Rousing concerts set to sing in spring
Fans of fine choral music are in luck, as two very different concerts will be performed by local favourites the Madrigal Choir and the Avalon Singers in the coming days. The Madrigal Choir will be sweeping audiences off onto a musical tour of Canada on May 26, 27 and 28, while the Avalon Singers will be performing Carmina Burana and a selection madrigals on June 2.
From East to West, North to South and all points in between, the Madrigal Choir invites all to join them as they celebrate 150 years of Canada through song. From Maple Leaf Forever, to Flanders Fields, Montreal to Newfoundland, shanty songs, ballads and beloved selections, come stomp your feet to ‘Black Fly’ or be lulled by a sweet song about an Inuit child. The concert will be under the directorship of Nancy Cullen Campbell, her first as the new ‘pilot’ of the Madrigal Choir.
Tickets are available from members and at the door for $15. Refreshments will be served following the concerts. All are asked to remember to bring an item or two for the local food bank. The concert in Hemmingford on May 26 will take place at 8 pm at St. Luke’s Church. The Concert on May 27 will take place at 8 pm in Ormstown at St-Malachie Church. You can also catch the Choir singing for the opening of Beechridge Presbyterian Church on Sunday, May 28, at 1:30 pm.
The Avalon Singers take on Carmina Burana
On Friday June 2, under the directorship of Pamela Selkirk, the Avalon Singers will perform one of the most popular choral works of the 20th century, Carmina Burana, composed by Carl Orff. The text for this bold, rhythmic and rousing choral work is from a collection of poems that were written between the 11th and 13th century in Latin as well as Old German and Old French and discovered in the Benedictine monastery of Beuren. These poems celebrate some of the basic pleasures of life – love, wine, food and the arrival of springtime.
To open the concert the Avalon Singers will perform a series of madrigals which also deal with the eternal theme of love. Two Montreal soloists, soprano Catherine Brunelle and bass-baritone Nathan Keoughan will join the choir for the Carmina Burana. Scott Bradford will accompany the choir on the piano and Isabelle Tardif will provide percussion.
The concert will be held on Friday June 2 at 8:00pm, at Grove Hall in Huntingdon. Tickets are $15 and may be bought at the door or in advance from choir members.