Candelit classics from London Concertante in Chichester Cathedral

The programme celebrates some of the greatest works in the classical repertoire, from Mozart’s effervescent Overture to The Marriage of Figaro to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons. Rounding off the evening is Vaughan Williams’s The Lark Ascending, adored for its soaring, lyrical solo violin.

The featured soloist will be violinist Henry Chandler, a graduate of the Royal College of Music and a former scholar of Pembroke College, Oxford. Henry has appeared at prestigious venues worldwide from the Wigmore Hall and Royal Festival Hall to concert halls in St Petersburg, Beijing and Tokyo. His career includes solo appearances with the European Union Chamber Orchestra and Oxford University Philharmonic and regular performances with leading ensembles including the Royal Opera House Orchestra and BBC Symphony Orchestra.

Tickets are available from London Concertante’s website:

https://londonconcertante.com/2025/04/30/four-seasons-the-lark-ascending-chichester-cathedral-friday-3rd-october/

Chris Grist, artistic director of London Concertante, said: “We’re absolutely delighted to bring this magical candlelit concert to Chichester Cathedral. The blend of a stunning cathedral setting, gentle candlelight and a remarkable soloist – accompanied by the full force of our orchestra – promises a truly unforgettable experience.”

It's a night which epitomises the approach which the ensemble have made their own.

“I started it when I was at music college, and it is now in its 35th year which is quite remarkable. It's one of those things when you start an ensemble that you just don't know how it's going to develop but one of the things that the group has had has been staying power over a long time and I think it's down to how we have responded to the fact that the market has changed so much. If you planned the type of programme that we did when we started it just wouldn't resonate in the same way now because things have changed so much, and also how people find out about music has changed so much. And the other thing is just how differently people now want to engage with the music that they enjoy. How people experience the whole thing has changed so much and we have had to become so much more responsive.

“When I started, you would go along to a concert as a student and the soloist would come on, stand, bow, perform, stand, bow and go off and that would be it but now the expectation, quite rightfully, is that there is a much proper relationship between the artist and the audience. I think social media has changed things a lot in that respect but the fact is that audiences are much harder to come by in the straight classical world than they used to be and I think the fact is that artists have had to adapt to that changing market. Audiences want a much greater sense of them being involved and of them as an audience being a really important part of what is happening, and that's very much one of the reasons why we love going to Chichester because we have been able to build up our relationship with our audiences in the city. As a result of that and as a result of the fact that they have got to know us, they are so very receptive to new projects that we want to do. We (did) an Ella show which was brand new for Chichester and we knew because of our experience of Chichester that they would enjoy it and that we should do it there.

“But really things had to change and it makes it so much more enjoyable for us that you no longer see musicians and performers as these almost non-human mystical beings that come on in front of you. We want the interaction, and it's so much more fun because you know that afterwards you will be able to chat to people. There is a completely different level of engagement now and it makes it so much more rewarding for us because of those interactions that we have. We get a lot more first-time concert goes that just don't want to go to an austere concert-hall type venue, people that want to come and see one of our concerts and have a much more profound experience that is just so much more liberating and so much more energising and so much more enjoyable.”