Finest British composers of the early 20th century - Festival of Chichester

Their concert will be on Saturday, June 28 at 7.30pm in Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1PX, performing under the direction of Jonathan Willcocks. Tickets £10-£30 (concessions for

students) via The Novium.

Under the title Sunrise Mass, the concert comprises Finzi – Magnificat; Purcell – Music for soprano and strings; Dyson – Hierusalem; Vaughan Williams – music for soprano and strings; and Ola Gjeilo – Sunrise Mass. The Chichester Singers will be joined by soprano Milly Forrest and by Southern Pro Musica.

Jonathan said: “Really the core repertoire for large amateur choirs is the established works but I'm always keen for the choir to enjoy performing other lesser-known works especially from composers who are living. If the performers of today don't give the oxygen of performance to the composers of today then who will?

“For the Festival of Chichester I have put together a programme which is largely English but with one Norwegian composer Ola Gjeilo, but a Norwegian composer who enjoyed part of his musical education in this country and was really so much influenced by this country.

“He was born in Norway but he was educated partly in England and partly in New York where he now lives. His piece Sunrise Mass, which gives our concert its title, has really established his name around the world but he has not been performed much in this country. And it is a great piece. It manages to be both contemporary in its use of texture and harmonies but also very melodious. It is very compellingly accessible but absolutely not hackneyed music. I am sent a lot of choral works to consider but this one struck me as rather special, and the choir is absolutely loving rehearsing it. And the great thing is that none of the singers has ever sung it before.”

Which chimes in with one of Jonathan's guiding principles in that he always likes to include something he hasn't conducted before. In fact this time there are two pieces. He has never before conducted Finzi’ s Magnificat.

“Gerald Finzi (1901-1956) and George Dyson (1883-1964) are two British composers who have tended to be rather overshadowed by the likes of Vaughan Williams and Walton and Britten. But they are such interesting and important composers. Dyson was a very prolific choral composer but he was also a leading figure in the music world. He was the director of the Royal College of Music and unlike many composers he was knighted for his work. He lived to a good old age but I think if you asked him what he was he would have said he was a composer above all.

“Gerald Finzi was a composer who died relatively young. His Magnificat is a lovely piece. Unlike many settings of the Magnificat that are considered part of church services, this one was written as a concert piece, and the words of the Magnificat are very striking. You've got a lot of contrast between words that are quite aggressive and words that are very meek and humble. The words in the Magnificat give composers great scope to introduce so much colour.”

The 2025 Festival of Chichester is delighted to welcome Edward Cooke Family Law as its principal sponsor. The Festival is generously supported by Chichester City Council, firm friends to the Festival since its inception.