BACKWe are please to be working with Classical Movements for The City Choir of Washington’s inaugural tour of the UK this July
The City Choir of Washington celebrate their 10th anniversary under leadership of the Grammy-award winning conductor Robert Shafer, and have built their reputation as one of Washington D.C’s premiere choirs in this time. Under Maestro Shafer’s baton, the singers and their audiences have been challenged by creative programming, creating stunning renditions of under-performed works such as Arvo Part’s ‘Te Deum’, Benjamin Britten’s ‘Cantata Misericordium’, and Tarik O’Regan’s ‘Triptych’. The choir’s roster consists of 120 experienced, professional-calibre singers, all hailing from the greater Washington metropolitan areas.
The choir’s memorable performances include their commemoration of the 60th anniversary of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II with a world-premiere performance of John Tavener’s ‘Three Hymns of George Herbert’, written especially for the Diamond Jubilee. In Spring 2014, the Choralis Foundation nominated the City Choir of Washington for an Ovation Award for Most Creative Programming, a nomination which tributes the choir’s premiere performances, including those of the final compositions by the great composer Sir John Tavener.
The City Choir of Washington will bring its distinctive choral sound to the UK in four concerts, performing at venues in London, Gloucester, Ely and Oxford in July 2018. The tour will combine American, English and French choral works spanning the 19th century to present day, including Sir John Tavener’s ‘Tolstoy Creed’ performed alongside ‘The Lamb’, Eric Whitacre’s ‘The Chelsea Carol’ and Gabriel Fauré’s ‘Requiem in D Minor’. Maestro Shafer will celebrate 50 years as a choral conductor, and will serve his 26th international tour with the choir this year.
Details of the concerts and programme schedule are below:
5 July – Gloucester Cathedral, Gloucester
7 July – Keble College Chapel, Oxford
8 July – Ely Cathedral, Ely
11 July – Temple Church, London
Programme:
Psalm 121: I will lift up mine eyes
- Robert Shafer (b.1946)
The Chelsea Carol
- Eric Whitacre (b.1970)
The Lamb – Sir John Tavener (1944-2013)
Tolstoy’s Creed – Sir John Tavener
(2012 Commission by TCCW)
Requiem in D Minor, op. 48 – Gabriel Fauré (1845-1924)