Come & Sing Day

Come and Sing Day Raising funds for St Ann’s Hospice

Fauré Requiem Gabriel Fauré

(12 May 1845 - 4 November 1924)

and a selection of lighter music

Conductor: Edward McHale Piano: Christopher Ellis

Saturday 5th October 2024

Bramhall United Reformed Church, Robins Lane, Bramhall. SK7 2PE

NB NEW VENUE THIS YEAR!

9.00am – 9.30am 9.30am – 11.00am 11.00am –11.30am 11.30am - 1.00pm 1.00pm – 2.00pm 2.00pm – 3.30pm 3.45pm – 4.15pm

Timetable

Registration, collect music Workshop Break for refreshments Workshop

Ticket £25.00 Music provided on the day

To book a place: Register by email and pay by bank transfer OR Completeapplicationformandpostwithcheque

Further details: www.hospicechoir.org

Email: hospicechoir@aol.com

Lunch break Workshop Performance for family/friends

Please bring food for lunch. Hot drinks will be provided, home-made cakes will be on sale during the morning and lunch breaks

Music:

Will be provided on the day

Ticket:

Adult each £25 Students under 18 free Places are limited and will be allocated on a first come first served basis Payment is non-refundable if a place is allocated to you A separate form is required for each application

 By post: Complete application form and send with cheque payable to St Ann’s Hospice Festival Choir OR: post application form and pay by bank transfer

 Bank Account: StAnn’sHospiceFestivalChoirLtd. Sortcode:20-82-13 a/c63931994BarclaysBank. Please use your name as the reference.

Post completed forms to: Come and Sing day, 11, Lingfield Avenue, Hazel Grove, STOCKPORT, Cheshire SK7 4SL. Come and Sing Registration enquiries: 0161 612 1660

Apply by email:

Complete application form and email to straffon12@gmail.com Pay by bank transfer to the account above.

Closing date Friday 27th September 2024

If you require wheelchair access and/or disabled parking, please let us know.

Useful contacts:

Web site: www.hospicechoir.org.uk Email: hospicechoir@aol.com

 Join Us! If you are interested in joining the Choir please contact our membership

secretary sybilmitchell10@gmail.com

Our singing day is a well-established tradition. Choral singers of all ages are invited to join us to explore Gabriel’ Fauré’s Requiem, Op 48 and a variety of the choir’s favourite pieces from our music library. Our singing days attract choristers from around the greater Manchester and beyond. We hope you will come along and enjoy this very popular event.

Gabriel Fauré

Fauré was born in the south of France but at the age of 9 was sent to Paris to study organ and choir training serving at the great Parisian churches of Saint Sulpice and La Madeleine. His habit of nipping out to smoke during the sermons didn’t go down well with the clergy. In January 1877 at the age of 31, his first violin sonata was performed marking a changing point in his career after which he became part of the musical elite in France. He died 100 years ago on 4th November 1924 and as we approach the Remembrance season, singing his famous Requiem is a fitting way to mark his memory.

Requiem Op48

Fauré began his Requiem in 1887, revised and expanded it over the years, until its final version dating from 1901. He said of his Requiem, "Everything I managed to entertain by way of religious illusion I put into my Requiem, which moreover is dominated from beginning to end by a very human feeling of faith in eternal rest."

If we think of Fauré as a French song [chanson] writer, much as we associate Schubert with the German [Lied] songs, we can see his Requiem as a cycle of seven glorious part songs with some cracking tunes. There are none of the terrors of the Verdi Requiem or the Berlioz Grande Messe des Morts; Fauré’s is noted for its calm, serene and peaceful outlook bringing musical solace with its haunting “Pie Jesu”, the soaring tune of the “Agnus Dei” and the final pianissimo chorus of angels “In Paradisum.” It was first performed at La Madeleine in 1888 and later at Fauré’s own funeral, but was slow to catch on, not receiving its US premiere until 1931 and not performed in the UK until 1936.

Director Edward McHale

Edward is currently the Director of Music at St Bartholomew’s church, Westhoughton where he plays the organ and directs the choir amongst other duties. He has been a church organist at various churches in Manchester and Salford for 45 years. He is currently President of the Oldham, Rochdale and Tameside Organists’ association as well as a member and Past President of both Manchester and Bolton Organists’ Associations and a member of the Organ Club. He is known for playing populist recitals featuring a wide spectrum of organ music.

He has been involved with singing in choirs since childhood. He is a founder member and committee member of St Ann’s Hospice Festival Choir and choirmaster for the Tenor and Bass section. Edward directed a very successful Singing Day for us in 2022. His humour and enthusiasm is infectious.

When not cramming all this into his spare time, he has a full-time job in the NHS! 

St Ann's Hospice urgently needs a new purpose-built hospice for the people of Greater Manchester. They are making great progress and work has already started on site in Heald Green, but they still need our help to raise the money needed to make this incredible hospice a reality. St Ann's wants to be here for you, your family, and your friends. Let’s build a new St Ann’s, together.