Ashtead Choral Society present a contempory Christmas concert.
Featuring 20th century works by the greats of modern music - Britten, Bernstein and Jenkins, this is traditional Christmas music for the future.
Ashtead Choral Society are under the baton of Andrew Storey for the first time, whom some of you may know from the Ashtead Singers, Hackney Singers and others.
The Chichester Psalms, set to the music of Leonard Bernstein, are a rare chance to hear the Psalms in their original Hebrew text. Bernstein has set a number of Psalms in this sonerous work, inluding Psalm 2 - much of which was used by Handel in 'Messiah', Psalm 23, 'The Lord is my shepherd' and Psalm 100 which appropriately starts 'Make a joyful noise'.
Britten's Ceremony of Carols had its genesis during an Atlantic crossing at the height of the Second World War. The text was adapted by Pears from English Medieval and Tudor sources, some traditional, some by writers such as Richard Southwell. The music ranges from contemplative to highly energised, but all pieces work together as a whole.
Karl Jenkins's Celebration of Christmas is more recent, and comprises a number of Christmas carols, many familiar, which range from American spiritual to 14th centuary German. All have been looked at afresh by Jenkins and given his own inimitable reworking into something both familiar and yet new. You will hear carols such as 'In dulci jubilo' and 'Silent night' in a whole fresh and challenging setting.
Ashtead Choral Society are proud to be supporting Combact Stress at this concert.