Wordsworth Singers, Crosthwaite Church, Keswick
CONCERTS at Crosthwaite 2016 got off to a resounding start with a concert by the award-winning Wordsworth Singers under the inspiring leadership of their conductor Mark Hindley. It was an unusual programme and the concert was well supported by a large and enthusiastic audience.
The outstanding work was the Mass in E flat for double choir by Josef Rheinberger, an influential figure both as a composer and teacher in Munich. In this fine mass setting the two four-part choirs often sing answering phrases antiphonally, and there is much beautiful counterpoint interweaving throughout the texture. The Wordsworth Singers brought out these features most effectively, with a wide range of warm expression.
Three hundred years earlier the leading Flemish composer Orlande de Lassus was also appointed to the court at Munich. His set of motets entitled Prophetiae Sibyllarum (Prophecies of the Sibyls) was an enterprising choice and there were many good features, including choral blend and balance, but in some quieter and more chromatic passages the pitch was not always consistent.
Mendelssohn’s Six Motets, written for Berlin Cathedral, displayed contrasting styles and included a solo quartet: Julie Leavett, Pippa Mayfield, Pete Bowyer and Simon Mortimer.
Ian Hare
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