"When I work, God respects me, but when I sing, He loves me." (Tagore)
Portsmouth Cathedral has a thriving and diverse music programme. The boys' choir of the Portsmouth Cathedral Choir consists of 24 boys' voices and 12 adult male voices. The choir members rehearse on weekdays at 8.00 am before a regular school day, where they rehearse the music for that week's services. In addition, there is also a girls' choir and an adult choir. Together they share the various musical tasks at the cathedral and in the diocese.
The choir has already undertaken several successful tours through Belgium, Germany, Estonia, France, the Netherlands and Sweden. At home, in the United Kingdom, they have sung in St. Paul's Cathedral and Westminster Abbey in London as well as in the Queen's private chapel at St. George's in Windsor Castle.
Since Portsmouth is one of the three naval bases of the United Kingdom, it is hardly surprising that this choir also maintains close ties with the Royal Navy and participates in a number of services for them. Highlights include the annual Royal Marines Band Service and the Christmas Carol Service of the Second Sea Lord on HMS Victory.
The Portsmouth Cathedral Choir has built a special bond with Antwerp over decades. On Saturday 24 May, the choir was a guest for the third time at Sint-Walburgiskerk in Antwerp as part of the "Walburgis Proms".
The choir, conducted by Dr David Price, performed the programme "Cathedral Echoes", in which they took listeners on a stunning journey through the fascinating world of England's magnificent cathedrals. The choir effortlessly moved from polyphony through baroque to romantic and contemporary repertoire. They performed sometimes intimate, sometimes breathtaking works that reflected the rich history and grandeur of these sacred places in an inimitable way. With the unique sound so characteristic of a boys' choir, the heavenly voices filled the intriguing art deco church building.
The tone was set immediately with "Haec dies" by Byrd: it would be a festive evening. The "Ave Maria" by Parsons, a classic from English choral literature, provided the first moment of goosebumps. "Crux fidelis" by Sarah MacDonald was perhaps an odd one out at first glance, but this contemporary work fitted perfectly into the series of powerful compositions and left us wanting more.
Various pieces with solo voices were performed. These were interpreted at a very high level by members of the choir. We listened in amazement to the boys' solo in "How beautiful are the feet" from Handel's "Messiah", only to be blown away afterwards by two boys' voices in "Hear My Prayer" by Mendelssohn. The baritone solo in "Rise, heart, thy Lord is risen" from Vaughan Williams' "Five Mystical Songs" immediately grabbed us by the throat. Of course, we should not forget to mention the fine performances in "Consider all, ye passers by" by Amner and "Thy word is a lantern" by Purcell.
The concert was structured in three parts, with choral works from a specific period being performed in each. Between them, an organ work was heard each time. With Amy Beach and Philip Moore, no well-trodden paths were walked, but thanks to organist Sachin Gunga we discovered new works.
Finally, a word of praise for the accompanying programme booklet, in which each choral work was briefly contextualized, so you could enjoy every pearl even more.
After the strains of Handel's "Hallelujah", in which the audience was invited to sing along, we could look back on a heartwarming evening. In these uncertain times – O for the wings, for the wings of a dove! – we were allowed to catch a glimpse of another, better world…