Anjara Ingrid Bartz (alto), Robert Getchell (tenor), Thorsten Gümbel (bass)
Bochum Philharmonischer Chor, Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus
Bochum Symphoniker, Wayne Marshall
“Mozarts Requiem ist ein außergewöhnliches, dunkles Werk für Chor, Solisten und Orchester und nie ist seine Aufführung stimmiger als an einem Karfreitag. Mit den großartigen Solisten Violet Noorduyn (Sopran), Anjara Ingrid Bartz (Alt), Robert Getchell (Tenor) und Thorsten Grümbel (Bass), die mit einer unprätentiösen Art des Vortrags glänzten, und den stimmgewaltigen Philharmonischen Chören aus Bochum und Sheffield, brachten die Symphoniker die Komposition überzeugend zu Gehör.” Ruhr Nachrichten
Saturday May 19th 2007, Leeds Town Hall
Elgar: The Apostles
Janice Watson (soprano), Jane Irwin (alto), Christopher Gillett (tenor), Christopher Purves, Ashley Holland (baritone), Paul Whelan (bass)
Leeds Philharmonic Chorus, Leeds Girls’ Junior & High School Choirs, Sheffield Philharmonic Chorus
Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, David Hill
“In celebrating the 150th anniversary of Elgar’s birth, the Leeds and Sheffield Philharmonic Choruses joined with the Leeds Girls’ High School choir to give a thrilling reading. The male voices were uncommonly robust and ideally balanced the larger female departments.” Yorkshire Post
“Elgar always regarded Gerontius as his finest work but his orchestration for The Apostles is richer and brilliantly coloured, particularly in relation to his portrayal of the individual characters represented by the soloists. The soloists, chorus and orchestra are much more closely integrated as participants in the unfolding drama. All the more reason to cherish last Saturday’s remarkable performance presided over by David Hill, Leeds Philharmonic Society’s dynamic Music Director. Hill is a renowned choral conductor who always creates a bright, vivid impression. His realisation of Elgar does not contain a hint of stodginess; choral and orchestral textures were always cystal clear and every subtle detail carefully revealed. Hill’s mastery of structure, essential for a colossal work such as this, was absolute. The stellar line-up of soloists consisted of soprano Janice Watson as Mary, contralto Jane Irwin as Mary Magdalene, tenor Christopher Gillett as John; basses Christopher Purves as Peter, Paul Whelan as Judas and Ashley Holland as Jesus — placed high up in a balcony box from where his voice cast an aura of mysticism over the performance. An enthralling evening and a sublime finale to the 2006/07 Leeds International Concert Season.” Ilkley Gazrette