St. Luke Passion at St. Peter Mancroft Church

On Friday 4th April 2014 I attended the Oriole Singers lunchtime Concert Performance of the St Luke Passion (attributed to J S Bach) at St. Peter Mancroft Church, Norwich. The Oriole Singers were conducted by Martin Wyatt. The concert also featured pianist Heather Wyatt, flautist Meryl Dempsey and cellist Frank Pond.

This was a fine performance of the St. Luke Passion which included wonderful contributions from Paul Appleby, Pamela Quantrill and Evelyn Crow. This was a fantastic opportunity to hear this rarely performed piece which I greatly enjoyed along with the rest of the enthusiastic audience.

BBC Symphony Orchestra at the Barbican

On the evening of Wednesday 26th March 2014 I attended the BBC Symphony Orchestra concert at the Barbican in the City of London. This performance featured Conductor Sakari Oramo and Violinist Leila Josefowicz. The programme consisted of Pohjola's Daughter - Sibelius, Violin Concerto - Esa-Pekka Salonen and Symphony No. 5 - Shostakovich.

Esa-Pekka Salonen’s 2009 award-winning Violin Concerto ‘Out of Nowhere’ is a portrait of the phenomenal soloist Leila Josefowicz, who gave this UK premiere. Praised at its LA Philharmonic premiere for its ‘pure, euphoric poetry’, it’s a work which lends itself to Josefowicz’s visceral intensity. This was a fantastic performance from Leila Josefowicz.

In its pulsing central movements, we may find echoes of Sibelius’s driving repetitions in his dark re-telling of Pojhola’s Daughter, in which the daughter of the north, astride a rainbow, mocks the love-lorn Väinämöinen. This concert ended with one of Shostakovich’s most popular symphonies, No 5: its heroic classicism may have affected the composer’s political rehabilitation, but its essential defiance came blazing through. I had another amazing night at the Barbican full of amazing Classical Music.

Ashley Grote Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral

On Thursday 20th March 2014 I attended the Ashley Grote Lunchtime Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral. This free event given by the Master of Music at Norwich Cathedral featured a wonderful programme of music.

The programme consisted of Variations on Weinen, klagen, sorgen, sagen - Liszt, Passacaglia and Fugue in C minor BWV 582 - Bach and Prelude et Fugue sur le nom d'Alain Op 7 - Durufle.

Ashley Grote joined Norwich Cathedral as Master of Music in September 2012 having previously held posts as Assistant Director of Music at Gloucester Cathedral, Assistant Organist of Westminster Abbey and Organ Scholar of King's College, Cambridge. As Master of Music, he directs the Cathedral boys' and girls' choirs as well as Norwich Cathedral Consort.

This was another wonderful Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral full of amazing music which was greatly appreciated by the audience in attendance. My favourite piece was Durufle's Prelude et Fugue sur le nom d'Alain.

Professor Peter Aston Memorial Concert

On the evening of Friday 14th March 2014 I attended the UEA Symphony Orchestra and Choir's Professor Peter Aston Memorial Concert at St. Andrew's Hall, Norwich. This concert was dedicated in memory of Professor Peter Aston and also marked Sharon Andrea Choa's last concert as UEA Director of Music and UEA Symphony Orchestra Conductor.

The programme consisted of Nimrod - Elgar, O Sing unto the Lord a New Song, If ye Love Me, O be Joyful in the Lord, The True Glory - Peter Aston and Symphony No.9 - Beethoven. The Orchestra was conducted by Sharon Andrea Choa and the Choir was conducted by Tom Primrose. Soloists on the evening were Lisa Cassidy, Eleanor White, Iain Milne and Andrew Weeks.

This was an emotional night at St. Andrew's Hall which included sacred choral music by Peter Aston. Elgar's Nimrod and Beethoven's Symphony No.9 were both performed brilliantly with Sharon Andrea Choa conducting the UEA Symphony Orchestra for the last time before taking up her appointment at the Hong Kong Academy for Performing Arts.

Patricia Kopatchinskaja directs Britten Sinfonia

On the evening of Tuesday 4th March 2014 I attended the Patricia Kopatchinskaja directs Britten Sinfonia concert at Norwich Theatre Royal. The Moldovan violinist was making her debut directing Britten Sinfonia with a distinctly Eastern European folk-flavoured programme.

The programme consisted of Chorale Preludes, Op. 122 - Brahms arr. Paul Angerer, Concerto for Violin and String Orchestra No. 2, Four Serious Songs - Tigran Mansurian, Romanian Folk Dances - Bartok, String Quartet No. 1, Kreutzer Sonata - Janacek arr. Tognetti and Concerto in D minor for Violin and Strings - Mendelssohn.

