THE CHAPTER House Choir will be celebrating York’s historical links with Scandinavia, with a concert featuring a selection of the finest music from the region.
While York hosts the largest Viking festival in Europe during February half-term, the Chapter House Choir will be sounding the horn for the Scandinavia of the 19th and 20th centuries, when Norway, Sweden and Denmark have produced some of their greatest music.
Much of the music is influenced by the simple and gorgeous folk music of the region. The programme includes The Four Psalms; the last work of Norway’s most celebrated composer, Edvard Grieg.
Best known for orchestral works including Peer Gynt, Grieg also wrote choral music and The Four Psalms are rooted in dramatic and entertaining folk music. Pieces by Danish composers Nielsen and Niels Gade also draw on Danish folklore and melodies for inspiration, whilst Norwegian composer, Nystedt brings the programme into the late 20th century.
Nystedt died last December at the age of 99, having been awarded the St. Olaf medal from the King of Norway for his contribution to Norwegian musical life, having been the first Norwegian composer to be nominated for a Grammy award.
Stephen Williams, the musical director of the Chapter House Choir, spent three months in Scandinavia as part of his Winston Churchill Fellowship, studying the close relationship between composers and choirs.
He said: “We are delighted to be giving this concert in the Chapter House of York Minster, the choir’s spiritual home.
“The Chapter House is a unique and intimate setting for audiences to enjoy these wonderful pieces. It feels right to be performing music and poetry from Scandinavia in York Minster; perhaps it is the spirit of the early Viking kings of York.”
The concert takes place on Saturday, February 21, at 7.30pm in the Chapter House of York Minster. Tickets are £15 (adult) and £5 (under 19s) and are available in advance from the York Minster Box Office in the Minster, on 01904 557208 or at yorkminster.org
Tickets also available on the door.
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