Fauré Requiem Tour to visit Exeter Cathedral
A new choral work by award-winning British composer Gabriel Jackson will be the centrepiece of a concert at Exeter Cathedral on Wednesday 16 October 2013, as City of London Sinfonia continues its nationwide Fauré Requiem tour.
During 2013, the leading UK chamber orchestra is visiting ten of England’s finest Cathedrals for a concert series that takes audiences on a journey of liturgical music through the centuries. Each Cathedral choir will get the chance to perform with City of London Sinfonia, under the baton of the Orchestra’s Principal Conductor Stephen Layton, one of the world’s leading choral directors.
Music has always been at the heart of worship at Exeter Cathedral, with the choir playing a key role in all services. And the surroundings of this great Cathedral will be the perfect backdrop for this journey through some of the most uplifting religious music.
The concert programme starts with music by Thomas Tallis. Considered by many to be the finest English composer of the 16th century, his work occupies a primary place in most anthologies of English church music. Salvator Mundi is a motet he wrote in tribute to Queen Elizabeth I and Why Fum’th in Fight was written for Archbishop Parker’s Psalter, which was one of the first major printed collections of music published in England. As a response to this, Ralph Vaughan Williams wrote his homage, Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, thought by many to be Williams’ first indisputable masterpiece and one of the most popular pieces of classical music today. In fact, it recently came in at number four in the ClassicFM Hall of Fame 2013, as voted by listeners.
David Davies, the organist at Exeter Cathedral will perform Francis Polenc’s grand and masterful Organ Concerto, marking the 50th anniversary of the French composer’s death. And the new, specially-commissioned piece, Countless and Wonderful are the ways to Praise God, by Gabriel Jackson then brings liturgical music up to the 21st Century.
Adding an unusual twist to the event is the opportunity for people to support City of London Sinfonia’s crowdfunding campaign, Gabriel’s Angels, by donating towards the new commission. Every donation receives a great reward, including exclusive limited edition badges and signed CDs and artwork.
For more details please visit: www.justgiving.com/gabrielsangels
Fauré’s enduringly popular and moving Requiem will provide a fitting and inspiring end to the concert – another all-time favourite making it into this year’s ClassicFM Hall of Fame.
“This tour further enhances the Orchestra's strong reputation for working with choirs and singing of all kinds,” says Matthew Swann, Chief Executive of City of London Sinfonia.
“Our Artistic Director and Principal Conductor, Stephen Layton, was a Cathedral chorister himself and is now recognised as one of the world's leading choral directors. It will be a real treat for us to work with some of the UK's best choirs in their magnificent Cathedral surroundings, and to play for audiences in areas of the country that are new to us.”
This tour is made possible through the generous support of Friends of Cathedral Music, Arts Council England, Foyle Foundation and The RVW Trust.
Ticket information:
£22 Front Nave
£15 Mid/Rear Nave
£10 Side Aisles (restricted view)
All seating is unreserved
Children (16 yrs and under) 50% discount
Disabled one free companion seat
Groups (4 people or more) 10% discount
City of London Sinfonia Friends/Friends of Cathedral Music 15% discount - limited to 4 tickets
CLS FIVER (16-25 years & students) £5 - register at cls.co.uk/CLS-FIVER for tickets
All concessions/offers are subject to availability; only one discount per booking
Booking Information:
National Centre for Early Music: 01904 658338/ncem.co.uk
For tour information (not box office) please phone 020 7621 2800 or visit
Performance begins at 7.30pm
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