Author: BristolBachChoirSecretary

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Monteverdi Vespers of 1610

Monteverdi Vespers of 1610

Bristol Bach Choir marks its 60th Anniversary this season, and the highlight of the year will be this performance of Monteverdi’s Vespers in the iconic Clifton Cathedral. This will be the ideal venue in which to hear this masterpiece, with its great spaces, fabulous acoustic, and fascinating architecture. The work is a tour-de-force of choral writing, with a vast variety of textures and styles, and will include a fantastic line-up of soloists and full period orchestra. It is a work which benefits from being seen as well as heard, and this should be a perfect marriage of piece and venue.

19 June 2027, 7.30pm

Clifton Cathedral, Clifton Park, Bristol, BS8 3BX

Tickets: *****, Students & under 18s (suitable for over 7s) £5

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American Soundscapes

American Soundscapes

Bristol Bach Choir will explore choral music from the USA across many of the styles to emerge from that nation’s musical heritage. These will include evocative and highly emotional works from Samuel Barber, Randall Thomson and Morton Lauridsen, sensual sound works from Rene Clausen, traditional American songs, and gospel-inspired arrangements. The remarkable range of compositional languages is perhaps to be expected in a nation of such a size and with such a mixed cultural history, and this should be a fascinating taste of some of these styles.

20 March 2027, 7.30pm

St Monica’s Hall, Cote Lane, Westbury-on-Trym, BS9 3UN

Tickets: £21 (reserved), £15 (unreserved) Students & under 18s £1

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Monteverdi Vespers ‘Come & Sing’

Monteverdi Vespers ‘Come & Sing’

Come and sing choruses from Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610 for an afternoon with members of the Bristol Bach Choir. We will be led by our very own conductor David Bednall and ably accompanied by Nigel Nash. The afternoon will conclude with a performance to residents of St Monica’s.

We will start singing at 1pm; registration from 12.40 and our performance to residents will end around 5pm. Score hire is included in the price and breaks for tea, coffee and our now famous range of cakes will also be available.

Saturday 30 January 2027, 1pm to 5pm

St Monica’s, Cote Lane, Westbury-on-Trym, BS9 3UN

Tickets £20, Students & under 18s £10

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Spirit of Christmas

David Bednall  Conductor    

Nigel Nash  Accompanist

Spirit of Christmas

with Bristol Ensemble String Quartet

Bristol Bach Choir is joined by Bristol Ensemble String quartet for their annual Spirit of Christmas concert. The beautiful sound of strings will be a natural accompaniment for many of the seasonal works from across the centuries and styles, and the choir will also perform a selection of unaccompanied pieces. There will be entertaining readings and a chance for everyone to join in with favourite carols in what will be a delightful evening of festive cheer.

Saturday 12 December 2026, 7.30pm

St George’s, Brandon Hill, Great George Street, BS1 5RR

Tickets: £25, £18, £12, Students & under 18s (suitable for over 7s) £5

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The Glory and the Dream

The Glory and the Dream

The Glory and the Dream has as its centre piece Richard Rodney Bennett’s rarely heard evocative and imaginative setting of Wordsworth’s ‘Intimations of Immortality’. This famous and highly influential poem ponders the passage of time and how the joyous wonder of childhood passes over the years, and is beautiful, melancholy, and optimistic by turns. It features a virtuosic organ part which adds colour to the wonderfully lyrical choral writing. It is joined on the programme by Vivaldi’s much-loved Gloria which is full of Italian sun and timeless melodies, it’s multi-movement form including solos, duets, and full choruses. We also perform some motets by Henry Purcell, and Jonathan Dove’s Seek him that maketh the seven stars in what will be an inspiring and varied programme.

Saturday 17 October 2026, 7.30pm

Redland Park United Reformed Church, Whiteladies Road, Redland, Bristol BS6 6SA.

Tickets: £21 (reserved), £15 (unreserved) Students & under 18s £1

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Haydn Nelson Mass and CPE Bach Magnificat 22 March 2025 St Peter’s Church, Henleaze

David Bednall  Conductor    

Accompanied by Bristol Ensemble

Soprano | Sophie Kirk Harris

Alto | Rebecca Chellappah

Tenor | Kieran White

Bass | Edmund Danon 

Bristol Bach Choir presents two exciting, colourful, and melodic classical works.

