Levens Choir,

Kendal Parish Church

 

Performing Bach’s Bminor Mass is a huge undertaking, a big sing and play for everyone, and a superb opportunity for the singers to have the chance to perform this work here, writes Anice Paterson. Congratulations to Ian Jones for making it all happen for them.

Managing the natural imbalance between a small baroque orchestra and a big, warm romantic choir was hard and not always successful. The balance worked well with the soloists mostly, though it did get a bit lost in the big space. The tenor was a bit too operatic for my taste and didn’t blend so well with the other soloists and the bass was a bit light, but sopranos Laurie Ashworth and Joyce Tindsley were terrific, especially in their well matched duet and the nicely shaped and expressive Agnus Dei. The band was light and accurate, there was some lovely oboe d’amore playing and they made the rhythmic most of the many dance-like movements. And in the high spots, a superb trio of high trumpeters were thrilling! We had all the range of expression Bach was looking for, including the dramatic moments in the strange and eerie ‘Et incarnatus est’ – even a church bell joined in more or less in time! In letting rip in the ‘Et Resurrexit’, some of the singers in the back were so excited they were dancing while they sang. By the time they got to the Cum Sancto Spiritu before the interval it finally felt completely Bachian in style, full but very well pointed.

The drive and fiery enthusiasm of the choir made up for any of the imperfections in a few indistinct and occasionally unravelling entries and in the very difficult runs they have to negotiate. It’s a long sing and tiredness did mean some occasional slips in pitch towards the end, but they were often incisive, confident, even exultant as well. This is virtuoso stuff and Levens Choir carried it with conviction, allowing Bach to go driving on through it all. Again the good number of young people in the choir gives one heart for the future of choral singing. What an opportunity for them.

The very full house in the parish church was rightly most appreciative and loved every minute of it.