Church Times

Andrew Nethsingha directed as his swansong a rip-roaring reading of Mahler’s Eighth, the “Symphony of a Thousand”.

David Cheetham

It may be vast – it may be difficult – but this symphony exactly suits our festival chorus. The choir’s work at the festival had been carefully planned to lead up to this final over-the-top outburst. A lot of the vocal writing is multichoral, with soloists, boys’ choir and choruses singing together over a loud orchestra.

“Williams's performance was never less than first rate” – Roderick Dunnett

David Cheetham

When you have recitalists of such ability and such easy charm as Roderick and Iain, there is no question about whether their performance will be faultless and whether the audience will go away contented – of course they will.

musicweb-international.com

This was a splendid and very faithful account of an underrated masterpiece. Coming just a few days after War Requiem it was very good to hear a contrasting but no less effective and eloquent musical testimony to the wastage of war.

David Cheetham

The concert started with the Elgar Spirit of England which kicks in right at the beginning with a huge choral surge. It is actually a sensitive interpretation of these words, and carefully written to allow the chorus’s words to sound out clearly. The only trouble is that it is difficult to take the words seriously nowadays! Geraldine McGreevy was an ideal choice of soloist for this voluptuous music, and there was elegant singing from the semichorus.

David Cheetham

The Kuhnau/Bach motet was a good choice to open the Cathedral Choirs’ concert. It is easy music, in a style reminiscent of the choirs’ everyday work. The singing was smooth and expressive, with excellent balance. and the orchestra quietly supportive.

David Cheetham

The Festival Players production of As you like it was given in a pretty garden in the heart of the Cathedral precincts. Seven actors, all male, took on all the parts, including the four female characters. One man in his time plays many parts – everyone played two or three parts each (sometimes simultaneously! – there’s good directing for you!) and all sang, danced and played instruments too.

Guardian (15/8/07)

The Cathedral’s lovely acoustic also afforded the perfect setting for Monteverdi’s Vespers of 1610.

musicweb-international.com

Right from the start it was clear, from the vigorous, enthusiastic way in which the opening Versicle, ‘Deus in adjutorium meum intende’ was delivered, that this was to be a lively rendition of the Vespers and it turned out that this movement gave an excellent foretaste of what was to follow.