Haydn’s Missa in angustiis (Mass for Troubled Times) is more commonly known as Nelson Mass, and is one of his most popular choral works. The setting is by turns dramatic and contemplative, full of the composer’s trademark melodies and surprises. C.P.E. Bach’s Magnificat might be less well known but is certainly no less enjoyable. The text is broken into a number of sections enabling the composer to make full use of the soloists, chorus, and all the available combinations to create a wonderful vibrant setting of the Song of Mary.

Venue Information

Tickets for reserved seats are now sold out.

There are still plenty of unreserved seats available at £10 (£5 students & under 18s) which can be purchased on the door from 7pm.

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Haydn Nelson Mass Come and Sing workshop, 25th January 2025 St Monica’s, Cote Lane Westbury on Trym

Come and sing Haydn’s Nelson Mass for an afternoon with the Bristol Bach Choir and our very own David Bednall. We will complete the afternoon with a performance of the choruses to residents of St Monica’s.

led by David Bednall – Conductor

Nigel Nash – Accompanist

Tickets £10 (including score hire) 0117 214  0721 tickets @bristolbach.org.uk
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14th December 2024: Spirit of Christmas, St George’s Bristol

David Bednall  Conductor    

Accompanied by Nigel Nash and Bristol Brass Consort 

Bristol Bach Choir present their traditional Spirit of Christmas concert, on Saturday 14th December at 7.30 pm, in St. George’s, Brandon Hill.

A very special and uplifting evening of Christmas Music with Bristol Bach Choir and Bristol Brass Consort, whose Christmas CD Festive Brass has featured on Classic FM. The combination of Choir and Brass is a perfect match, capable of an infinite variety of sounds and expressions. The repertoire will extend from the Venetian Renaissance to the present day, and in moods ranging from the contemplative to the utterly joyful. Both groups will also display their individual skills in pieces appropriate to the season and the many emotions it brings. There will be the usual opportunity for a little audience participation in carols.

Bristol Brass Consort, formed in 1985, is a symphonic brass ensemble which regularly performs established brass repertoire as well as lesser-known works and new commissions. They have played in Bristol’s most prestigious venues, including St George’s, the Bristol Beacon, St Mary Redcliffe and Clifton Cathedral. Their core ensemble, a quintet consisting of two trumpets, French horn, trombone and tuba, will be accompanying Bristol Bach Choir today, as well as performing a variety of festive pieces from their own extensive repertoire.


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Click here to buy your ticket from St George’s

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12 October 2024: Autumn Concert: Passing the Torch

David Bednall – Conductor

Nigel Nash – Accompanist

Saturday 12th October 2024 at 7:30pm – All Saints Church, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3ED

Tickets – £21 (reserved), £15 (unreserved – £12 if bought in advance), £1 students/under 18s

A concert celebrating the music of Ralph Vaughan Williams on his birthday. He is one of the most loved and influential British Composers and his legacy was a revitalised musical language which provided many new directions for future generations. His influences were wide-ranging but included folksong and the Tudor Age. This beautiful programme will feature the Mass in G Minor and the deeply moving Lord, Thou hast been our refuge. The former evokes something of the glories of Renaissance polyphony, whilst the latter is an immense hymn to optimism and the hope of a better future. The concert will also include music by his teachers, Parry and Stanford. Both are important figures in their own right, and we are marking Stanford’s Centenary this year. Parry’s majestic festival anthem Hear my words ye people will feature, with Stanford represented by his beautiful Latin Motets: When Mary through the garden went, and For Lo, I raise up. Vaughan Williams’ own teaching legacy is also acknowledged with Howells’s Take him, earth, for cherishing, an astonishing motet written following the assassination of President Kennedy and one which still moves and astonishes to this day.

Tickets: £21 (reserved), £15 (unreserved)

To purchase tickets, click on your selected ticket type (see the seating plan below) and then ‘Add to cart’, which will transfer you to the secure Paypal payment page, where you will be able to specify the quantity of tickets required.  Our ticket secretary will be in touch with your tickets after your payment is confirmed.

For this concert we’re offering tickets to students and under 18s for just £1


 


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