WINTER at Norwich Cathedral

Join Classic FM presenter Zeb Soanes and St Martin's Voices, from St Martin-in-the-Fields in London, for an enchanting evening of words and carols as we enter the Christmas season. The programme includes winter classics Silent Night and In the Bleak Midwinter, alongside beautiful new works by contemporary composers Lucy Walker, Cecilia McDowall and Reena Esmail from the choir's recent album A Winter Breviary. An evening not to be missed!

Refreshments will be available to purchase during the interval along with CDs of St Martin's Voices' acclaimed album, 'A Winter Breviary: Choral Works for Christmas'.

Programme

All and some – Olivia Sparkhall

Reading

O come o come Emmanuel – Trad. arr. Alice Parker & Robert Shaw

Adam lay ybounden – Vicente Chavarría

A tender shoot – Charlotte Baskerville

Reading

Gabriel’s message – Trad. arr Jonathan Rathbone

There is no rose – Cecilia McDowall

Angelus ad virginem – Arr. Carol Barnett

Reading

In the bleak midwinter – Holst arr. Matthew Culloton

O magnum mysterium – Esther Bersweden

Away in a manger – Kirkpatrick arr. Matthew Culloton

Reading

The unexpected early hour (from A Winter Breviary) – Reena Esmail

In dulci jubilo – Trad. arr. Robert Pearsall

~ Interval of twenty minutes ~

Carol of the bells – Mykola Leontovych

Reading

See amid the winter’s snow – Goss arr. Lloyd Larson

Bethlehem down – Peter Warlock

The shepherd’s carol – Bob Chilcott

Reading

Wassail song – Trad. arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams

A great and mighty wonder – Michael Praetorius

Silent night – Gruber arr. Wolfgang Lindner

Reading

The Christmas life (from The Christmas Life) – Lucy Walker

The holly and the ivy – Trad. arr. Henry Walford Davies

O Tannenbaum – Trad. arr. John Rutter

Reading

Winter wonderland – Bernard/Bernhard arr. Peter Gritton

Jingle Bells – Pierpont arr. Ben Parry

Performers

For over 20 years Zeb Soanes was an authoritative newsreader and reassuring voice of the Shipping Forecast on BBC Radio 4. He now presents Relaxing Evenings at Seven on Classic FM, the UK’s most popular classical music station and at Easter presented a special interview with Dame Judi Dench, from her home, in which she shared her favourite pieces of classical music.

Zeb presents concerts with the UK’s leading orchestras and ensembles and is the author of the bestselling Gaspard the Fox series of books, which have also been adapted as narrated concert works by Jonathan Dove. His story Gaspard’s Christmas introduces the concept of homelessness to children in a gentle way and Zeb has gifted royalties from this book in perpetuity to support the work of St Martin in the Fields.

St Martin’s Voices is one of the UK’s most versatile professional vocal ensembles. They sing for concerts, broadcasts and special events at their home in London’s iconic St Martin-in-the-Fields and beyond, and regularly perform alongside the Academy of StMartin in the Fields, London Mozart Players and Piatti Quartet. They have toured to the USA and South Africa as well as undertaking extensive tours across the UK. The choir regularly features in broadcasts on BBC Radio 3, BBC Radio 4 and Classic FM.

In 2023 they released their first album with Resonus Classics, A Winter Breviary, to critical acclaim, and their second album, featuring the choral works of American composer Ned Rorem, will be released in March 2025. St Martin’s Voices regularly commission and premiere new works, collaborating with composers including Bob Chilcott, Will Todd, Yshani Perinpanayagam, Anna Disley-Simpson and Emily Hazrati. In 2023 they appointed their first Composer-in-Residence, Lucy Walker.

If you have any questions please contact us on info@stmartinsvoices.com.