8 - 15 December
Box office 01904 658338 ncem.co.uk/xmas
S AT U R D AY 8 D E C E M B E R Event 01 7.00pm – c.10.00pm Venue Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall, University of York Tickets Reserved seating £25.00
(£23.00 concessions | £5.00 students/under 35s)
Yorkshire Bach Choir Bethany Seymour soprano Nancy Cole mezzo soprano Jonathan Hanley tenor Frederick Long bass with Yorkshire Baroque Soloists Peter Seymour conductor
J.S. Bach Christmas Oratorio Written in 1734 when Bach was at the height of his considerable powers, the Christmas Oratorio (BWV 248) is rarely heard in its complete form. Six cantatas written for the feast days of Christmas and New Year present Bach at his most festive and vibrant. Some of Bach’s largest orchestral forces are contrasted with exquisitely beautiful solo instrumental and vocal music. Bound together, Bach’s compendium of evolving
musical style powerfully encapsulates rituals of belief, the diversity of the human spirit and an ecstatic joy in the Christmas message. “the Christmas message was harmonised into a pure shout of joy” Guardian yorkshirebaroquesoloists.org.uk
S AT U R D AY 8 D E C E M B E R 10.00am registration - informal performance 4.00pm NCEM, St Margaret’s Church £15.00 (students/observers £10.00)
A CHORAL WORKSHOP directed by James Weeks A un niño llorando Spanish Marian and Christmas music The Virgin Mary holds a special significance in the works of Spanish Golden Age composers, inspiring them to heights of musical rapture unparalleled in Renaissance music. The workshop will explore this devotion manifested in sumptuously-textured motets by Victoria, climaxing in his sublime 8-part setting of the Salve Regina. We will also explore some of the charming villancicos of Guerrero, simple polyphonic vernacular songs for the Christmas season. The workshop is open to all voices (SSAATTBB) with confident sight-reading skills. The music will be provided in advance at www.ncem.co.uk/choralworkshopxmas18 02
S U N D AY 9 D E C E M B E R Event 02 1.00pm – c.2.00pm Venue NCEM, St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate Tickets £14.00 (concessions £12.00 | under 35s £5.00)
Improviso
Improviso were selected as one of the EEEmerging ensembles supported by the NCEM and colleagues across the European Union supported by Creative Europe. emerging.eu
Fatima Lahham recorders Elin White baroque violin Florence Petit baroque cello Johan Löfving theorbo
A la venue de Noël This vibrant young quartet presents a joyful Christmas programme, representing a variety of composed and improvised music from three centuries and four countries.
of the Italian 17th century, an arrangement of one of J.S. Bach’s most arresting organ trio sonatas, and improvisations over festive songs from 16th century England and Spain.
Opening with excerpts from Charpentier’s sparkling instrumental narrative of the nativity, you will hear kaleidoscopic chamber music
‘‘A baroque feast from Improviso…they’re so good they have halos’ BBC Radio 3
Supported by
queenshotel-york.com
improviso.net
Weekend Saver £46.00 | Concession £40 Buy tickets for events 1, 2 & 3 and receive a £15.00 discount. Please note all concerts must be booked at the same time and offers are subject to availability. 03
S U N D AY 9 D E C E M B E R Event 03 6.30pm – c.8.30pm Please note starting time Venue NCEM, St Margaret’s Church Tickets £22.00 (concessions £20.00 | under 35s £5.00) including mince pies
VOCES8 Andrea Halsey, Eleonore Cockerham sopranos Katie Jeffries-Harris alto Barnaby Smith alto/artistic director Blake Morgan, Sam Dressel tenors Christopher Moore baritone Jonathan Pacey bass
Balulalow Lullabies to an Infant King Making their very welcome debut in York, VOCES8 present music from over 400 years chosen from their ‘Winter’ and ‘Christmas’ albums. Renaissance favourites from both Michael and Hieronymus Praetorius, Schütz, Scheidt, Byrd and Tallis sit alongside works from Benjamin Britten, Francis Pott, Philip Stopford (a VOCES8 commission) and current composer-in-residence, Jonathan Dove.