Violinist Patricia Kopatchinskaja's repertoire ranges from baroque and classical to a number of new commissions or re-interpretations of modern masterworks. The winner of numerous prizes over the course of her career to date, Patricia Kopatchinskaja was announced as the recipient of the 2012 Praetorius Musikpreis Niedersachsen Award is the category of innovation.

This was a wonderful evening at Norwich Theatre Royal with a fantastic programme of Classical Music by Brahms, Mansurian, Bartok, Janacek and Mendelssohn. Patricia Kopatchinskaja and Britten Sinfonia performed brilliantly with my favourite piece being Tigran Mansurian's Four Serious Songs.

Richard Alston Dance Company at Norwich Theatre Royal

On the evening of Saturday 22nd February 2014 I attended the Richard Alston Dance Company's performance of Contemporary Dance at Norwich Theatre Royal. For Richard Alston every dance is a love affair with his chosen music and this was a night full of wonderful dancing and music.

The programme at Norwich Theatre Royal matched the beauty of Mozart with the exhilaration of Benjamin Britten and the lightning energy of Bang on a Can All-Stars. Commissioned to celebrate the centenary of Britten, the brand new Rejoice in the Lamb was danced to Britten's superb setting of Christopher Smart, whose poetry is fuelled by both religious fervour and such eccentric details as the poet's cat Jeffrey!

The programme also featured the duet from Unfinished Business, to the adagio of Mozart's Sonata K533. Lachrymae, set to Britten's compassionate and tender music for viola and piano played live, spun emotional variations on a gentle song by John Dowland. The evening ended with Martin Lawrence's Madcap which was fast-paced, thrilling and set to the driven music of ultra-cool New York band, Bang on a Can All-Stars. This was a fantastic night of Contemporary Dance at Norwich Theatre Royal from the Richard Alston Dance Company which was greatly enjoyed by the enthusiastic audience. My favourite piece was Madcap.

Hannah Parry-Ridout Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral

On Thursday 20th February 2014 I attended the Hannah Parry-Ridout Lunchtime Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral. Hannah is Assistant Musical Director of the Fulham Camerata, Assistant Organist at St. Mary's Putney and a regular accompanist to choirs and instrumentalists. She started her musical career as a chorister in the Norwich Cathedral Girls' Choir and started playing the organ with the aid of a Norwich Diocesan Scholarship.

The programme consisted of Toccata and Fugue in D minor BWV 565 - Bach, Master Tallis's Testament - Howells, Intermezzo from Sonata No.4 - Rheinberger, Scherzo from Symphony No.4 - Widor and St. Patrick's Breastplate Movement III from Sonata Celtica - Stanford.

This was another fantastic Lunchtime Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral with featured works by Bach, Howells and Stanford. Hannah Parry-Ridout who graduated from the Royal College of Music in 2010 performed a wonderful programme of music which was greatly appreciated by the enthusiastic audience at Norwich Cathedral.

Sleeping Beauty at Norwich Theatre Royal

On the evening of Monday 17th February 2014 I attended The Russian State Ballet and Orchestra of Siberia's performance of Sleeping Beauty at Norwich Theatre Royal. This is the classic story of love and innocence, mystery and magic set to Tchaikovsky's sublime score.

A wicked fairy places a fatal curse on the baby Princess Aurora, which the good Lilac Fairy softens to a sleep of one hundred years. Only a prince’s kiss can break the spell. This is every child's favourite fairy tale which The Russian State Ballet of Siberia brought magically to life on the stage at Norwich Theatre Royal.

This was a night full of stunning choreography, sumptuous costumes and wonderful sets that formed the fantasy world in which the Lilac Fairy struggles against the evil Carabosse. The sell out audience had a brilliant evening full of fairy tale magic and the sounds of Tchaikovsky. It was fantastic to see such an amazing Ballet in my home city of Norwich.

Wooden Arms and Heart of a Dog at Norwich Arts Centre

On the evening of Thursday 13th February 2014 I attended the Wooden Arms and Heart of a Dog double headline gig at Norwich Arts Centre with support from Cove Hithe. This was a gig full of local bands at a great venue.

Wooden Arms are a Norwich-based contemporary band featuring Jess Diggins on Violin, Fynn Titford-Mock on Cello, Alex Carson on Piano, Jeff Smith on Guitar and Milly Hirst and Lydia Walker on Vocals. With 6-part vocal harmonies and a distinctive yet delicate blend of classical instrumentation meets modern melody, Wooden Arms have released their debut, self-titled EP with independent record label Bare Feet Records in the summer of 2013. They are currently working on a new single Tide.

