A BRAMSHALL choir with a difference have been busy preparing for a special new concert as they celebrate their fifth year together.
The Jacobi Chorale was formed in 2007 and is made up of amateur singers from across Staffordshire and Derbyshire but the group rehearses in Bramshall.
Under the musical directorship of Paul Nevins the choir specialise in the performance of mainly 16th and 17th century music.
This Saturday the group perform Music For Royal Occasions, including works by Handel and Purcell.
The performance at St John’s Church, in Ashbourne, will see the choir accompanied by the Mercia Brass Ensemble and conducted by Mr Nevins.
He brings a wealth of experience to the group having studied trumpet, piano and conducting at The Royal Academy of Music and subsequently took singing lessons and sang with the Bretton Singers.
He has successfully combined a playing, teaching and conducting career and besides conducting The Jacobi Chorale, he is currently co-principal with English Pro Musica, plays cornet with Minstrels Gallery and conducts the Stafford Orchestra.
Supporting the group in performance and development is Cath Holder who has been with the group since its inception.
She has performed solo pieces with Minstrels Gallery and as mezzo-soprano soloist in recent performances of Pergolesi’s Stabat Mater and Vivaldi’s Gloria.
This year The Jacobi Chorale are singing accompanied by Minstrels Gallery who play on original instruments.
They formed around 16 years ago and their historic instruments played an important role in the music of the 16th and 17th centuries, especially in religious settings.
The concert promises to be a great night with music such as the ever popular Hallelujah Chorus and The King Shall Rejoice (one of the anthems played at coronations) by Handel and Purcell’s Come Ye Sons Of Art.
Such is the standard of choristers that all soloists are taken from the choir and the concert is expected to wow the audience.
The show starts at 7.30pm and tickets priced at £8 or free for under 16s are available from Ashbourne Tourist Information on 01335 343666 or via the choir on 01889 564452.