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“Eight beautifully integrated solo voices... persuasive and committed singing.” BBC Music Magazine Choral and Song Choice VOCES8.com
M O N D AY 1 0 D E C E M B E R Event 04 Venue Tickets
7.30pm – c.9.30pm
NCEM, St Margaret’s Church £23.00 (concessions £21.00 | under 35s £5.00) including mince pies
Joglaresa Belinda Sykes voice, bagpipes, director Angela Hicks voice, harp Tad Sargent voice, bouzouki, bodhran May Robertson fidel, voice Louise Anna Duggan percussion, dulcimer, voice
Heigh Ho, the Holly! Yuletide is the time when the Holly King triumphs over the Oak King in their cyclical yearly battle – celebrate with folk and medieval carols and wassails for Winter 2018 “sound scholarship, a combined experience of many musical cultures, and a spirited delivery of stories” Early Music Today joglaresa.com/holly.htm
Supported by
grangehotel.co.uk
Meet like-minded individuals who enjoy the early music festivals and share informal receptions, supper parties and concerts year-round. NCEM Patrons offer vital support to the charitable trust that oversees all our activities. If you are interested in supporting early music into the future, please contact the NCEM’s Director Delma Tomlin.
To find out more, please contact Delma Tomlin MBE T: 01904 632220 | Email: support@ncem.co.uk | www.ncem.co.uk/patrons
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T U E S D AY 1 1 D E C E M B E R Event 05 7.30pm – c.9.30pm Venue NCEM, St Margaret’s Church Tickets £18.00 (concessions £16.00 | under 35s £5.00) including mince pies
Juice Vocal Ensemble Anna Snow, Sarah Dacey sopranos Kerry Andrew alto
Snow Queens Join us for Juice’s new wintry programme full of snow, frost and ice, featuring new works by composers such as Tarik O’Regan, Emily Hall, Benjamin Tassie, Alison Willis and Chris Warner. It also features new Juice arrangements of ancient carols such as Coventry Carol, Hollyberry Song and Down in Yon Forest, renaissance lute songs, folk songs and winter pop/rock classics such as Kate Bush’s ‘December will be Magic Again’ and Judy Collins’ ‘Winter Sky’. “Astonishing variety, spark and brilliance” The Observer juicevocalensemble.net
DIARY DATE
Thursday 11 October 7.30pm NCEM, St Margaret’s Church £18.00 (concessions £16.00 | under 35s £5.00)
Richard Egarr
harpsichord
J.S. Bach Partitas For any composer the publication of an ‘Opus 1’ must be a big deal. Bach’s publication of his Partitas was certainly one such. Its odd history and genesis begins Bach’s decade-long keyboard project which he entitled Clavierübung. Each of its four parts deals with a different constellation of problems technically, musically and philosophically. The Partitas open the journey with a bewildering display of musical and numerological virtuosity. “High octane, muscular .. stark, raw and searching .. I was gripped by the energy of it all, the urgency – the aching crunches – most of all I loved the sudden segues into some very quiet, very beautiful places in the Sarabandes” Herald Scotland intermusica.co.uk/Egarr
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W E D N E S D AY 1 2 D E C E M B E R Event 06 6.30pm – c.8.30pm please note starting time Venue NCEM, St Margaret’s Church Tickets £23.00 (concessions £21.00 | under 35s £5.00) including mince pies
Spiritato!