Heart of a Dog were born in the West Midlands then exiled to East Anglia. A lapsed duo of Leonard Samuel and Jonathan Allen , now joined by a interchangeable line-up of guest musicians and silent partners. They create an often tangible soundscape, characterised by a potent fusion of percussive, compelling rhythms that nurture tender melodies. Thoughtfully unaffected lyrics and rich harmonies yield a sound that manages to be both soulful and distinctively authentic.

Local band Cove Hithe is a trio of Jason Ducker on guitar/piano, Matilda Pendered on violin and Astrid Calloman on percussions. They gave us a set full of classical and folk which was a great opening before the headline acts took to the stage. Heart of a Dog with their rocky folk and the more classical sounds of Wooden Arms played fantastic sets full of amazing music which made for a great night out at Norwich Arts Centre.

Independent Venue Week at Norwich Arts Centre

On the evening of Tuesday 28th January 2014 I attended a special edition of Spectro at Norwich Arts Centre featuring The Soft, Mammal Hands, Boy with Two Heads and Unix. Bringing together some of the most relevant, important and historic venues around the country, Independent Venue Week supported by PRS for Music was a six day long series of gigs running from 28th January to 2nd February 2014. This Spectro gig was part of Independent Venue Week.

Independent venues sit at the heart of their local community, providing a vital lifeline to upcoming artists early in their careers whilst bringing together those fans who are passionate about live music. With more and more small to medium sized venues continuing to close around the country, Independent Venue Week supports those venues that play such a significant role to musicians and fans alike. There was no better way to mark Independent Venue Week than to combine the history of this beautiful medieval building with the most contemporary and interesting new electronic music from this part of the country.

Along with Venues and artists across the country Norwich Arts Centre marked Independent Venue Week with an explosive line up celebrating the venues autonomous, progressive programme and dedication to talent development with this exciting showcase. This was a fantastic night of Electronica at Norwich Arts Centre with headliners The Soft filling the venue with brilliant electronic music which had us dancing throughout their performance.

Alexander Pott Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral

On Thursday 23rd January 2014 I attended the Alexander Pott Lunchtime Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral. This free recital performed by the Organ Scholar at Christ Church, Oxford featured work by Bach, Vierne and Franck.

The programme consisted of Toccata in F BWV 540 - Bach, Etoile du Soir, Op. 54 No.3 - Vierne, Trio Sonata I (Allegro - Adagio - Allegro) BWV 525 - Bach and Choral III - Franck.

Alexander Pott has performed at Coventry Cathedral, Chelmsford Cathedral, and this year has been invited to give a recital at the London Handel Festival in April. He is currently studying for a degree in music at Oxford University, where he studies the organ with Thomas Trotter and is Organ Scholar at Christ Church Cathedral.

This was another wonderful lunchtime Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral with an amazing programme of music. My favourite piece was Franck's Choral III. It is always a great experience to hear the Norwich Cathedral Organ.

Sam Green and the Midnight Heist at Norwich Arts Centre

On the evening of Friday 10th January 2014 I attended the Sam Green and the Midnight Heist gig at Norwich Arts Centre with support from Feral Mouth and Serious Sam Barrett. This sold out gig was a great night for me to make my first visit to Norwich Arts Centre in 2014.

Sam Green and the Midnight Heist hail from the south of Devon. Their sound resonates with the delta blues of the old Mississippi bluesmen and Britain’s folk tradition old and new. The four piece, led by Sam Green, have spent the last six months relentlessly touring the south of England developing their sound and the songs on their new EP Miles Away.

Feral Mouth are an alternate Norfolk country string band. They formed officially in early 2010 following other related projects. The band take a large bit of their influence from old time country and bluegrass music as well as more contemporary styles too.

Serious Sam Barrett is a Country Folk singer from Leeds. He mixes songs about Yorkshire with Southern Folk with great results. His song writing contains echoes of the great blues masters such as Bukka White and Blind Willie McTell but also of American folk and country artists such as the Carter Family.

There was a great atmosphere at Norwich Arts Centre as Sam Green and the Midnight Heist, Feral Mouth and Serious Sam Barrett performed a great gig full of brilliant country sounds. All the artists seemed to be having as much fun as the audience members on a night full of fun for all.

Julian Haggett Organ Recital at St. Peter Mancroft Church

After my morning at Norwich Cathedral on Wednesday 1st January 2014 I made my way to the St. Peter Mancroft Church next to Norwich Marketplace for the Julian Haggett New Year's Day Organ Recital 2014 at 12 noon. As Organist at St. Peter Mancroft Julian Haggett provides voluntaries sensitive to the liturgical focus of services, ranging from 17th Century French and North European organ music of Tunder and Buxtehude to French 20th Century organ music by Alain and Messiaen.

