Page 291 - FINAL_The Sixteen Coverage Book 40th Anniversary Year

December 2019, Harry Christophers and The Sixteen performed a sequence of carols
(some for Christmas, some for other times of the year) all based on Medieval texts,
giving us surviving Medieval carols alongside carols to Medieval texts by 20th century
composers, William Walton, Elizabeth Poston, Gustav Holst, and contemporary
composers Matthew Martin, Jan Sandstrom, James Burton and Cecilia McDowall, all
culminating in Britten's A Ceremony of Carols, performed with harpist Frances Kelly.

We started with Walton's 1931 Make we joy now in this fest, a setting of a macaronic text which was
somewhat unfamiliar, and for all its liveliness has subtle moments too.

There followed a sequence of Medieval carols, the trick with these is how to present them.
Christophers chose to give the carols quite plainly without too much additional arrangement, which
made them all the more effective with their bold harmonies.
Nowell, nowell: out of your sleep had the verses sung by soloists Alexandra Kidgell and George
Pooley with the choir providing the choruses, all accompanied by tambourine and drum (played by
choir members Charlotte Mobbs and Edward McMullan), the result was surprising and rather martial,
evoking outdoor performance. Sweet was the song was given a touching performance by soprano
solo Camilla Harris accompanied by Frances Kelly on a small harp. Nowell, Nowell: In Bethlem again
used soloists Alexandra Kidgell and George Pooley in the verses, accompanied by harp, and what
struck me was the irregularity of the music, a far cry from the regular four-square Victorian carols
which are the common currency of Christmas. Joys Seven is a traditional piece also, we heard it last
week in Imogen Holst's arrangement, but here it was sung by full choir, charming and very catchy.

Matthew Martin's Adam lay yboundon gave us a very modern take on an old text, slow and thoughtful
with strong harmonies and a haunting end, with a fine solo from Robert Clark. Thanks to BBC Radio
3, I now know that Elizabeth Poston grew up in Rooks Nest House, where EM Forster had grown up
and which formed the inspiration for Howards End (and in fact Poston wrote the music for a 1970s
BBC TV adaptation of Howards End whilst living in Rooks Nest House). Jesus Christ the apple tree is
one of Poston's best known pieces, here beautifully shaped with clear words. Peter Warlock's Corpus
Christi was new to me, a surprisingly complex piece which set solos from Amy Carson and Steven
Harrold against a wordless chorus to strong effect. Gustav Holst's This have I done for my true
love was a fruit of his association with Thaxted in Essex and its vicar, Conrad Noel, who was a
passionate medievalist and enthusiast for folk dancing. In fact the piece is pure Holst with no folk
melody, and is rather less folksy than you might expect. A striking piece which deserves to be better
known.

We ended with a further sequence of Medieval carols, There is no rose, perhaps the most familiar of
them, here sung with harp and with soloists Katy Hill and George Pooley for the verses, Angelus ad
virginem which was surprisingly subtle and not as vigorous as some accounts with a solo from Steven
Harrold, and all the better for it, and finally Make we joy now in this fest (yes, the Walton text in its
original form), with strong, bold harmonies accompanied by tambourine and drum.

Part two started with Jan Sandstrom's gloriously subtle version of Praetorius' Lo, how a rose e'er
blooming, four soloists, Alexandra Kidgell, Edward McMullan, Simon Berridge and Stuart
Young, singing the carol over humming accompaniment from the choir, striking, thoughtful and
perfectly lovely. James Burton is UK-born, USA-based choral conductor and his setting
of Balulalow was as beautifully crafted as one might expect, with a great deal of interest in the inner
parts. Cecilia McDowall's Of a Rose was full of energy thanks to the choir's attention to her uneven
phrase lengths. Finally in this group, the anonymous The Salutation Carol sung by the men of the
choir with soloist Robert Evans, again a lively piece and also full of uneven rhythms.

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