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Spring Concert on the 5th April 2025 at 7.30pm

St James' Church, Chipping Campden

Haydn: The Creation

The Campden Chorus

Director: Charles Matthews

Soprano: Christine Buras

Tenor: Will Diggle

Baritone: George Robarts

With players from The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire.

Haydn’s joyous oratorio “The Creation” is the Campden Chorus’s choice for their first concert of 2025, which will take place at 7.30pm on Saturday 5th April 2025 in St James’ Church, Chipping Campden. The Chorus and three professional soloists will be joined by an orchestra from The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire. 

The work is in three parts: parts I and II describe the Creation; part III represents the story of Adam and Eve. Haydn was inspired to write this oratorio after visiting England and hearing the oratorios of Handel in Westminster Abbey, most notably “Messiah” and “Israel in Egypt”. The text draws from the Book of Genesis, from John Milton’s “Paradise Lost” and from the Book of Psalms. The work has been popular in Austria since its first performance in Vienna in 1798 and, although it was for a time criticised elsewhere for its perhaps naïve representation of lions, tigers and worms, as well as for the rather strange style of English in the libretto, it regained its popularity in the 20th century as a cheerful work to be enjoyed by everyone.

Tickets will be on sale in March 2025 here.

The Campden

 Chorus

As a community choir, The Campden Chorus is non-auditioning and aims to provide high quality performances of great choral music. We  usually perform three concerts a year in St James' Church in Chipping Campden. If you are interested in joining us, please fill in your details below and click 'register your interest'. 

The Campden Chorus was established by Richard Stephens and the Chipping Campden Music Festival in 2013.  Our Choral Director  is Charles Matthews.  He is supported by the Chorus Music Team - Samuel Bridges, Stephen Dodsworth and Jessica May.

Typically, the Chorus consists of around 60 members. The subscription per term is  £40, which includes the cost of hiring music.  We offer a discounted rate of £10 per term for students who are U25 and in full time education.

Rehearsals

When:   Wednesday 7:15 p.m. to 8:45 pm during school term time

Where:  Chipping Campden School Hall (free parking)

Spring 2025 rehearsals start on Wednesday 8th January and will run until Wednesday 2nd April, ahead of the concert on Saturday 5th April. There may also be a rehearsal in St James’ Church on Friday 4th April. There will be no rehearsal on Wednesday 19th February, the school half term week.

Future Concert dates:

Saturday, June 21st, 2025: Come and Sing - Vivaldi's Gloria and other choral works, with Alison Chamberlain  (CBSO Chorus vocal coach)

6th December 2025:  Benjamin Britten's St Nicolas with the Longborough Festival Opera Youth Chorus.

Works performed since the inception of the Chorus include:

• Rossini Petite Messe Solennelle
• Brahms German Requiem
• Mozart Coronation Mass
• Handel Messiah
• Vaughan Williams Five Mystical Songs
• Bach St. John Passion
• Mozart Requiem
• Poulenc Gloria
• Purcell Dido and Aeneas
• Finzi In Terra Pax
• Duruflé Requiem
• Gounod Messe Solennelle de Sainte-Cécile
• Mendelssohn Lauda Sion
• Vaughan Williams Fantasia on Christmas Carols
• Mozart Solemn Vespers
• Haydn “Nelson” Mass
• Stanford The Revenge: A Battle of the Fleet
• Mendelssohn Elijah
• Fauré Requiem
• Vivaldi Gloria

Soloists include: Allan Clayton, Sophie Bevan, Benedict Nelson, Anna Patalong, Jack Holton, Maria Jagusz, Eleanor Broomfield, Suzzie Vango, Andrew Slater, Edward Grint, Tabitha Reynolds

Organists: Charles Matthews, Hugh Banton, Richard Stephens, Benjamin Sheen, Charles Francis, Colin Druce, Stephen Dodsworth

Pianists: Charles Matthews, Charlie Bennett, Lynn Arnold, Jessica May, Samuel Bridges

Orchestras: The Chipping Campden Festival Academy Orchestra (conductor: Thomas Hull, leader: Ruth Rogers), Orchestra of the Swan, Orchestra Pro Anima (leader: Michael Bochmann), Musica Donum Dei,  Gemini Brass, The Royal Birmingham Conservatoire Orchestra (guest leader: Ruth Rogers)

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