Oxford Bach Choir
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The Oxford Bach Choir is an amateur choir based in Oxford, England. Founded by Basil Harwood in 1896 to further the music of J.S. Bach in Oxford, the Choir merged in 1905 with the Oxford Choral & Philharmonic Society, whose origins can be traced back to 1819. Oxford Bach Choir therefore has a choral tradition which extends back almost two centuries. The Choir performs in the Sheldonian Theatre (designed by Sir Christopher Wren) in central Oxford.
Overview
The Oxford Bach Choir is a large mixed-voice choir, with around 160 members. The range of music covered is diverse, from the works of Bach and the classical repertoire to contemporary works. Oxford Bach Choir has always had a mix of town and gown singers. Rehearsals and concerts are scheduled so that students, academics and professionals are all able to participate in the Choir's programmes. The Choir enjoys good relationships both with Oxford colleges and with businesses in the city. New members, drawn from throughout Oxfordshire, are encouraged at the start of every season.
Oxford Bach Choir gives at least four concerts every season at the end of each academic term, in December, March and June, occasions that attract audiences of around 800 people. For the main programmes in December and March the Choir is accompanied by top professional orchestras, such as the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, the London Mozart Players and the Britten Sinfonia, and sings under the conductorship of Nicholas Cleobury, who is a champion of new musichaving given over a hundred premieres. In June and at Christmas, the Choir performs under the baton of its Associate Conductor, Timothy Byram-Wigfield, who is Director of Music at St George's Chapel, Windsor, with a career as an organist, pianist and singer.
Concerts by the Oxford Bach Choir are sometimes recorded.[1]
Notable members
- Frederick Geoffrey Lawrence QC – lawyer who successfully defended suspected serial killer John Bodkin Adams in 1957.[2]
Past concerts
The following concerts have been held:
Date | Title | Venue |
---|---|---|
16 June 2012 – 19:30 | Rheinberger – Mass in E flat major and Brahms – German Requiem | Sheldonian Theatre |
24 March 2012 – 19:00 | Bach – St Matthew Passion | St George's Chapel, Windsor Castle |
0 March 2012 – 19:30 | Mozart Requiem and Haydn Theresienmesse | Sheldonian Theatre |
17 December 2011 – 19:30 | Carol Concert – 2011 | Sheldonian Theatre |
3 December 2011 – 19:30 | Bach Programme | Sheldonian Theatre |
25 June 2011 – 19:30 | Monteverdi: Vespers | Sheldonian Theatre |
16 April 2011 – 19:00 | Bach – St Matthew Passion | Sheldonian Theatre |
12 March 2011 – 19:30 | Fauré: Requiem and MacMillan: Seven Last Words from the Cross | Sheldonian Theatre |
4 December 2010 – 19:30 | Haydn: The Creation | Sheldonian Theatre |
19 June 2010 – 19:30 | Handel: Dixit Dominus | Sheldonian Theatre |
16 March 2010 – 19:30 | Chilcott, Beethoven (London) | Cadogan Hall, London |
13 March 2010 – 19:30 | Chilcott-world premiere, Beethoven | Sheldonian Theatre |
19 December 2009 – 19:30 | Carols for All – 2009 | Sheldonian Theatre |
5 December 2009 – 19:30 | Mendelssohn: Elijah | Sheldonian Theatre |
20 June 2009 – 19:30 | Showboat (concert performance) by Kern & Hammerstein and a medley of songs by Gershwin | Sheldonian Theatre |
17 April 2009 – 19:30 | Sweet Harmony – Gounod, Vaughan Williams, Fauré | Sheldonian Theatre |
14 March 2009 – 19:30 | Bach: Mass in B Minor | Sheldonian Theatre |
19 December 2008 – 19:30 | Carol Concert | Sheldonian Theatre |
6 December 2008 – 19:30 | Visions of the Beyond – Vaughan Williams, Parry, Holst | Sheldonian Theatre |
14 June 2008 – 19:30 | Bernstein, Chilcott, Lauridsen | Sheldonian Theatre |
14 March 2008 – 19:30 | Handel's Messiah | Sheldonian Theatre |
15 December 2007 – 19:30 | Carols for All | Sheldonian Theatre |
1 December 2007 – 19:30 | Elgar's The Kingdom | Sheldonian Theatre |
16 June 2007 – 19:30 | Sacred and Profane – Vaughan Williams, Ariel Ramirez, Stanford, Constant Lambert | Sheldonian Theatre |
14 April 2007 (All day) | Schubert in Göttingen | Göttingen: St.-Paulus-Kirche |
10 March 2007 – 19:30 | Mozart Concert | Sheldonian Theatre |
19 December 2006 – 19:30 | Carols for all | Sheldonian Theatre |
2 December 2006 – 19:30 | Brahms: Ein deutsches Requiem | Sheldonian Theatre |
23 October 2006 (All day) | David Owen Norris: Prayerbook (world premiere) | Dorchester Abbey |
17 June 2006 – 19:30 | Rachmaninov: All-Night Vigil (Vespers) | Sheldonian Theatre |
11 March 2006 – 19:30 | J. S. Bach: St John Passion | Sheldonian Theatre |
16 December 2005 – 19:30 | Carols for choir and audience | Sheldonian Theatre |
3 December 2005 – 19:30 | Puccini and Verdi | Sheldonian Theatre |
24 September 2005 (All day) | Berlioz: L'Enfance du Christ | Dorchester Abbey |
18 June 2005 – 19:30 | Bach, Vaughan-Williams, Maxwell Davies and Elgar | Sheldonian Theatre |
12 March 2005 – 19:30 | Tippett: A Child of Our Time | Sheldonian Theatre |
17 December 2004 – 19:30 | Carols for choir and audience | Sheldonian Theatre |
4 December 2004 – 19:30 | Bach's Magnificat and Haydn's Nelson Mass | Sheldonian Theatre |
19 June 2004 – 19:30 | Janáček and Dvořák | Sheldonian Theatre |
13 March 2004 – 19:30 | Bruckner Mass in E minor | Sheldonian Theatre |
References
- ↑ "Britten 100: Oxford Bach Choir – Poulenc, Britten". BBC Radio 3. BBC. Retrieved 5 May 2016.
- ↑ Rubin, G. R. (2004). "'Lawrence, Sir (Frederick) Geoffrey (1902–1967)'". Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford University Press. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/34436. Retrieved 2008-05-13. (subscription required (help)).