Belshazzar’s Feast ‘a tremendous wall of sound’ – Review
Saturday 11 June 2022
Covid and the absence of Russian musicians after the invasion of Ukraine made this another difficult year for the Sheffield International Concert season, yet it ended not with a whimper but a magnificent bang.
In fact, it was more of a tremendous wall of sound created by an orchestra nearly a hundred strong, augmented by trumpeters in the wings, and the combined forces of two of Yorkshires’ finest choirs, totalling 150 singers.
The occasion was a performance of William Walton’s Belshazzar’s Feast, set to words from the Bible chosen by Osbert Sitwell of Renishaw Hall, just outside Sheffield and, to steal a line from this dramatic cantata, when it was weighed in the balance it was not found wanting.
The young conductor Finnegan Downie Dear extracted supercharged performances of the powerful and sometimes jazz-inflected score from both the band and the combined choirs, the Sheffield Philharmonic and Leeds Festival choruses.
The choir was particularly impressive after having sat patiently through the first half of the evening waiting for their moment, and the Sheffield Phil’s choirmaster Darius Battiwalla rightly appeared to share in the enthusiastic applause.
That was the highlight of an all-British evening which began with the atmospheric Sea Interludes, from Benjamin Britten’s opera Peter Grimes, with the Halle sensitively catching the changing moods of the four sections, from still dawn to noisy storm.
The evening’s other offering was another piece of programme music, the young British composer Thomas Ades’ Inferno, written for a ballet version of Dante’s Divine Comedy.
Being able to see dancers interpreting this piece would have helped the audience follow the musical storyline here, but overall this concert was an impressive climax to a problematic season.
Philip Andrews, Sheffield Telegraph
Previous News Items
11 June 2022 Belshazzar’s Feast a tremendous wall of sound – Review
22 April 2022 Chorus hosts French and German singers
16 April 2022 BRITISH BANDSMAN: Black Dyke set for choral collaboration
02 April 4BARSREST: European links for Messiah
29 March 2022 Chorus welcome French and German visitors
14 March 2022 Chorus collect almost £2,000 for Ukraine Appeal
05 March 2022 Russian concert in aid of Ukraine
Tuesday 15 December 2020 ‘Tis the season…..
20 October 2020 Chorus CD tops the charts!
21 July 2020 Music Director gives on-line recital for Yorkshire Day
6 July 2020 Music Director’s beautiful Messiah arrangement
28 June 2020 Chorus starts on-line rehearsals
18 June 2020 Music Director joins choral greats in highlighting challenges faced by choirs
16 June 2020 The Guardian – Covid-19 has silences choirs
18 May 2020 Chorus supports its locked-down musicians
23 March 2020 Concerts postponed and rehearsals cancelled
2 February 2020 Chorus to sing Messiah with French and German visitors
2019
17 December 2019 REVIEW: Sheffield’s Christmas concert tradition
16 December 2019 Carol wins Classic FM competition
15 December 2019 Sheffield Telegraph – Chorus in finals of national carol competition
14 November 2019 REVIEW – ‘Beautifully and intricately rendered by the choir’
8 November 2019 Bring a Man Night
2 November 2019 Chorus to present Bochum gift to Lord Mayor
23 Sept 2019 Chorus kick off BBC Music Day on Fargate
12 June 2019 REVIEW Holy Face Sheffield Telegraph
07 April 2019 Bach’s compendium; SPC /Royal Northern Sinfonia, City Hall
1 Feb 2019 Chorus members sing Messiah in Germany
2018
28 Dec New Year’s Honour for local choir President
6 Dec 2018 Excellent programme from the Chorus
26 Oct 2018 Composer thrilled with recording
28 July 2018 Yorkshire Post celebrates publication of 1911 World Tour Book
23 July 2018 Chorus members sing in France during World Cup
20 July 2018 Tour de France for Sheffield Choir
03 July 2018 Chorus prepares to deliver French mini tour
14 June 2018 Up Close and Personal
11 June 2018 Audience thrilled by Rossini and original Mustel harmonium
31 May 2018 Chorus and harmonium in perfect harmony
11 May 2018 ‘Outstanding’ – Chorus ends Mahler tour on high note
30 April 2018 Review: Bruckner Orchester Linz, Usher Hall, Edinburgh, four stars
30 April 2018 Chorus sing a ‘blazing’ Mahler 2 in Edinburgh
29 April 2018 ‘Assertive Mahler’ Simon Thompson, Seen and Heard International
12 Feb 2018 Chorus sings with Sheffield mezzo soprano
3 Feb 2018 World premiere ‘an emotive journey’
12 Jan 2018 Chorus on journey to Paradise
2017
11 Dec 2017 Calypso Carol on Classic FM
15 Oct 2017 Composer thrilled with premiere of his new work
3 July 2017 Chorus records new CD
6 April 2017 Stairs? No problem!
24 April 2017 Open Letter from the Chair: The relevance of classical music.
20 March 2017 It’s a fact – Singing is good for you!
pre-2016
16 May 2016 140th birthday celebrations
16 Feb 2016 What’s your ‘Fantasy Concert’?
18 Oct 2015 Sisters Steal Away
18 Feb 2013 Rachmaninov – will Chorus be reaching for the vodka?
8 Oct 2012 Free choral workshops and a welcome return for Handel’s Messiah
8 Aug 2012 Free choral workshops and a year full of singing
17 June 2012 Olympic Dreams – Will it be Singin’ in The Rain or Mr Blue Skies?
16 Apr 2012 Contemporary composers take centre stage
16 Apr 2012 New community links in Sheffield
3 April 2012 Bronte Mass ‘impressive’
12 Feb 2012 Alight: Eclectic music lines up to take centre stage as part of the Cultural Olympiad
13 Jan 2012 Scaling The Heights – Singclude Breaks Down Barriers For Disabled Singers
24 Feb 2011 Three-fold choral debut
22 Nov 2010 Songs of Praise – Chorus celebrate 75th Anniversary year with audience of over 2 million
</a=””>
