NEWBURY Choral Society were joined by Trondernes Mandssangforening, a male voice choir from Trondheim, for a concert of British and Norwegian folk music. This concert is a return visit for the joint concert with NCS in Trondheim in 2019.
NCS, conducted by Joe Tobin, comprised 21 sopranos, 27 altos, 8 tenors and 13 basses and opened the concert with John Rutter’s “The Sprig of Thyme”, a collection of eleven traditional songs of the British Isles.
It includes long-standing favourites such as “Willow Song” and “The Miller of Dee” with lesser-known gems as “O Can Ye Sew Cushions” and “The Sprig of Thyme”.
The concert continued with Holst’s “I Love my Love”; a Cornish folk song that tells a dramatic love story through the text, with each of the stanzas ending with the refrain "I love my love because i know my love loves me!"
This was followed by Cecilia McDowall “A Fancy of Folksongs”, a choral work that brings together arrangements of four well-loved folksongs: “Green Bushes”, “The Rambling Sailor”, “The Crystal Spring”, and “O, No John!”.
The last piece before the interval was “My Spirit Sang All Day”, a song by Gerald Finzi. It is the third movement of his “Seven Poems of Robert Bridges”.
NCS handled a challenging programme of 17 pieces well; some sung using tenors and basses only and others just altos and sopranos. The smaller contingent of tenors and basses meant that on occasion they were challenged to deliver the necessary volume in some pieces.
The second half introduced Trondernes Mandssangforening , conducted by Jan Henrik Dahl, comprising 16 tenors and 16 basses each grouped into firsts and seconds.
They opened with Sangerhilsen, a song composed by Edvard Grieg in 1883. The melody was set to the text of lyricist Sigvald Skavland’s poem and is traditionally used as a welcome to guest choruses and singers.
This was followed by Morgensang, a song composed by Niels Wilhelm Gade. Two songs were about Olav Trygvason, King of Norway who founded Trondheim in 997 and remains a popular folk hero. “Landkjenning” by Grieg being accompanied by NCS pianist Steve Bowey.
The programme included the delightful “Ubi Caritas” by Ola Gjeilo, “The Present Tense” by Knut Nysted and the lyrical “Våren” by Grieg. The song “My Evaline” was given the full barbershop treatment. The Trondernes Mandssangforening sang the above from memory with confidence and exuberance which displayed their familiarity with the works and enjoyment of singing.
The finale of this entertaining evening was the coming together of the two choirs for a rendition of “The Last Rose of Summer” by Thomas Moore (arranged by Joe Tobin), followed by “Wedding March” by Sommerro/Pedersen. The combined choirs and the balancing of the alto/soprano and tenor/bass ratios resulted in greater depth and a more rounded sound, and the audience responded with a standing ovation.
This was a highly entertaining evening bringing together two choirs of very different styles to deliver a concert that proved to be a complete success, so congratulations to all concerned. Normal service is resumed for the next NCS concert of the Fauré Requiem on 4th November, and there is a Christmas Concert on Saturday 16th December.
