Chichester Cathedral concert will support refugees around the world

The concert, co-presented by the Cathedral and the University of Chichester, will include Ukrainian soprano Lilija Sholomey; the University of Chichester Conservatoire Orchestra and Choir; the Grand Choeur de Maitrise of Chartres Cathedral; and Chichester Cathedral Choir with music including Fauré’s Requiem and Stravinsky’s Symphony of Psalms. Tickets: £25 nave; £15 aisles (restricted/no view) and students.

Crispin Ward, head of orchestral studies at the University of Chichester, said: “The Cathedral and I got together. The Cathedral wanted to do something in aid of refugees in general and Ukraine in particular, but certainly encompassing all refugees which is the main thrust of this concert. We put together an idea of what we could do and the great thing is that the choir from our twin city of Chartres were coming across in any case. We went there last year and we had a really successful concert with them and this is their return visit. We thought it would be a good idea to marry up their visit with this concert.

“We have also got Lilija Sholomey who is here at the Opera House of Moldova. I am very good friends with her and I have worked with her a lot. And I asked her to do something with us. We are doing Richard Strauss’ Four Last Songs. It's a very poignant piece. It is about a peaceful death from old age and it was one of Richard Strauss’ last works. And I think it suits her voice particularly well. It's a big orchestral work that we can work with. She’s got the most enormous voice but she is also a very empathetic performer to sing with. She's not fussy. She's very collegiate. She works very well with other people and we just thought that she would be a good fit for us. I have worked with her across all sorts of formats and I think this is about my 50th time in Moldova since I was awarded Moldovan citizenship.”

Speaking from Moldova, a couple of weeks ago, Crispin underlined the significance of the Ukraine connections: “Ukraine is under a lot of sorrow and pressure at the moment and I think remembering Ukraine is something that we should keep at the forefront of our minds. It's really important. I'm currently sitting only 50 miles from Ukraine and I have performed many times in Ukraine. It's a country that is very dear to me but I've also performed many times in Russia and I've got lots of very good Russian friends. I don't want to be political but I do feel that the Ukraine needs our attention at the moment.”

Also taking part are University of Chichester students: “We have had orchestras building up here over the last 20 years. You had the Sleepy Lagoon Orchestra to kick off this year's Festival of Chichester and we've also got the baroque orchestra and the simfonia. We're the biggest music department in the country and we seem to still be thriving. We try to give the students a very broad range of orchestral skills that they're going to need and it's a really fun experience. It's very good for everybody to be taking part in this concert and it's lovely that we're doing it with our friends from Chartres as well.”

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