The Swansea Philharmonic Choir is a mixed

choir A choir ( ; also known as a chorale or chorus) is a musical ensemble of singers. Choral music, in turn, is the music written specifically for such an ensemble to perform. Choirs may perform music from the classical music repertoire, which sp ...

based in Swansea,

Wales Wales ( cy, Cymru ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by England to the east, the Irish Sea to the north and west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the Bristol Channel to the south. It had a population in ...

. It performs with 76 members.

History

The Choir was founded in 1959 by Haydn James. His stated aim was to raise the standard of choral singing in Wales, and to perform a mix of choral classics and less-familiar music. It marked its 50-year anniversary with a special slate of performances in Swansea.

Repertoire

The Choir performs regularly in

Brangwyn Hall , former_names = , alternate_names = , image = Brangwyn hall.jpg , alt = , caption = Brangwyn Hall entrance , map_type = , altitude = , building_type ...

and in St Mary's Church, Swansea. It presents music ranging from the

Baroque Period The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

to present-day works. It regularly includes British composers such as Ralph Vaughan Williams,

Benjamin Britten Edward Benjamin Britten, Baron Britten (22 November 1913 – 4 December 1976, aged 63) was an English composer, conductor, and pianist. He was a central figure of 20th-century British music, with a range of works including opera, other ...

and

Sir Edward Elgar Sir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet, (; 2 June 1857 – 23 February 1934) was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestr ...

. It also includes works of Daniel Jones, Hoddinott, Mathias and

Karl Jenkins Sir Karl William Pamp Jenkins (born 17 February 1944) is a Welsh multi-instrumentalist and composer. His best known works include the song " Adiemus" and the ''Adiemus'' album series; '' Palladio''; ''The Armed Man''; and his ''Requiem''. J ...

. In March 2007 the Choir gave a performance of Orff's ''

Carmina Burana ''Carmina Burana'' (, Latin for "Songs from Benediktbeuern" 'Buria'' in Latin is a manuscript of 254 poems and dramatic texts mostly from the 11th or 12th century, although some are from the 13th century. The pieces are mostly bawdy, irreverent ...

''. Other works performed in 2007 included Fauré's '' Requiem'', the ''

Petite messe solennelle Gioachino Rossini's ''Petite messe solennelle'' (Little solemn mass) was written in 1863, possibly at the request of Count Alexis Pillet-Will for his wife Louise to whom it is dedicated. The composer, who had retired from composing operas more ...

'' by Rossini and Handel's ''

Messiah In Abrahamic religions, a messiah or messias (; , ; , ; ) is a saviour or liberator of a group of people. The concepts of '' mashiach'', messianism, and of a Messianic Age originated in Judaism, and in the Hebrew Bible, in which a ''mashiach ...

''. In March 2008 the Choir performed '' Mendelssohn's'' '' Hymn of Praise'' and the Choral Suite from '' The Armed Man: A mass for peace'' by ''

''. In June 2008 the Choir held a Come and Sing event in Swansea, at which Mozart's Coronation Mass was performed. In December 2008 the Choir performed '' Verdi's'' '' Requiem''. In April 2016 the Choir performed Mendelssohns ''

Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My El (deity), God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic language, Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) w ...

'' In December 2018 the Choir performed Britten's ''

War Requiem The ''War Requiem'', Op. 66, is a large-scale setting of the Requiem composed by Benjamin Britten mostly in 1961 and completed in January 1962. The ''War Requiem'' was performed for the consecration of the new Coventry Cathedral, which was bui ...

'' In April 2022 the Choir performed Karl Jenkins' '' The Armed Man: A mass for peace'' and Paul Mealors' '' Stabat Mater at

Brangwyn Hall , former_names = , alternate_names = , image = Brangwyn hall.jpg , alt = , caption = Brangwyn Hall entrance , map_type = , altitude = , building_type ...

, Swansea.

Commissioned works

In March 2007 the choir presented the world première of ''Cities of Dreams'' a work commissioned by the Choir and composed by Swansea-born composer Stephen McNeff. In December 2019 as part of its 60th year anniversary concert the Choir gave the first performance of Three Postcards by Nathan Dearden, which was commissioned by the choir, as part of Making Music UK’s Adopt-a-Composer Scheme and subsequently broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

External links

References

{{authority control Welsh choirs Music in Swansea Musical groups established in 1959 1959 establishments in Wales