VOCES8 - "Nightfall"
Spherical singing – Sold-out concerts all over the world, millions of clicks on YouTube, countless enthusiastic young people in education workshops: Wherever Voces8 is at work, the spark lights up. The magazine Gramophone praises the singing of the eight-member group as “flawless in its sound quality and balance,” noting that their timing and coordination give a new dimension to the word “ensemble.” This is undoubtedly true – and yet only half the truth: For over 20 years, each performance has proven anew that perfection and vibrancy need not be opposites. It is also the ever-fresh joy of making music and sharing it, combined with curiosity and openness, that makes the concerts of Voces8 an experience for both sides.
In the current concert program “Nightfall,” the British vocal ensemble unites pieces from across the centuries, inspired by the dark half of the day in all its facets. “For all those who do not want to entrust their thoughts only dreamily to their pillows, a different time opens up after the onset of darkness,” describes Elisabeth Bronfen in her “Cultural History of the Night” this cosmos of secrets and boundary experiences. The night – the place of the moon and stars, of loneliness, dreams, fears, and prayers – has always inspired poetry and music to particularly exquisite works. Accordingly, Voces8 spans their program widely: from the Renaissance through the Romantic period to contemporary choral music, alongside a selection of arrangements from pop and jazz featuring swing melodies and ballads. And famously, the “Rolls-Royce of British a cappella ensembles” also likes to hop into an Aston Martin – with cleverly interwoven James Bond songs.
Program: “Nightfall”
(Subject to change)
Giovanni Croce, Buccinate in neomenia tuba
Thomas Tallis, Te lucis ante terminum (Ferial)
Max Reger, Nachtlied, Op. 138, No. 3
Taylor Scott Davis, Stardust
Emeli Sandé, Where I Sleep (arr. Geoff Lawson)
Don McLean, Vincent (arr. Jim Clements)
John Sheppard, Libera nos I + II
Gustav Holst, Nunc dimittis
Thomas Tallis, Te lucis ante terminum (Festal)
Kerensa Briggs, Media Vita
Johannes Brahms, Nachtwache I + II, From: Five Songs Op. 104
Arthur Sullivan, The long day closes
John Wilbye, Draw on sweet night
Irving Berlin, Cheek to Cheek (arr. Jim Clements)
Herb Magidson & Allie Wrubel, The Masquerade Is Over (arr. Blake Morgan)
Bart Howard, Jimmy van Heusen & Sammy Cahn, Come Fly with Me (to the Moon) (arr. Alexander L’Estrange)
VOCES8
Savannah Porter, Soprano | Eleonora Poignant, Soprano | Katie Jeffries-Harris, Alto | Barnaby Smith, Altus & Artistic Director | Blake Morgan, Tenor | Euan Williamson, Tenor | Christopher Moore, Baritone | Dominic Carver, Bass
With friendly support from the Friends and Sponsors of the Albert Concerts e.V.
EUR 63,- / 49,- / 37,- / 25,- (Hearing place) including fees
VOCES8 | Photo © Andy Staples
Doors open at 7:00 PM