Songs of the night
To book tickets or for a full festival ticket visit The Forge website, or visit the contact page
Preceded by a bring a song session at 3pm.
Performers
Kate Symonds-Joy (mezzo-soprano)
Jonathan McGovern (baritone)
William Vann (piano)
Concert details
This final recital, fittingly entitled Songs of the night features Britten’s A Charm of Lullabies alongside other songs that explore the world of dreams and nightmares with three acclaimed young artists: mezzo-soprano Kate Symonds-Joy and baritone Jonathan McGovern accompanied by William Vann on piano.
Bring a song session II
2012 saw the launch of “bring a song” sessions for amateur singers and they were such a hit that they will feature again in 2013. These fifteen minute slots are a fantastic change to sing on the stage of The Forge – a spectacularly good acoustic in which to perform – and experience recital performing first hand. William Vann will be at the piano and there will be time to run through the song more than once and also work on details in a mini-masterclass style.
There are only sixteen slots in total so book early to reserve a place via the contact form, giving your contact details, availability and an idea of repertoire – ideally English song, of course!
The cost of each slot is £10 and we just ask for a small donation to the LESF to watch.
The folk songs of England
To book tickets or for a full festival ticket visit The Forge website, or visit the contact page
Preceded by a pre-concert talk at 6.30pm.
Performers
Caroline MacPhie (soprano)
Jonathan Sells (baritone)
Timothy Orpen (clarinet)
William Vann (piano)
Concert details
In this second concert, The folk songs of England, we look at the world of English folk song, including a pre-concert talk that explores the intriguing overlap between the worlds of traditional folk song performance and the art song influenced traditions. Benjamin Britten, Vaughan Williams and Cecil Sharp feature prominently, the latter two being, of course, important figures in the preservation of the English folk song traditions.
Songs of the half-light
To book tickets or for a full festival ticket visit The Forge website, or visit the contact page
Preceded by a bring a song session at 3pm.
Performers
Katie Bray (mezzo-soprano)
Rupert Charlesworth (tenor)
Ahmed Dickinson-Cardenas (guitar)
William Vann (piano)
Concert details
In this opening concert at the Forge, Songs of the half-light, we explore the intriguing contrast between music written for voice and guitar, and for voice and piano: the featured composers are Benjamin Britten, Lennox Berkeley and the less known Mathias Seiber, a Hungarian who adopted England as his country in 1955.
Bring a song session I
2012 saw the launch of “bring a song” sessions for amateur singers and they were such a hit that they will feature again in 2013. These fifteen minute slots are a fantastic change to sing on the stage of The Forge – a spectacularly good acoustic in which to perform – and experience recital performing first hand. William Vann will be at the piano and there will be time to run through the song more than once and also work on details in a mini-masterclass style.
There are only sixteen slots in total so book early to reserve a place via the contact form, giving your contact details, availability and an idea of repertoire – ideally English song, of course!
The cost of each slot is £10 and we just ask for a small donation to the LESF to watch.
Flower songs – in the Wren Chapel of the Royal Hospital Chelsea
To book tickets visit the Royal Hospital Chelsea website, email boxoffice@chelsea-pensioners.org.uk, visit the contact page or for a full festival ticket visit The Forge website.
Followed by a complimentary glass of bubbly in the colonnade.
Performers
The Chapel Choir of the Royal Hospital Chelsea, conducted by William Vann
Concert details
The Royal Hospital Chapel Choir perform Britten’s stunning Flower Songs alongside part-songs and madrigals by some of England’s finest composers, including Gibbons, Parry and Stanford, including the former’s madrigal The Silver Swan and the latter’s famous part-song The Bluebird. This single act, hour long concert will be followed by a glass of bubbly outside in the cloister walk on what, it is hoped, will be a glorious May evening!
London: flower of cities
To book tickets visit The Forge website.
Preceded at 3pm by a two hour “bring a song” session for amateur singers.
Performers
Katie Bray (mezzo-soprano), Jonathan Sells (baritone) and William Vann (piano)
Programme
In the year of the London Olympic Games, the final concert of the festival celebrate London in song. Walton’s A song for the Lord Mayor’s table appears alongside Ronald Copr’s Flower of cities, songs by Dring, Finzi, Head, Holst, Ives, Purcell, Shaw and Sondheim and Ireland’s London pieces for solo piano.
Tonight’s two singers have been taking singing competitions by storm: Katie Bray won first prizes in the prestigious Richard Lewis competition at the Royal Academy of Music in 2011 and Jonathan Sells took the Guildhall Rose Bowl, Guildhall Wigmore Recital Prizer and the Thelma King vocal award among other prizes.
The women of English song
To book tickets visit The Forge website.
Preceded at 6.45pm by a pre-concert talk given by Rhian Samuel.
Performers
Aoife Miskelly (soprano), James Gilchrist (tenor), Robert Rice (baritone) and William Vann (piano)
Programme
Some of the finest English songs were written by female composers, yet their work is often overlooked. Tonight’s concert highlights the work of Rebecca Clarke, Muriel Herbert, Liza Lehmann and Rhian Samuel, who begins the evening with a pre-concert talk on the subject of English song-women.
World-renowned tenor James Gilchrist, who needs no introduction, is joined by soprano Aoife Miskelly, winner of the 2011 Hampshire Singing Competition among many other prizes and the masterful baritone Robert Rice.
Walter de la Mare: songs of childhood
To book tickets visit The Forge website.
Preceded at 3pm by a two hour “bring a song” session for amateur singers.
Performers
Kate Symonds-Joy (mezzo-soprano), Rupert Charlesworth (tenor), Gareth John (baritone), William Vann (piano)
Programme
“Children are, in short, visionaries.” Tonight’s recital explores de la Mare’s fascination with the concept of the unfettered imagination of child. His wide-ranging influence on English song composers includes a youthful Benjamin Britten and his Tit for tat, cycles by Lennox Berkeley and Arthur Bliss and Howells’s masterful Peacock Pie as well as songs by Armstrong Gibbs, Gurney (including an unpublished song, The ghost) and Robin Holloway.
Kate Symonds-Joy and Rupert Charlesworth, both critically acclaimed young singers, return to the festival after stunning performances in the 2011 season and are joined by Gareth John, currently studying on the opera course at the Royal Academy of Music.
William Blake: Metamorphosis
To book tickets visit The Forge website.
Preceded at 6.45pm by a pre-concert talk given by Richard Stokes.
Performers
Ruth Jenkins (soprano), Johnny Herford (baritone), James Turnbull (oboe), William Vann (piano)
Description
William Blake was heavily influenced by the writings of Ovid and tonight Benjamin Britten’s Songs and proverbs of William Blake, Ralph Vaughan Williams Ten Blake songs for voice and oboe and Quilter’s Blake settings are placed alongside Britten’s Metamorphoses after Ovid for solo oboe and three of Vaughan Williams’ Studies in English folk songs.
Multiple prize-winning soprano Ruth Jenkins and acclaimed baritone Johnny Herford are joined by oboist James Turnbull, whose debut solo disc has recently been released to positive reviews.