Will returns to Chichester for Lenten concert series

Music Nos Miseri Homines vocal ensemble join forces with three parts vied for

Reflections, a series of concerts for Lent in the Chichester area.

William Waine revived NMH while he was working as a lay vicar at Chichester Cathedral, spending two and a half years in the city. He moved on a couple of years ago and is now predominantly based in London, but he is delighted to be bringing the group back to Chichester, after an inspiring performance of Bach’s

Magnificat in Chichester Cathedral late last year.

The series of concerts includes Lamento on Wednesday, March 27 at 7.15pm in The Guildhall, Priory Park, Chichester. three parts vied is a flexible collective of chamber musicians who sing and play the music of the 17th and 18th centuries. Lamento weaves trio sonatas by Buxtehude with meditations by Rosenmüller and Biber for countertenor, culminating in Schmelzer’s celebration of the life of Ferdinand III. Edward Edgcumbe, countertenor, will perform with Ellen Bundy, violin; Carina Drury, cello; Chris Terepin, viola da gamba; and Alexander Pott, chamber organ.

Purcell and Britten will be on Wednesday, April 3 at 7.15pm in the Millennium Hall, Westbourne House School, PO20 2BH – an evening of music by two of Britain’s most evocative composers. Frances Gregory, mezzo-soprano; Paul Grant, baritone; and Andrew Hayman, piano, will perform.

Concluding the series will be Buxtehude Membra Jesu Nostri on Wednesday, April 10 at 7.15pm in Boxgrove Priory – a night which sees NMH and three parts vied combine for the final concert: Buxtehude’s cycle of seven cantatas written in adoration of the crucified Jesus. Each work focuses on a different part of his wounded body: the feet, the knees, the hands, the sides, the breast, the heart and the face. The concert features: Helena Thomson, Helena Moore, Fleur Smith, Natasha Page, soprano; Edward Edgcumbe, William Waine, alto; Thomas Perkins, Edward Woodhouse, tenor; and Michael Hickman, Piers Kennedy, bass.

“The venues all offer something different for the type of concert we are doing,” William said. “Things have gone well. We have done quite a few concerts in Chichester and we have done a few further afield. We have been to Wales and also Essex where I grew up and also Winchester. And we did our most ambitious concert yet in Chichester just before Christmas. But with this, we wanted to put on a project. We wanted to do something that would move people through a weekly concert, different concerts but all with reflective qualities that would take people on a bit of a journey. There is a discount to encourage people to book all the way through.

“These are all performers of a very high calibre, and it is not often that you get a series that you can follow all the way through rather than just individual concerts. It feels like a good idea to be able to offer people something that can be taken as a whole.

“We have gone for a Lentthemed concert series. Lots of the music is sacred or religious, but there is a lot that isn’t. The real quality is the music itself which is optimistic and hopeful and meditative and reflective.”

Will teaches in Petersfield and is also involved with Havant Choral Society. He retains strong links with the area: “I did two and a half years in Chichester Cathedral choir, and it was a brilliant choir in a beautiful cathedral. It was a great opportunity to perform in that environment and to be a significant part of the choir.

“With six lay clerks, there is little place to hide. I think it gives you a good idea of what it means to be such an important part of a choir. You have got to be on top form to deliver all the time. There is no space to relax or sit back and take it easy. It was a great training ground.”

Tickets on www.thenovium. org/nmh.