CHESTER CHOIR AIMS TO MAKE CLASSICAL MUSIC ACCESSIBLE TO ALL

Final rehearsals are underway for the staging of a special fundraising concert in Chester, which organisers hope will help to make classical music more accessible for all.

The concert, set to be staged by Chester Bach Singers at St Werburgh's Church in Chester on Saturday 20^th April at 7.30pm, will feature a performance of the iconic Handel's 'Messiah' which also has a surprising Chester connection.

Featuring the well known "Hallelujah Chorus", 'Messiah' was written by George Frideric Handel in 1741 and was first performed in Dublin in April 1742 although Handel famously stopped off in Chester en-route to Dublin in November 1741 when bad weather delayed his sailing from Parkgate. A hastily arranged rehearsal of 'Messiah' using choristers from Chester Cathedral was held at The Golden Falcon Inn on Northgate Street, where Centurion House now stands.

As part of their mission to make classical music accessible to all, Chester Bach Singers are offering tickets for the concert on a "Pay What You Can" basis, with ticket prices ranging from £30  to just £5.

Speaking about the special ticket offer, Helen Crich, the chair of Chester Bach Singers said:

"Chester Bach Singers recently took part in an amazing performance of Elgar’s 'Dream of Gerontius' with Chester Philharmonic Orchestra and Cantiones, directed by Martin Bussey our MD. Our soloists were excellent and we were pleased to see so much support for the choirs and orchestra at Chester Cathedral. We are approaching this concert, Handel's 'Messiah' a little differently and hoping to attract a large audience by experimenting with ticket prices which we have pitched from £30 to £5 . We hope this will encourage people who may not usually attend or cannot afford to attend choral concerts to come along. This concert is also to help us raise funds for the choir to enable us to continue to put on quality choral music experiences in Chester. If you can support the choir by buying a higher priced ticket, we would be very grateful for your support."

Helen added:

"One of the World's best known pieces of classical music, 'Messiah' needs no introduction in terms of the famous elements in the work, such as the Hallelujah Chorus. But it’s also a very flexible work, not always as clearly appreciated. 'Messiah' can be performed with such an array of accompaniments – full orchestra and brass band, to name but two. Chester Bach Singers have opted to perform the work with organ in its performance on 20^th April. The magnificent instrument in St Werburgh’s Church will provide a resounding accompaniment to ‘Hallelujah’, but also sensitive sounds in quieter moments such as the beautiful ‘I know that my Redeemer liveth’. The choir has been fortunate to call on the services of distinguished local organist, Graham Eccles to achieve this. Graham is well known to audiences in the North West and North Wales and he plays regularly with top orchestras such as the Halle and BBC Philharmonic."

Graham Eccles first studied the organ at Worksop College in Nottinghamshire before going on to study at the prestigious Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester. For many years he was a regular organist for the BBC Daily Service on Radio 4 and has been Assistant Organist at Chester Cathedral and Organist and Master of the Choristers at St Asaph and Bangor Cathedrals. He is in regular demand as an organ accompanist by many other choirs and Choral Societies of the North West and has been Organist at Birkenhead School for a number of years and is accompanist to Chester Music Society Choir.  

Speaking about performing Messiah, Martin Bussey, Musical Director of Chester Bach Singers said:

"Handel's 'Messiah' outlines the story of Christ’s life on earth, his death, and resurrection. Handel wrote the work at white-hot pace in a few weeks, using a text compiled by his regular partner in writing oratorios, Charles Jennens. Jennens skilfully selected Old Testament prophecies to foretell Christ’s role as Messiah, New Testament accounts of his birth and then passages from St Paul’s letters which explain the immensity of the events following Christ’s death. This structure enables the work to be sung in many different combinations of choruses and arias for solo voice. The soloists for this performance are drawn from the ranks of CBS – often referred to now as ‘step-out solos’! This is testament to the many talented singers who make up the choir. We look forward to welcoming everyone to St Werburgh's Church for this very special performance."

Full details of Chester Bach Singers upcoming performance of Handel's 'Messiah' can be found at: 

www.chesterbachsingers.org.uk 

...where tickets can be booked online.