The programme for this New Year's Day Organ Recital consisted of Piece d'Orgue BWV 572 - Bach, Noel avec variations - Langlais, Chorale Prelude In dulci jubilo Bux WV 197 - Buxtehude, Suisse Noel - Daquin, Chorale Prelude In dir ist Freude BWV 615 - Bach, Paean - Leighton and Toccata from Symphony V - Widor.

Two brilliant Organ Recitals on New Year's Day was a splendid start to the year. The highlight of the Recital at St. Peter Mancroft was the Widor Toccata from Symphony V which filled the church with the sound of beautiful music.

Kris Thomsett Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral

I began 2014 with a trip to Norwich Cathedral for the Kris Thomsett New Year's Day Organ Recital on Wednesday 1st January 2014. Kris Thomsett is currently Organ Scholar of Norwich Cathedral, a post he will hold for the next two years whilst completing a degree in music at the University of East Anglia.

The programme consisted of Carillon de Westminster - Vierne, Sleigh Ride arr. T.Trotter - Anderson, Fugue in D BWV532 - Bach, Nun Komm, Der Heiden Heiland BWV659 - Bach, Les Enfants De Dieu from La Nativite - Messiaen, Noel Etranger - Daquin, Noel Suisse - Daquin, Final from Triptyque - Langlais and Festmusikk - Takle.

This was a wonderful Organ Recital at Norwich Cathedral and a fantastic way to start the new year. The programme consisted of many various pieces but you can't get much better then listening to the music of Johann Sebastian Bach being performed on the Norwich Cathedral Organ.

Viva Voce Singers Candlelit Family Christmas Concert

On Saturday 21st December 2013 I attended the Viva Voce Singers Candlelit Family Christmas Concert at St. Peter Mancroft Church, Norwich. This concert was in aid of the Mancroft Advice Project. This performance was directed by Jody Butler and featured Organist Julian Haggett.

The Viva Voce Singers is a small and friendly Norwich based chamber choir of around twenty five singers and winner of the BBC Radio Norfolk Choir of the Year 2011 competition. The choir has a reputation for high quality performances around Norfolk.

The programme consisted of This is the truth sent from above - Trad. English arr. Vaughan Williams, Es ist ein Ros entsprungen - Brahms, A Christmas Carol - Zoltan Kodaly, Torches - John Joubert, I sing of a maiden from Make we joye - Peter Aston, Away in a manger - William Kirkpatrick arr. David Willcocks, The Queens came late - Norma Farber, A Christmas tree at Windsor - Eric Finney, Once in Royal David's City - H.J. Gauntlett arr. David Willcocks, A round of carols - Bryan Kelly, God rest ye merry, Gentlemen - Trad English arr. David Willcocks, A naughty boy tale - Peter Dixon, Messiah (Christmas Portions) - Mark Doty, A Shepherd's Carol - Britten, A boy was born - Peter Willis, The Lamb - John Tavener, Deck the Hall - Peter Aston, O come, all ye faithful - arr, Willcocks and A Merry Christmas - Trad. West Country carol arr. Arthur Warrell.

This concert was a wonderful celebration of Christmas which I greatly enjoyed along with the large audience in attendance. O come, all ye faithful, Joyful and triumphant. The Viva Voce Singers are a fantastic Choir who filled St. Peter Mancroft Church full of Christmas joy.

The Nutcracker at the London Coliseum

On Friday 20th December 2013 I attended the English National Ballet's matinee performance of Tchaikovsky's The Nutcracker at the London Coliseum. We took a journey back in time to a frost-covered, gas-lit London and joined Clara, her Nutcracker doll and the magician Drosselmeyer in this traditional, festive tale.

This production of The Nutcracker was based on a concept by Toer van Schayk and Wayne Eagling. There were fantastic performances from Elena Glurdjidze as Clara and Fabian Reimair as the Nutcracker. Gavin Sutherland conducted The Orchestra of English National Ballet.

On an enchanted Christmas Eve, under the heavy boughs of the candlelit tree Clara battled with the Mouse King and fell in love with a handsome stranger. As the air grew colder and snowflakes began to fall, Clara and her valiant Nutcracker took a hot air balloon ride across the frost-dusted London skyline to the glistening Land of Snow where her adventure really began.

