The Best Classical Music at Christmas

By Chris Billingham 

Christmas is a time that most of us connect to music in some way, whether it’s standing outside supermarkets singing carols, singing along to previous Christmas number ones or putting on that Michael Buble Christmas CD that is seemingly reissued every year. Just to be clear that isn’t a complaint! His version of Silent Night is beautiful. On Tuesday The Telegraph selected its Top Ten best pieces of Christmas classical music, a lovely read that you can find here. As regular readers will know, the Southern Sinfonia team selected its favourite pieces of Christmas music last year and I’m pleased to say that some of our choices and the Telegraph’s choices matched! It turns out great minds do think alike.

Bach’s Christmas Oratorio appears in both lists, which is hardly surprising given how popular the piece is this time of year. The six-part piece was written to be performed in church over the Christmas season of 1734, a date confirmed in Bach’s autographed manuscript. It is widely believed that the piece was not performed again until Christmas 1857 when it was played by the Sing-Akademie zu Berlin under Eduard Grell. Each of the six parts was originally intended for performance on one of the major feast days of the Christmas period. However in modern times the piece is commonly performed as one with a running time of nearly three hours. Southern Sinfonia performed the full piece twice last year, once with Windsor and Eton Choral Society and once with Bath Minerva Choir. Both performances were rapturously received and as an audience member for the performance with Windsor and Eton Choral Society I have to say that when watching it, it doesn’t feel like 3 hours. The movements are captivating and the time goes by in an instant.

A piece we have played a number of times this Christmas that is unfortunately missing from The Telegraph’s list is Handel’s Messiah, which we performed with The Old Royal Naval College Chapel Choir. This isn’t that surprising given the fact that this piece isn’t solely a Christmas piece, despite the fact that it is performed most at this time of year. The piece is also performed at Easter because it deals with Christ’s death and resurrection. However as Richard Whittall said in a recent blog for The Guardian, the fact the piece is so popular at Christmas gives it a special place in everyone’s heart:

“Since it has become an annual Christmas tradition, most choristers have sung it in every venue, in every iteration, with every instrumentation and in every tempo, no matter how deranged or pseudo-experimental. And in that time they have come to know the strange miracle of Messiah: after years of the good and the bad and the ugly, there is always something new, something breathtaking, to be rediscovered in Handel’s writing and Charles Jennens’s libretto.”

A choice, exclusive to The Telegraph list is Tchaikovsky’s ‘Waltz of the Flowers’. As Ivan Hewett states in the article “What could be more appropriate for a child’s Christmas than a magic kingdom of sweets and presents? That’s the scene for Act 2 of Tchaikovsky’s last ballet The Nutcracker.” The connection between childhood and Christmas is perhaps the reason this time of year is so special, Christmas music and all the other elements of the season people love (the food! We can’t forget the food!) will no doubt take them back to childhoods filled with Santa’s and presents. Memories that are evoked by this exuberant and youthful waltz.

What are your favourite Christmas pieces? Let us know on our Facebook and Twitter pages what you will be listening to over the next few weeks! Southern Sinfonia has had a fantastic year and behalf off the whole team I would like to say a huge thank you to everyone who has attended a performance, played with us, sang with us and interacted with us online. We have a lot of surprises and treats coming up next year and can’t wait to share these with you. Keep an eye on our website for more. 

We hope you have a Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

“Come back when you're older”

© facebook.com/chungkyungwha

By Richard Brewer 

From my previous blog posts, you have probably ascertained that I feel rather strongly about audiences in the concert hall, in particular young children. In writing about this once again, I am running the risk of repeating myself and sounding like a broken record. However, I'm afraid I just couldn't resist writing about this particular topic this week...



Reverberating through the classical music world this week was a concert at the Royal Festival Hall. The concert, dubbed 'The Legend Returns', was performed by violin legend Kyung Wha Chung. As the rather self-assured title suggests, this was her big comeback concert after 12 years away from the performing stage. Reviews were very positive about her performance, stating that she “gave a recital in which every note was brim-full of her impetuous, intense personality”. 



The focus point of all articles about the concert, however, was not so positive. Kyung had just finished one movement of a sonata and, as with every classical concert that has ever happened, and ever will happen, a cacophony of coughs began to ring around the hall. This then led to cause amusement amongst some of the audience, who had a light chuckle. Unfortunately one young girl had a prolonged tickle in her throat. We've all had this feeling, where you just can't stop yourself from coughing, it's not a nice feeling. The remedy is simple; cough more. 



Now, Kyung took particular offence to this innocent young girl and decided to shout something from the stage. 



“Come back when you're older”. 



I'm not quite sure where to start in response to this quote. As a professional musician, it is surely one of Kyung's responsibilities to actively ensure that all of her audience feel comfortable when at her concerts, especially young children. Also, after 12 years away, would you not just be grateful to have a full audience of 3,000 people? Whether they are young, old, animal or human, they all paid for their seat and made an effort to see her.



