Southampton Philharmonic Choir & Southampton University Philharmonic Choir
- The Will Todd Ensemble
- Will Todd piano
- Lisa Swayne soprano
- David Gibson conductor
Prepare to be dazzled by our upcoming concert programme — a stunning mix of sacred and secular music in shades of blues, jazz and gospel, with the composer of Mass in Blue, Will Todd himself, and the Will Todd Ensemble!
Featuring a jazz quartet of piano, bass, drums and alto sax, and a spectacularly virtuoso soprano soloist, Mass in Blue is the perfect fusion of a traditional setting of the Mass in a variety of different styles of blues, jazz and gospel. Its freshness and immediate appeal has delighted audiences around the world with its originality and charm. The singers love it, too: this choir has been longing to repeat our 2017 performance of this piece, which is the highlight of a programme that also showcases the works of two other popular composers: George Shearing and Eric Whitacre.
George Shearing’s setting of selected Shakespeare Songs and Sonnets is full of catchy rhythms and elegant harmonies, as you would expect from this eminent jazz musician. Shearing had written an earlier set of songs inspired by the Bard, Music to Hear, and their success prompted him to turn again to Shakespeare: “Mr. Shakespeare dug around in his trunk and came up with seven more songs and sonnets that we hadn’t used yet. We got to work and came up with this collection entitled Songs and Sonnets from Shakespeare. Again, they are all set for choral ensemble, jazz piano and bass. In them you’ll hear my English musical background and my American jazz influence”.
Eric Whitacre is a Grammy Award winning American composer known for his innovative and expressive choral music. His pieces take inspiration from such varied sources as poetry, art, nature and even social media. The choir is delighted to be performing four of his most popular and enchanting compositions, Lux Aurumque, The Seal Lullaby, Sing Gently and Sleep.