Kinga Ujszaszi violin/leader Ellen Bundy violin George Clifford violin Claudia Norz violin Alice Earll violin Joanne Miller viola Nichola Blakey viola Alice Manthorpe Saunders cello Kate Aldridge double bass Alex McCartney theorbo Nicolas Mendoza harpsichord with Augusta Hebbert soprano
La Notte di Natale Music for an Italian Baroque Christmas In the pastoral beauty of an Italian countryside, shepherds play shawms and bagpipes to celebrate the Christmas season whilst snow falls gently around their campfires. Spiritato evokes this rich imagery with a dazzling selection of Concerti Grossi by Corelli, Torelli and Locatelli. Often composed for Christmas Eve, these works chart the beginning of the concerto grosso genre, combining virtuosic solos with characterful dances. Violinist Kinga Ujszászi conjures a frosty landscape with Vivaldi’s ‘Winter’ from
The Four Seasons, and soprano Augusta Hebbert joins the ensemble for two of Alessandro Scarlatti’s most celebratory cantatas, singing of the excitement and astonishment of the shepherds and the hope that comes with the thawing of the ice and the return of Spring. “Frankly exquisite instrumental playing from Spiritato!” **** Bachtrack
Supported by
spiritato.co.uk accor.com 07
T H U R S D AY 1 3 D E C E M B E R Event 07 7.30pm – c.9.30pm Venue NCEM, St Margaret’s Church Tickets £23.00 (concessions £21.00 | under 35s £5.00) including mince pies
The York Waits Tim Bayley shawms, recorders, curtal, crumhorn, hurdy gurdy, bagpipe, harp, portative organ Lizzie Gutteridge shawms, recorders, crumhorn, bagpipes, fiddle Anna Marshall sackbut, recorder, crumhorn Susan Marshall fiddle, rebec William Marshall sackbut, recorders, crumhorn, gittern, guitar, bagpipes Deborah Catterall voice, recorder
Make we Joye now in this Fest Old English and European music and song for the festive season A musical journey through the seasonal celebrations of medieval and renaissance Europe. The programme starts at home with a selection from the rich source of 15th century English carols, including works from Yorkshire manuscripts. We move to the uplifting chorales of Lutheran Germany, before travelling to the wonderfully
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simple and atmospheric noëls, folk songs and dances from the Mediterranean. “It is rare and refreshing to hear a group like The York Waits for whom this repertory is once more a living tradition. It was difficult not to enjoy the music as much as they did.” York Press theyorkwaits.org.uk
Supported by
hotelduvin.com
F R I D AY 1 4 D E C E M B E R Event 08 7.30pm – c.9.30pm Venue St Lawrence Church, Lawrence Street, off Hull Road, York Tickets £25.00 (concessions £23.00 | under 35s £5.00)
Ex Cathedra directed by Jeffrey Skidmore Elizabeth Adams, Angela Hicks, Louise Prickett, Katie Trethewey soprano Harriet Hougham Slade, Martha McLorinan alto Paul Bentley-Angell, James Robinson tenor Greg Skidmore bass
The Heaven of your Desires ‘There is no rose of such virtue.’ Ex Cathedra performs a programme of glorious music with a strong Marian theme. Taking inspiration from Robert Southwell’s extraordinary hymn ‘New Heaven New War’, this concert explores Christmas music, old and new, including two contrasting
settings of the Magnificat – the Song of Mary – and settings of two of the Great O Antiphons which are traditionally sung in the days leading up to Christmas. “thrillingly good” Daily Telegraph excathedra.co.uk
Supported by Middlethorpe Hall Hotel and Spa
middlethorpe.com
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S AT U R D AY 1 5 D E C E M B E R Event 09 7.30pm – c.9.30pm Venue NCEM, St Margaret’s Church Tickets £18.00 (concessions £16.00 | under 35s £5.00) including mince pies
Dodo Street Band
Piers Adams blows Adam Summerhayes scrapes Murray Grainger bellows Malcolm Creese twangs Cormac Byrne bangs
Celtic Gypsy Klezmer Folk in a joyously wild maverick mix!
DIARY DATE
An irresistible blend of exotic eastern European and Celtic folk roots including Niel Gow’s warm and beautiful ‘Lament’; two ancient Slovakian melodies; and one of the most beloved Celtic melodies (‘Will You Go Lassie Go’ or ‘Wild Mountain Thyme’) – all interspersed with wild gypsy dances.
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This explosive band combines diabolical fiddle virtuosity from international star Adam Summerhayes; outrageous brilliance from world number one recorder genius, Piers Adams; horrifying high-ABV insanity from accordion master, Murray Grainger; positively feverish power from bass legend, Malcolm Creese; and dazzling bodhran playing from king of folk percussion, Cormac Byrne.
