John Clift 2005-2011
.JS Bach’s Christmas Oratorio was performed in St Andrew’s Church on December 10, 2005 under the choir’s new conductor John Clift. The soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano, Linda Parsons, alto, James Atherton, tenor and Paul Hedley, bass.
In April of the following year the choir undertook two pieces, Messa di Gloriam by Puccini and Vivaldi’s Gloria. The venue for this concert was St Peter’s Church, Leckhampton. James Atherton was the tenor and Paul Headley the bass soloist.
The Summer Concert and Supper, given in Churchdown Community Centre on July 8, 2006 gave the choir the opportunity to sing a wide range of songs, from Handel, with songs from The King shall Rejoice, to Songs of Love by Brahms. The soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano and on the piano were Anne- Marie Kok, John Clift and the choir’s rehearsal accompanist, David Williams.
On March 31 in St Andrew’s Church the choir performed two works, Stabat Mater, by Rossini and Messe Solennelle, by Gounod. The soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano, Karen Longmate, alto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and Paul Headley, bass. The orchestra leader was Geoffrey Short.
For the Summer Concert the choir chose a welcome departure from the traditional fare, by presenting a shortened concert version of Showboat. Given in Churchdown Community Centre on July 7, 2007 the concert featured Julienne Reeves, as Julie; Mary Brigg as Magnolia, James Blofield as Ravenal and Edward Chetcuti as Joe,
The narrator was Barry Woods, the conductor was John Clift and at the piano was the sensational Ashok Gupta.
December 8, 2007 saw a brilliant performance of Handel’s perennial favourite, Messiah. In this performance given in St Andrew’s Church the soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano, Karen Longmate, alto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and Paul Headley, bass.
Saturday April 19, 2008 saw a first for the choir; a performance of Karl Jenkin’s The Armed Man and Requiem. The local paper reported that ‘ The Armed Man is an extremely powerful account of the descent into and the terrible consequences of war. The choir and soloists were in excellent form and negotiated the intricate rhythms and exciting tempi with skill and assurance. Particularly impressive were the orchestra’s percussion and brass sections’.
The Summer Concert on July 2008 comprised extracts from G&S HMS Pinafore given in Churchdown Community Centre. All the soloists were members of the choir and the performance was enjoyed by an appreciative audience.
A Ceremony of Carols by Britten and Fantasia were sung in the choir’s Christmas offering on December 6 in St Andrew’s Church. The soloists were Melanie Armistead, soprano, William Armiger, baritone, Jennifer Broome, harp and Neil Fortin, organ.
The April concert of 2009 featured the Creation by Haydn. In the concert given in St Andrew’s Church the soloists were Melanie Armistead, soprano, Ralph Barnes, tenor, David Parsons, bass and the leader of the 36 piece orchestra was Geoffrey Short.
The choir for its Summer Concert in Churchdown Community Centre harked back to an earlier time of the choir to revive Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast, last performed in 2000. The other work was extracts from the Phantom of the Opera by Lloyd - Webber.
There was an extra concert given in 2009. In response to a request from Help for Heroes a concert was given in Gloucester Cathedral on October 7 when the choir joined forces with the male voice choirs of Churchdown and Cotswold, the Gloucestershire Constabulary Band and soloists. The choir performed Parry’s I was Glad, The Old Hundredth and In Paradisum from Faure’ s Raquiem. The soloists were William Armiger, bass and Martin Dear, tenor.
Messe Solennelle by Rossini was the work chosen for the December concert given on the 5th of that month in St Andrew’s Church. The soloists were Melanie Armitstead, soprano, Jenny Warnham, contralto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and David Stewart, bass. The pianist was Andrew Hansford and the harmonium was played by Jacqueline Adams.
Mendelssohn’s Elijah was the chosen piece for the beginning of 2010. Because of the early snow the concert had to be changed from its original date in April to May 8. The choir was augmented by singers brought in by John Clift and the soloists were Kathryn Skipp, soprano, Jenny Wornham, alto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and David Parsons, bass.
Last Night of the Proms was the billing for the Summer Concert given in Churchdown Community Centre on Saturday July 3. A musical journey through the British Isles, was an arrangement of folk songs. There were songs from Phantom of the Opera featured and songs from Parry included I was Glad and Blest Pair of sirens. Sue Black was the guest soloist and as a complete change choir member Barry Woods recited The Ballad of Joe Lee, which told the unlikely tale of a cross-channel swimmer.
The offering for Christmas of 2010 was the part 1 of Messiah with Halleluia Chorus plus some seasonal carols. The soloists were Tina Power, soprano, Karen Longmate, contralto, in place of an indisposed Jenny Wornham, Ralph Barnes, tenor. The organist was Cameron Luke.
The Easter Concert of 2011 required a leap of faith by the committee when they took on the task of performing Karl Jenkin's Stabat Mater, with a large orchestra. The choir's usual venue of St Andrew's Church, Churchdown was too small to accommodate the forces neccessary and so the decision was taken to hold the concert in All Saints, Cheltenham. It says a lot for the publicity received from the local media that the concert was a huge success and played to an almost full church. The concert began with Faure's Requim and the soloists were William Armiger and in the Pie Jesu the treble solo was taken by Nicholas Holland. The soloist in the Stabat Mater was Jenny Wornham. The concert was dedicated to the memory of Sue Parker.
The Summer Concert for 2011 in Churchdown Community Centre saw the retirement of John Clift as Musical Drector. The programme chosen was A Night at the Opera (without the boring bits) and the soloist was the delightful soprano Kate Bennett. The choir sang a range of operatic choruses including Polovtsian Dances by Borodin, to Easter Hymn by Mascagni. The concert also saw the retirement of David Williams after 20 years service with the choir.
In April of the following year the choir undertook two pieces, Messa di Gloriam by Puccini and Vivaldi’s Gloria. The venue for this concert was St Peter’s Church, Leckhampton. James Atherton was the tenor and Paul Headley the bass soloist.
The Summer Concert and Supper, given in Churchdown Community Centre on July 8, 2006 gave the choir the opportunity to sing a wide range of songs, from Handel, with songs from The King shall Rejoice, to Songs of Love by Brahms. The soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano and on the piano were Anne- Marie Kok, John Clift and the choir’s rehearsal accompanist, David Williams.
On March 31 in St Andrew’s Church the choir performed two works, Stabat Mater, by Rossini and Messe Solennelle, by Gounod. The soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano, Karen Longmate, alto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and Paul Headley, bass. The orchestra leader was Geoffrey Short.
For the Summer Concert the choir chose a welcome departure from the traditional fare, by presenting a shortened concert version of Showboat. Given in Churchdown Community Centre on July 7, 2007 the concert featured Julienne Reeves, as Julie; Mary Brigg as Magnolia, James Blofield as Ravenal and Edward Chetcuti as Joe,
The narrator was Barry Woods, the conductor was John Clift and at the piano was the sensational Ashok Gupta.
December 8, 2007 saw a brilliant performance of Handel’s perennial favourite, Messiah. In this performance given in St Andrew’s Church the soloists were Dorothy Fitzgerald, soprano, Karen Longmate, alto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and Paul Headley, bass.
Saturday April 19, 2008 saw a first for the choir; a performance of Karl Jenkin’s The Armed Man and Requiem. The local paper reported that ‘ The Armed Man is an extremely powerful account of the descent into and the terrible consequences of war. The choir and soloists were in excellent form and negotiated the intricate rhythms and exciting tempi with skill and assurance. Particularly impressive were the orchestra’s percussion and brass sections’.
The Summer Concert on July 2008 comprised extracts from G&S HMS Pinafore given in Churchdown Community Centre. All the soloists were members of the choir and the performance was enjoyed by an appreciative audience.
A Ceremony of Carols by Britten and Fantasia were sung in the choir’s Christmas offering on December 6 in St Andrew’s Church. The soloists were Melanie Armistead, soprano, William Armiger, baritone, Jennifer Broome, harp and Neil Fortin, organ.
The April concert of 2009 featured the Creation by Haydn. In the concert given in St Andrew’s Church the soloists were Melanie Armistead, soprano, Ralph Barnes, tenor, David Parsons, bass and the leader of the 36 piece orchestra was Geoffrey Short.
The choir for its Summer Concert in Churchdown Community Centre harked back to an earlier time of the choir to revive Hiawatha’s Wedding Feast, last performed in 2000. The other work was extracts from the Phantom of the Opera by Lloyd - Webber.
There was an extra concert given in 2009. In response to a request from Help for Heroes a concert was given in Gloucester Cathedral on October 7 when the choir joined forces with the male voice choirs of Churchdown and Cotswold, the Gloucestershire Constabulary Band and soloists. The choir performed Parry’s I was Glad, The Old Hundredth and In Paradisum from Faure’ s Raquiem. The soloists were William Armiger, bass and Martin Dear, tenor.
Messe Solennelle by Rossini was the work chosen for the December concert given on the 5th of that month in St Andrew’s Church. The soloists were Melanie Armitstead, soprano, Jenny Warnham, contralto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and David Stewart, bass. The pianist was Andrew Hansford and the harmonium was played by Jacqueline Adams.
Mendelssohn’s Elijah was the chosen piece for the beginning of 2010. Because of the early snow the concert had to be changed from its original date in April to May 8. The choir was augmented by singers brought in by John Clift and the soloists were Kathryn Skipp, soprano, Jenny Wornham, alto, Ralph Barnes, tenor and David Parsons, bass.
Last Night of the Proms was the billing for the Summer Concert given in Churchdown Community Centre on Saturday July 3. A musical journey through the British Isles, was an arrangement of folk songs. There were songs from Phantom of the Opera featured and songs from Parry included I was Glad and Blest Pair of sirens. Sue Black was the guest soloist and as a complete change choir member Barry Woods recited The Ballad of Joe Lee, which told the unlikely tale of a cross-channel swimmer.
The offering for Christmas of 2010 was the part 1 of Messiah with Halleluia Chorus plus some seasonal carols. The soloists were Tina Power, soprano, Karen Longmate, contralto, in place of an indisposed Jenny Wornham, Ralph Barnes, tenor. The organist was Cameron Luke.
The Easter Concert of 2011 required a leap of faith by the committee when they took on the task of performing Karl Jenkin's Stabat Mater, with a large orchestra. The choir's usual venue of St Andrew's Church, Churchdown was too small to accommodate the forces neccessary and so the decision was taken to hold the concert in All Saints, Cheltenham. It says a lot for the publicity received from the local media that the concert was a huge success and played to an almost full church. The concert began with Faure's Requim and the soloists were William Armiger and in the Pie Jesu the treble solo was taken by Nicholas Holland. The soloist in the Stabat Mater was Jenny Wornham. The concert was dedicated to the memory of Sue Parker.
The Summer Concert for 2011 in Churchdown Community Centre saw the retirement of John Clift as Musical Drector. The programme chosen was A Night at the Opera (without the boring bits) and the soloist was the delightful soprano Kate Bennett. The choir sang a range of operatic choruses including Polovtsian Dances by Borodin, to Easter Hymn by Mascagni. The concert also saw the retirement of David Williams after 20 years service with the choir.