A celebration of Christmas music from across the centuries
Jonathan Dove The Three Kings
Benjamin Britten Suite for Solo Harp (iii, iv)
Benjamin Britten A Ceremony of Carols
Paul Fincham Ring the Bells
Arr. David Willcocks I Saw Three Ships
Holst arr. Gjeilo In the Bleak Midwinter
Rachmaninoff Canticle of Mary (My Soul doth Magnify the Lord) from All-Night Vigil
Arr. John Rutter Wexford Carol
Peter Maxwell Davies Lullabye for Lucy
Arr. Robert Pearsall In Dulci Jubilo
Judith Weir Drop Down, Ye Heavens, From Above
Elizabeth Polston Jesus Christ the Apple Tree
Arr. David Willcocks Sussex Carol
Arr. Peter Cornelius The Three Kings
The Purcell Singers present an uplifting festive programme inspired by Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols. Join the choir and harpist Eleanor Medcalf for a celebration of Christmas fayre from the Renaissance to present day, including traditional carols and modern classics.
Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols, is a stunning choral work for Christmas, composed in 1942. Scored for choir and solo harp, it sets medieval and early modern English poetry to music, creating a magical atmosphere. The plainchant processions which open and close the piece, match the ethereal feel. Performed by candlelight, it is truly a festive treat.
The programme also includes carols and other Christmas music, including I Saw Three Ships, Sussex Carol, Jonathan Dove’s The Three Kings, Paul Fincham’s Ring the Bells, In the Bleak Midwinter and more.
Benjamin Kirk musical director
Eleanor Medcalf harp
The Purcell Singers
The Purcell Singers
Award-winning chamber choir who excel in live performance and studio recording
One of London’s leading chamber choirs, the choir has performed extensively in London venues including St Martin-in-the-Fields, Southwark and St Paul’s Cathedrals, and internationally in Italy, Germany and Northern France.
The choir perform and record a wide and varied repetoire, and have a number of commercial recordings for the film industry.
Benjamin Kirk
Musical Director with the Leeds Guild of Singers and the Lea Singers in Harpenden, and Conductor of The Purcell Singers
Benjamin Kirk studied Choral Conducting in Estonia at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theatre under Tõnu Kaljuste. In 2019, he won third prize in the World Choral Conducting Competition in Hong Kong.
Since 2021 Benjamin has worked as Guest Conductor and Chorusmaster with the National Forum of Music (NFM) Choir in Wrocław, Poland, in a budding international career.
Eleanor Medcalf
Guildhall School of music and Drama and Queens' College Cambridge alumni
Eleanor is a versatile solo, chamber and orchestral musician performing as Principal Harpist under Marin Alsop in Bernstein’s Mass at the Royal Festival Hall while a member of the National Youth Orchestra of Great Britain.
She has performed in some of the UK's major venues, including the Royal Albert Hall and Symphony Hall Birmingham.
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