A section of Hastings Philharmonic Choir singing works by Hadyn and Vivaldi at Christ Church last November, accompanied by Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra (photo: Peter Mould).

Hastings Philharmonic Choir sing works by living composers

Hastings Philharmonic Choir, accompanied by the strings of the Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra, present two works by contemporary composers at its Northern Lights summer concert, to be held at Christ Church in St Leonards on Saturday 5 July. Press officer Gareth Simpson describes the background to these pieces.

Hastings Philharmonic Choir will perform the works of two living composers, Arvo Pärt’s Berliner Messe and Ola Gjeilo’s Sunrise Mass. Both composers are from the north, hence the concert’s title Northern Lights.

The choir will be accompanied by the strings of Hastings Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Marcio da Silva. Rachel Allen (soprano), Alex Pullinger (countertenor), John Twitchen (tenor) and Jack Lawrence-Jones (bass) will sing the solo roles.

The HPO string section will also perform Arnold Schoenberg’s single movement tone poem Verklärte Nacht.

Arvo Pärt is an Estonian composer of contemporary classical music. His music is typically minimalist in style, employing his own invented technique of tintinnabuli, a musical texture that creates a kaleidoscopic aural effect emulating the resonance of bells. It also draws inspiration from Gregorian chant.

Composed in 1990, Berliner Messe is a meditative and structured setting of the Latin Mass. Originally commissioned for the 90th German Catholic Days in Berlin shortly after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the work was first performed at St Hedwig’s Cathedral.

Sunrise Mass was composed in 2008 by the Norwegian composer and pianist, Ola Gjeilo. It is structured in four movements—The Spheres, Sunrise, The City and Identity & The Ground — each movement setting part of the traditional text of the Latin mass.

“I wanted the musical development of the Mass to evolve from transparent and spacey, through increasing emotion and movement, to something solid and grounded – as a metaphor for human development from child to adult, for a spiritual journey, or for the creative process itself`,” Gjeilo has said.

The notion of a spiritual journey – in this case the affirmation of love and forgiveness over blame and rejection – also underpins Schoenberg’s Verklärte Nacht (Transfigured Night). Based on a poem by Richard Dehmel, this lusciously late-Romantic work depicts the conversation and emotions experienced by a man and woman, walking through a forest at night.

Hastings Philharmonic Choir has been growing strongly in the past year or so and now has over 90 singing members. It performs three times a year, plus a carol concert; the last concert in November 2024, pictured above, was a sell-out and acclaimed success.

This friendly choir is always happy to welcome new members who enjoy singing and who can follow written-down music. The best way of finding out if the choir is for you is to visit one or more of our weekly rehearsals. If you would like to do this, send us an email  – info@hastingsphilchoir.org – and we will be delighted to see you.

Northern Lights: Hastings Philharmonic Choir’s Summer Concert Saturday 5 July 2025, starting at 7.00pm, at Christ Church, Silchester Road, St Leonards-on-Sea.  Tickets are on sale via the choir’s website (www.hastingsphilchoir.org.uk) or from The Bookkeeper, 1A Kings Road, St Leonards, priced at £22.50/£18/£13.50. Students, under 18s, jobseekers and universal credit recipients £5, or pay what you can.

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