An Evening Romance | Exultate Singers with Craig Ogden (guitar)

As the sun sets on an early spring day, Exultate Singers present an Evening Serenade of romantic music from around the globe. The choir is delighted to be joined by the internationally-renowned guitarist Craig Ogden and the cellist Richard May for performances of wonderfully atmospheric pieces that travel from the calm and stillness of Samuel Barber’s Sure on this shining night to the energetic samba rhythms of Brazilian folk songs set in a nightclub.

The central piece is a suite of seven vivid settings of Lorca poems for choir and guitar by the Spanish composer Castelnuovo-Tedesco, described by Segovia as ‘the first composer I have met who immediately understands how to write for the guitar’.

The Spanish fervour of much of the music is contrasted by reflective songs by Britten, Holst and the Latvian composer Eriks Ešenvalds. Stars sets a poem by Sara Teasdale in which the choir not only sing but play chords on tuned wine glasses, creating a mystical, cosmic experience.