Kyung wrote an article on the Guardian in response to the criticism she received. Perhaps understandably, she began by commenting how classical music is still most definitely 'alive' in the 21st century. This is true, and it has been shown by the amount of national press this event has seen, despite it being negative. However, for Kyung to then go on to say how she still believed the child shouldn't have been at the concert was beyond me; as were her comments about the ways in which we should listen to classical music in the concert hall. 



Kyung believes that listening should be done in complete silence with no noise at all, as this is the only way to truly appreciate the beauty of what is being played in front of you. What she doesn't seem to understand, however, is that this is completely unnatural. Again, as I mentioned in my previous blog, I am certainly not suggesting that we should all make noise constantly through a performance. What I do believe though, is that we should all feel comfortable. Feeling uncomfortable at a concert will not lead to a positive listening experience. Kyung suggests that we need to educate young people on “the art of true listening”, also stating that children should only attend “children's concerts”. Is this not completely alienating them from the real classical music world? In doing so are we not further enhancing the pre-conceived ideas many people have about classical music concerts? It is not healthy. 



This is actually my final blog post of the year, and it is a shame to have to finish on a negative story in the classical music world. However, it has to be said that Southern Sinfonia do not feel the same way as Kyung. We want as many young children as possible to come to our concerts; we actively encourage and strongly believe that everyone has the right to experience musical excellence. I can't wait for 2015 to start so we can show our beliefs through the many exciting projects we have got coming up. 



Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

You can find out more about Southern Sinfonia by visiting our website, Facebook, Twitter and Instagram 

'Cultural Value and Artistic Importance' - Orchestras Potentially in Line for Tax Break

By Chris Billingham 

I’ve got to admit, I don’t usually pay a lot of attention to the Autumn Statement. I know I should, I know it’s important and I also know they even use words like ‘Beer Tax’ but the reality is it doesn’t usually grab my attention. However this week’s announcement caught my eye. I wasn’t alone either; a number of Orchestra or Classical Music related social media accounts and people I know had a lot to say about Wednesday’s speech from The Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne. 

The bit that caught people’s attention was: 

“The government is committed to supporting the creative industries so they continue to thrive in the UK. This government has introduced tax relief for high-end television programmes, animation, video games and theatre productions and has expanded the successful tax relief scheme for films. Building on this, the government will introduce a new tax relief for children’s television programmes from April 2015. The government will also launch a formal consultation in early 2015 about introducing a new tax relief for orchestras from April 2016, in recognition of their cultural value and artistic importance”. 

The fact that Orchestras and potential tax reliefs were specifically mentioned is a positive sign that the financial situation for Orchestras may be about to improve. When discussing this with a friend not connected in any way to the classical music world, the first question they understandably asked was “is the situation that bad for your industry?” Keith Motson, an executive at the Association of British Orchestras has helped clarify the situation by pointing out that "Orchestras earn well over 50% of their income from other sources so the chancellor’s commitment to tax relief can boost orchestras’ entrepreneurial efforts". He also explained “"British orchestras play more than 3,500 concerts a year to more than 4.5 million people. But they are facing one of the toughest periods in their history with cuts in public and, in particular, local authority funding”.

Researching into the subject, it does seem odd to me that Orchestras were not considered back in March when Osborne confirmed tax breaks of at least 20 per cent for commercial productions and regional touring companies, benefiting opera and dance organisations as well as plays, musicals and theatre groups. As previously explained my knowledge on the subject is not particularly wide but it seems unfair to differentiate between art forms and the financial advantages each one can have. Whilst it is fantastic that this consultation will take place next year, why is it that Orchestras aren’t paired with the “high-end television programmes, animation, video games and theatre productions” and “films” that already have various tax relief schemes. I suppose that is quite a naïve attitude, lines have to be drawn somewhere and the reality is if all forms of art were viewed by the government in the same way there wouldn’t be opportunities for tax breaks for anyone. However from the romantic viewpoint of someone that loves creativity it does seem a shame that imagination and art has to be judged and labelled in this way.  

 

Speaking of creativity and moving us firmly away from financing music and into the more comfortable territory of playing it, Southern Sinfonia have a number of exciting concerts on the horizon. On the 9^th December we join forces with the Windsor and Eton Choral Society for a performance of Handel’s Israel in Egypt at baroque pitch on ‘period’ instruments. After this we change locations to the candle-lit Old Royal Naval College, but stay with Handel and play his Messiah with the ORNC Chapel Choir on the 17^th December. To find out more about these concerts and next years events please click here for the What’s On section of our website. 

You can also find out more about Southern Sinfonia by visiting our main website, Facebook, Twitter or Instagram pages. 

A Year to Remember

By Richard Brewer 

It’s been an extremely busy month for us here at Southern Sinfonia; our Birthday concert on 31^st October in Newbury, two concerts on 8^th November in Wells and Romsey, another on 22^nd November in Bath and then finally tomorrow evening back in Newbury. Phew! With it being the 100^th anniversary since the start of the First World War, a lot of music performed in these concerts commemorated those who lost their lives.

