We were delighted to present to a central London audience a celebratory concert of choral music on the eve of St Patrick’s Day. We are very grateful to energia group / Power NI for their financial support of this event.
We performed in the famous church of St Paul in Covent Garden, designed by Inigo Jones and opened in 1633. St Paul’s is widely known as the Actors’ Church. The connection with the theatre began as early as 1662 with the establishment of the Theatre Royal, Drury Lane, and was further assured in 1723 with the opening of the Covent Garden Theatre - now The Royal Opera House. Those two theatres became the starting place for ‘the west end’ theatre, and both were, and are, in St Paul's Parish.
The concert programme focused on Irish composers, both living and dead, and also includes arrangements of the Irish folksongs “She moved through the fair” and “The lark in the clear air”.
We were particularly delighted to present three London premieres:
‘Quicksilver’ by Anita Mawhinney (funded by the National Lottery through the Arts Council of Northern Ireland)
‘The Blue Bird’ by Anselm McDonnell
‘Hail Gladdening Light’ by Seán Doherty
Full programme details are available here.
Cappella Caeciliana was conducted by its Musical Director Matthew Quinn who works regularly with Chamber Choir Ireland, Ulster Orchestra and Northern Ireland Opera, and is MD of the London Youth Choirs Chamber Choir.
