Aylesbury Lunchtime Music presents

Aylesbury Consort of Voices

Print version
5 January 2023

Starts: 12:45pm, Doors: 12:15pm

Duration: 1 hour (approx.)

St Mary the Virgin, Aylesbury

£7 adults on the door (<18s & carers free)

Aylesbury Consort of Voices

Programme

  • 1481-1553

    Riu Riu Chiu (Flecha)

    A Catalan composer born in Kingdom of Aragon, in the region of Prades. Ríu Ríu Chíu is a Spanish villancico that has attained some contemporary fame as a Christmas carol.

  • 1905-1987

    Jesus Christ the Apple Tree (Poston)

    Jesus Christ the Apple Tree is a poem, possibly intended for use as a carol, written in the 18th century.

  • 1870-1952

    Behold that star (Talley)

    Joyful & tuneful spiritual alternating between solo phrase and choral response.

  • 1955-

    Christmas Day 1966 (Chilcott)

    All the way from Oxford, ‘A contemporary hero of British choral music’ ~ The Observer.

  • 1892-1983

    Here is the Little Door (Howells)

    English composer, organist, and teacher, most famous for his large output of Anglican church music.

  • 1899-1963

    O magnum mysterium (Poulenc)

    Francis Jean Marcel Poulenc (1899 – 1963) was a French composer and pianist. His compositions include songs, solo piano works, chamber music, choral pieces, operas, ballets, and orchestral concert music. Among the best-known are the piano suite Trois mouvements perpétuels (1919), the ballet Les biches (1923), the Concert champêtre (1928) for harpsichord and orchestra, the Organ Concerto (1938), the opera Dialogues des Carmélites (1957), and the Gloria (1959) for soprano, choir, and orchestra.

  • 1894-1930

    Bethlehem Down (Warlock)

    “Bethlehem Down” is a Christmas carol composed in 1927 by British composer Peter Warlock. It is set to a poem written by journalist and poet Bruce Blunt.

  • 1877-1921

    Carol of the Bells (Leontovych)

    “Carol of the Bells” is a popular Christmas carol, with music by the Ukrainian Leontovych in 1914 and lyrics by Peter J. Wilhousky. The song is based on the Ukrainian folk chant “Shchedryk”.

  • 1548-1611

    O Magnum Mysterium (de Victoria)

    O magnum mysterium has an associated plainchant melody, and in this form has been sung since the middle ages. However, the text has appealed to many composers over the years. Many of the most notable composers of the renaissance made settings, including William Byrd, Jacob Clemens non Papa, Cristóbal de Morales, D. Pedro de Cristo, Palestrina (article on the setting) and Tomás Luis de Victoria. Victoria went on to publish a mass based on his motet in 1592.

  • 1899-1963

    Videntes Stellam (Poulenc)

    He experienced a religious awakening after the death of a close friend, and his compositions began to reflect his renewed Catholicism. Videntes Stallam translates as ‘When they saw the star’.

  • 1961-

    The Little Road to Bethlehem (Head)

    The words by Margaret Rose place the Nativity in any country: the result is deeply touching in its masterly combination of text and music.

  • Balulalow (Johnson)

    Balulalow is the old Scottish word for a lullaby.

  • 1824-1874

    The three kings (Cornelius)

    This is a Christmas carol by the German composer Peter Cornelius. He set “Die Könige” for a vocal soloist, accompanied by Philip Nicolai’s hymn “Wie schön leuchtet der Morgenstern” (“How Brightly Shines the Morning Star”), which he erroneously thought was an Epiphany hymn. In fact, it is an Advent hymn in which the morning star is an allegory for the arrival of Jesus, not the Star of Bethlehem.

  • 1787-1863

    Silent Night (Gruber)

    “Silent Night” (German: “Stille Nacht, heilige Nacht”) is a popular Christmas carol, composed in 1818 by Franz Xaver Gruber to lyrics by Joseph Mohr in the small town of Oberndorf bei Salzburg, Austria. It was declared an intangible cultural heritage by UNESCO in 2011.

  • 1914-2011

    Have yourself a merry little Christmas

    “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” is a song written in 1943 by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane and introduced by Judy Garland in the 1944 MGM musical Meet Me in St. Louis. Frank Sinatra later recorded a version with modified lyrics.

Performers

  • Aylesbury Consort of Voices

    Vocal ensemble

    Aylesbury Consort of Voices is a performance choir of sixteen hand-picked singers, performing music from the sixteenth century to the present day.
    Read More

Key information for concert goers

When

Every Thursday at 12:45pm (except August & over Christmas). Performances last around 60 minutes. Please enter quietly as there is a noon service in the Lady Chapel.

How much?

Entry is £7 per adult (card or cash), under 18s and carers are free. The price includes a programme. Donations are welcomed to subsidise the larger ensembles.

Where?

Performances are at St Mary’s Church in the heart of Aylesbury Old Town. See directions for further details.

Do I need to book?

No, just turn up. Doors open at 12:15 pm. Make sure you arrive in good time to get a seat.

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