In a world of Edwardian elegance, The Nutcracker brought to life the eternally popular Tchaikovsky score featuring the Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairy and the Waltz of the Flowers. This classical production is a magical, memorable and unmissable Christmas treat. This was the third year in a row that I have seen this production at the London Coliseum and it is always a wonderful experience and performance.

Birds of Hell at Clutter City

On Saturday 14th December 2013 I saw Birds of Hell perform at Norwich Arts Centre for the Clutter City Yuletide Weekend. Birds Of Hell is the solo project of Pete Murdoch from Sargasso Trio.

Clutter City Market is a DIY Handmade Fair for creative independent crafters, artists and collectives to sell their work. The focus is on original and unique items including clothes, illustrations, jewellery, badges, sewn items, paper goods, prints, zines and more.

Inspired by the DIY handmade culture, Clutter City aims to bring the best of local talent to your doorstep. The Craft Fair is full of stalls, workshops, live music, DJs and take-out food and drink.

The highlight of the Birds of Hell set was the cover of In The Bleak Midwinter which was warmly received by the Clutter City audience. Norwich Arts Centre is lots of fun for Clutter City and is always well worth a visit.

Quasi at Norwich Arts Centre

On Thursday 12th December 2013 I attended the Quasi gig at Norwich Arts Centre with support from Girl in a Thunderbolt. This was the last Twee Off night after four years of amazing gigs and nearly one hundred different acts.

Girl in a Thunderbolt is Norwich singer Maria Uzor who gave us an amazing set of songs to warm us up for the main act. Tracks like War Cry, Dopamine and Runaway were very well received at the St. Benedict's Street venue.

Quasi are Ex-husband and wife Sam Coomes and Janet Weiss who were touring their latest album Mole City. They have an amazing history of being in acts as legendary as Sleater-Kinney, Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks, Elliot Smith, John Doe, Pink Mountains, Wild Flag and Built To Spill. In addition they have played as Quasi for twenty years and released eight albums.

Quasi were brilliant and gave us a night of Visceral Trash Music. See You On Mars, Our Happiness Is Guaranteed and I Never Want to See You Again are all fantastic tracks. Quasi finished the gig with an encore of War Pigs and Let's Get It On covers. This was night when Norwich Arts Centre belonged to Portland, Oregon.

Preparing for Christmas at St. Peter Mancroft Church

On the afternoon of Saturday 7th December 2013 I attended the Mancroft Music Preparing for Christmas Autumn Recital at St. Peter Mancroft Church, Norwich which featured The Girls' Choir and Choral Scholars of St. Peter Mancroft, Julian Haggett and Harry Sullivan - Organ, Camilla Pay - Harp and Jody Butler - Director. The programme was entitled Preparing for Christmas as we were now in the season of Advent, when we prepare for the coming of the Lord at Christmas and ultimately the end of time.

The programme consisted of In dulci jubilo BuxWV 197 - Buxtehude, This is the truth sent from above - Traditional arr. Vaughan Williams, Jesus Christ the apple tree - Somerset folksong arr. Bullard, Let all mortal flesh keep silence - French Carol arr. Cleobury, Impromptu-Caprice - Pierne, Fum, fum, fum - Traditional Catalan arr. Llewellyn, Magnificat in G - Sumsion, Lift up your heads, O ye gates - Mathias, Of the Father's love begotten - Held and A Ceremony of Carols - Britten.

This was a wonderful Autumn Recital at St. Peter Mancroft with the highlight being Benjamin Britten's A Ceremony of Carols which as a tradition at the church, is performed each year to mark the start of Advent. There was a large audience in attendance at the last Mancroft Music Recital in the Autumn 2013 series.

Priscilla Queen of the Desert at Norwich Theatre Royal

On the evening of Wednesday 4th December 2013 I attended the performance of Priscilla Queen of the Desert The Musical at Norwich Theatre Royal. Direct from the West End and Broadway this feel good international hit sensation guaranteed a good time for all.

Winner of 4 WhatsOnStage.com awards, including Best New Musical, and based on the smash-hit movie, Priscilla is the heart warming, uplifting adventure of three friends who hop aboard a battered old bus searching for love and friendship and end up finding more than they had ever dreamed of. Priscilla was full of a dazzling array of outrageous Olivier and Tony award-winning costumes and a hit parade of dance floor favourites including It’s Raining Men, I Will Survive, Hot Stuff, Finally, Boogie Wonderland, Go West, Girls Just Wanna Have Fun, and I Love The Nightlife.

Jason Donovan as Tick, Richard Grieve as Bernadette and Graham Weaver as Felicia were all brilliant as we were transported to the desert and a trip to Alice Springs. This was a night of great fun Norwich Theatre Royal which I greatly enjoyed.