Winners of the Buxton Festival Fringe Small Ensemble Award 2017 “The Buxton audience loved the Dodo Street Band for the musicianship, the excitement and the joy in their playing.” Keith Savage, Chair, Buxton Festival Fringe. Dodostreetband.com
Thursday 21 March
Liam Byrne viol Jonas Nordberg lute Celebrate the 2019 European Day of Early Music in the company of music from 17th century France.
Supported by
HOW TO BOOK The National Centre for Early Music St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate, York YO1 9TL Box Office: 01904 658338 Email: boxoffice@ncem.co.uk tickets.ncem.co.uk A Perfect Christmas Gift Ask at the box office Tickets are available to buy online, by telephone, by post or in person. In person: The NCEM box office is open Monday – Friday 9.00am – 5.00pm. The box office entrance is on Percy’s Lane which runs parallel to Walmgate, just off Navigation Road. Online: Visit our website at tickets.ncem.co.uk and use the secure online booking service. By telephone: Please contact the box office on 01904 658338.
Design: RedBonsai.co.uk
There is a non-refundable £1.50 administration charge per transaction made online or by telephone. A charge of 75p applies if you would like the tickets posted. There is no charge for print at home tickets or if you collect in person. By post: Please send your order to the NCEM box office, St Margaret’s Church, Walmgate, York YO1 9TL enclosing a large SAE. Cheques should be made payable to the National Centre for Early Music.
General Ticket Information Email: Simply email your enquiry to boxoffice@ncem.co.uk Reservations: Tickets can be reserved but must be paid for within three working days and at least 24 hours prior to the performance. Any remaining tickets will be sold at the venue immediately prior to the performance. Concession prices: Where applicable, these apply to over 65s, under 16s, full time students, those in receipt of means tested benefits and audience members who have disabilities. Group discounts: The NCEM welcomes group bookings. If you buy 10 tickets (full price or concessions) there is a 20% discount off the total amount. Refunds and Exchanges: We regret that refunds can only be given if the concert is sold out and we are able to sell on the ticket. Please note that there will be a 10% administration charge.
Under 35? If you are under 35 you can purchase £5.00 tickets for concerts in this year’s festival. To take advantage of this offer, call the box office on 01904 658338 or book online tickets.ncem.co.uk Please note that these are on a first-come, first-served basis and there is a limited number. When collecting tickets you will need to bring along photo ID which will be checked as proof of age. More info at www.ncem.co.uk/U35. Subject to availability.
Accessible facilities: The Festival offers a warm welcome to everyone. The NCEM is fully accessible to wheelchair users, with level access to the foyer and concert space, suitable toilets, designated parking and welcomes registered assistance dogs. If you have any access requirements, please let us know at the time of booking. The NCEM is a Typetalk Approved business. To ensure that the entire community can access our events, we offer a complimentary ticket to an essential personal assistant. To qualify, please join our access scheme or have a valid CredAbility Access Card with the +1 symbol. Full details can be found online or in person and can also be requested by emailing boxoffice@ncem.co.uk.
Visitor Information: The NCEM warmly recommends a number of York hotels – please log on to www.ncem.co.uk/hotels for details. Visit York offers help with accommodation and general information about the City. Ring 01904 550099 or email info@visityork.org 11
Autumn Season 2018
Laura CannelL 29 September
Talisk 23 October
DIGITAL
FOLK MUSIC
Richard Egarr 11 October
EARLY MUSIC
Maya Youssef 12 October
WORLD MUSIC
YORK EARLY Andy SheppArd MUSIC CHRISTMAS & Vein FESTIVAL EARLY MUSIC JAZZ 4 December
Box office 01904 658338 email: boxoffice@ncem.co.uk tickets.ncem.co.uk The York Early Music Christmas Festival is directed by Delma Tomlin MBE and administered by the National Centre for Early Music through the York Early Music Foundation registered charity 1068331. All details are correct at the time of going to press but the NCEM reserves the right to amend the published programme if necessary.