A few of the pieces chosen have cropped up more than once. One that has recurred twice, in Romsey and in Bath, was Dona Nobis Pacem by Vaughan Williams. Translated as “give us peace”, the composer uses the phrase along with American poet Walt Whitman’s poem, Dirge For Two Veterans. The piece is extremely atmospheric, with the title frequently set to a haunting semi-tone fall. The final moments of the piece are given to the solo soprano who sings the semi-tone fall gradually lower and lower, dying away to pianissimo. When performed in venues like Romsey Abbey and Bath Abbey, the haunting feeling is accentuated; “give us peace” sounds like a strong heartfelt plea from soldiers on the frontline during the First World War.

Another piece that has occurred twice is Edward Elgar’s The Spirit of England, more specifically the final movement “For the Fallen”. Elgar was reportedly extremely affected by the events of World War One. His good friend, Sir Sidney Colvin, suggested that the composer set music to the poems by renowned war poet Lawrence Binyon. In a similar way to the aforementioned Vaughan Williams, the music and text evokes strong imagery from the battlefield. The text used is particularly striking in its solemnity. This is interesting given that the piece was premiered in 1917 when the public would perhaps have been expecting something rousing to raise their spirits during an awful time in their lives. Instead, they were presented with something of a remembrance; an elegy of those who had already fallen, and those who continued to fall in the war.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old,

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn,

At the going down of the sun and in the morning,

We will remember them.

Music is such a powerful tool for evoking past memories. They can be in the form of people, places, events; I would go so far as to say that music could evoke memories of anything. But music that is used as a tool of remembrance for those who have died in the war is extremely poignant. The Last Post is perhaps the most striking pieces of music in this sense. Such a simple melody based on only harmonics, albeit extremely difficult to play, is heard at remembrance ceremonies and services all across the country. I travelled to see the poppies at the Tower of London a couple of weeks ago, as many of you may have done too. When I was there, a guardsman started playing the last post just as the sun was setting; everyone around me, of which there were huge crowds, fell silent. It really struck a chord with me, and demonstrated just how powerful music can be.

We have been extremely lucky to be able to perform music like this in venues as beautiful as Romsey and Bath Abbey. The Choral Societies did a fantastic job putting concerts on, with healthy audiences too. Long may music continue to evoke powerful memories for us all. 

If you would like to find out more about Southern Sinfonia, please click here for our website. You can also view images and find out the latest news by visiting our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. 

Drawing Together Disparate Threads - A Look at the Life and Work of Purcell

By Chris Billingham 

Today marks 319 years since the death of Henry Purcell, one of the most renowned English composers this world has seen. With undeniable influence on not just classical but rock music, it seemed right to dedicate this week’s blog to his story and body of work.

As the son of a musician (a gentleman of the Chapel Royal) Purcell grew up with music and lived only a few hundred yards from Westminster Abbey. However when his father died at 5 years old, his mother Elizabeth had to move the family to more modest accommodation. Purcell did however return to Westminster Abbey in later life when he became organist. Purcell took the position over from Dr. John Blow who is said to have stepped aside from the post after he recognised how talented Purcell was. After Purcell died he returned to the role and wrote An Ode, on the Death of Mr. Henry Purcell (Mark how the lark and linnet sing) in tribute to his former pupil. It’s pieces like this that give listeners an insight into what Purcell was like as a person, historians have to turn to these pieces because not much is known about who he was a person. 

Whilst we know the basic facts listed above a number of other details are debated and not much is known about his personality and attributes. It is said for example that he began composing at 9 years old, however the earliest work that can be certainly identified as his is an ode for the King's birthday, which was written in 1670 when he was 21. However his music (and the music created in his memory) tells us a lot. Purcell clearly had a lust for life. This can be seen in his instrumental music that contains upbeat melodic inspirations that make the listener picture summer and other vibrant scenes.  

Not every piece created these images however, when discussing the influence that folk music had on Purcell, British conductor and broadcaster Charles Hazlewood states that he took phrases and ideas from folk music at the time and created “a quiet sense of melancholy”. When presented with the more vibrant scenes its easy to see why Purcell’s music has stood the test of time, as Hazlewood goes on to state “he was amazingly successful at drawing together disparate threads”. 

In the same way that Purcell took the sounds and themes of folk music and turned them into something different, modern rock and pop acts have used Purcell’s music as an influence for themselves. The Who in particular were influenced by Purcell’s harmonies, his influence can be seen in some of their most renowned work including ‘Won’t Get Fooled Again’ and ‘Pinball Wizard’. Sections of Music for the Funeral of Queen Mary were also adapted to be used as the theme music for the 1971 film A Clockwork Orange.  

When people think of English composer and Baroque music, Purcell is at the forefront of their mind because of a short but incredibly compelling body of work. Whilst we don’t know much about the man himself, the fact that he is so regarded and still influences so many artists confirms how much he achieved by composing beautiful pieces that listeners including the team at Southern Sinfonia still put on to relax and lift spirits. 

This lunchtime we will be putting on our final cafe concert of the autumn season. A continuation of the popular 'Secrets of the Orchestra' series, the concert will focus on the convivial yet complex brass section. 

If you would like to find out more about Southern Sinfonia, please click here for our website. You can also view images and find out the latest news by visiting our Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages.