Join us for our concert in the St Mary the Virgin Church in Wheatley for a contemplative and uplifting programme of music from composers across the centuries. Gesualdo & Victoria were born in the mid 16th century and wrote exclusively for the Catholic church; Schütz, born toward the end of the century, was by contrast a Lutheran working in Dresden for much of his life. Cozzolani’s inspiring works were written during her life as a nun in Santa Radegonda, Milan. Moving on to the late C17th Lotti spent much of his musical life in Venice, although with significant associations with music in Dresden. JS Bach needs no introduction as a devout early C18th Lutheran, whereas James MacMillan’s contemporary writing is deeply influenced by his Catholicism. Whatever the source of inspiration, this will be a musical experience to enjoy.
The two halves of our programme in Brighton acknowledge the supreme talent of two composers, one from the late Renaissance period at the close of the sixteenth century, and the other of the deeply Romantic era of the nineteenth century. Tomas Luis de Victoria (1548- 1611) was arguably the most inventive of the well known Renaissance composers. His output was almost exclusively liturgical and he enjoyed great high praise in his lifetime working in Spain and Italy. Josef Gabriel Rheinberger (1839 – 1901) was principally a composer of organ music and also wrote an impressive number of liturgical and secular works. Born in Liechtenstein, he spent most of his adult life in Bavaria, which he rarely left. However, his reputation was such that he held the position of Court composer for many years and taught musicians who travelled across continents to benefit from his teaching.
The Bartholomew Consort came together in Oxford in 2001 as a project choir under the direction of Dutch conductor JanJoost van Elburg, comprising singers from all around the UK and western Europe. We perform most frequently in Oxford, but we do tour as well and this year we are delighted to be singing in Brighton.
