<img src='' title='Event Category: Concerts' alt='' id='templ_icon_' width='' height='' /> Event Category: Concerts

Crypt Close-Up: Ruby Hughes – Amidst the Shades

Such sweet sorrow: lutenist Jonas Nordberg and soprano extraordinaire Ruby Hughes explore four centuries of lute songs, in all their tenderness and passion.

Flow, flow my tears…“I feel often quite drawn to the more melancholic songs” says the soprano and musical explorer Ruby Hughes. “Dowland really understands the human condition; he understands suffering and sadness and loneliness”. Today, though, he’s merely the tender heart of a musical journey into the shade-dappled, endlessly poetic world of the lute song, from Tudor masters to the music of Purcell and Britten. Discover, too, specially commissioned Shakespeare songs from living composers including Errollyn Wallen and Cheryl Frances-Hoad – each inspired by the searching, wonderfully expressive sound of Hughes and her musical soulmate, lutenist Jonas Nordberg.

Rhapsody in Blue by Candlelight

Under candlelight, St Martin’s Chamber Ensemble, directed by Olivia Tait, brings 20th-century music to life with pianist and arranger Iain Farrington. In his inventive arrangements for chamber ensemble and piano, the programme ranges from Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue to Florence Price’s Adoration, celebrating the lyricism, energy, and jazz-inspired spirit of the century.

SANSARA: Choral reflections for World Homeless Day

Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet: on the eve of World Homeless Day, SANSARA performs Gavin Bryars’s ultimate outsider classic.

It starts on the streets of London, with a homeless man singing quietly to himself. It becomes…well, there isn’t really any way to describe what you’ll think or feel next, as Gavin Bryars weaves that broken scrap of human feeling into a sonic experience unlike anything else in modern music. There’s nothing quite like Jesus’ Blood Never Failed Me Yet, and no more fitting venue than the central London church that puts homeless people at the heart of its mission. SANSARA gives the UK premiere of Bryars’s new choral version.  Pulitzer prize-winning American composer David Lang writes: ‘Many religions profess that an important part of their belief is to care about how people who are comfortable should act towards people who are not…I live in New York, which has homeless people who need help all the time . . . the point of Poor Hymnal is, What would it be like to actually pay attention to the people who are around you?’

This concert is part of our 300th anniversary celebrations.

London Voices: Video Games Go Choral

Halo meets Howells and BioShock Infinite encounters Arvo Pärt, as London Voices explores the fantastic world where choral music meets video gaming.

Civilisations rise and fall, a lonely robot tends a lush new planet, and a princess of Hyrule strives to bring harmony. The universe of computer gaming has always gone hand-in-hand with choral music – with games like So Let Us Melt, Portal and Abzû inspiring some of the most original sounds of our time. Now composer Jessica Curry and conductor Ben Parry have created a sequence of choral music from great games, paired with the classics – by Pärt, Howells, Vaughan Williams and more – that influenced them. Performed by London Voices, these beloved scores have never sounded more vibrant.

This concert is part of our 300th anniversary celebrations.

La Serenissima: Baroque Energy!

Adrian Chandler and La Serenissima returns to St Martin in the Fields! Expect off-the-scale virtuosity, as they explore music by Vivaldi, Corelli and their forgotten contemporaries.

Take the warmth of Italy. Now add the energy of the baroque, plus the very latest in musical technology, the violin. Result? The sunburst of creativity and sheer musical imagination that we call the Italian baroque concerto: music that took Europe by storm and revolutionised the way we listen. And 300 years on, who doesn’t love the showmanship and melody of Vivaldi and Corelli? But this is La Serenissima – the baroque ensemble that goes to the places other orchestras don’t dare – and forgotten masters like Locatelli, Valentini and the “cockney Corelli” William Corbett will all get an electrifying showcase. Entertainment without borders – or limits.

Baroque Classics by Candlelight

Step into the glow of candlelight as St Martin’s Voices joins our Emerging Artists and Chamber Ensemble to bring the richness of Baroque music to life. Directed by Olivia Tait, the concert features the devotion of Bach’s Lobet den Herrn, the brilliance of Handel’s Dixit Dominus, and a selection of other choral and instrumental masterpieces from the 18th century, offering a captivating journey through the music of the Baroque period.

The Fire that Binds Us: Carice Singers at 15

The Carice Singers perform Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms – a thrilling conclusion to an evening that embraces five centuries of sacred music at its boldest and most vital, in celebration of their 15th anniversary.

“Let everything that has faith praise the Lord!” In the anxious 1930s, the one thing no-one expected was a ringing affirmation of religious belief from a modernist firebrand like Igor Stravinsky. But the bold new sounds of the Symphony of Psalms have their roots in centuries of choral tradition – a story that’s far from over. Tonight, The Carice Singers trace that tale back to the music of the Renaissance, through Rachmaninov’s glorious sacred music and on to the present, with vibrant new works by Daniel Kidane and Dobrinka Tabakova. And of course, Stravinsky’s extraordinary symphony ends the evening in a shout of praise, performed here with pianists Joseph Havlat and George Fu.

This concert is part of our 300th anniversary celebrations.

Vivaldi Four Seasons by Candlelight

Under the shimmering light of candlelit surroundings, St Martin’s Chamber Ensemble, with violinist Richard Milone, brings a programme of masterful Baroque and Classical music to life. From Mozart’s charming Kontretanz and Purcell’s intricate Chacony in G minor, to the elegant Minuetto of Maddalena Laura Sirmen, the evening culminates in the vivid, timeless brilliance of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons.

LMP and Sean Shibe: Vivaldi reimagined

GRAMMY-nominated guitarist Sean Shibe joins LMP for a programme that journeys from Baroque masterpieces reimagined for guitar to Celtic-inspired contemporary music, capturing the captivating, folk-like beauty of traditional Scottish melodies. 

Vivaldi never wrote a concerto for guitar. In fact, the instrument as we know it today would not emerge until long after his death. Despite this, many of Vivaldi’s works for mandolin and lute translate naturally for the guitar, offering a fresh sound while keeping the essence of his writing. 

 

Sean Shibe has established himself as one of the most adventurous guitarists of his generation, equally committed to new music and to reimagining repertoire from the past, working closely with composers while continually finding fresh perspectives in earlier traditions.

The Journey: 25 years of Tenebrae

Tenebrae celebrates 25 years of world-class singing with highlights of their journey through the past, present and future of vocal music.

“Devastatingly beautiful” was how Gramophone described the chamber choir Tenebrae, and for a quarter of a century under its founder-director Nigel Short, it’s forged a reputation for performing choral music as perfectly – and as powerfully – as it can possibly be sung. Today, Tenebrae celebrates both the journey and the path ahead with music (by Glinka, Brahms and Bruckner) from some of its best-loved recordings, as well as new commissions, world premieres, and the winning entry of the group’s inaugural composition competition for emerging talent. This choral odyssey ends with one of the monuments of 20th century vocal music – Figure humaine, Poulenc’s mighty cry of freedom, defiance and hope in the future.

This concert is part of our 300th anniversary celebrations.