80th Anniversary Celebration - Leigh-on-Sea

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Leigh News. SOUTHEND Choral Society celebrated their 80th anniversary with a rousing concert of Verdi’s Requiem in Westcliff’s Kings Road United Reformed Church.

SOUTHEND Choral Society celebrated their 80th anniversary with a rousing concert of Verdi’s Requiem in Westcliff’s Kings Road United Reformed Church.

The choir, conducted by Roger Humphries, performed to a packed audience, and were joined by musicians from Southend Concert Orchestra, and operatic soloists Tara Bungard, Juliet Schiemann, Ben Thepa and David Guest.

Anna Firth MP was in the audience and was full of praise after the concert, saying: “The talented choir, orchestra and soloists performed incredibly, and the event was a credit the unbelievable abilities of musicians, of all ages!”

Mr Humphries explained his choice of programme for the momentous anniversary:

“I chose Verdi’s Requiem because it embraces so many different styles and shows the choir off in both the loud and dramatic parts of the work, as well as the softer and more reflective movements.”

He was delighted that the choir readily embraced the ambitious piece: “It was clear from the very first rehearsal in January, that the singers were engaged and very responsive to all aspects of this piece.”

Mr Humphries added that he was delighted with the concert: “I was totally overwhelmed with the performance,” he said, making note of the off-stage moment when the upper floors of the church provided a thrilling moment for Verdi’s off-stage brass.

Southend Choral Society have a history of such high quality and important performances.

Established in 1943 at the request of Essex County Welfare Committee for the recreation of service personnel during the Second World War, their success saw the group flourish, with concert tours and link ups to choirs in Europe established over the decades, and even a performance in 1995 at the first Seychelles International Festival of Classical Music.

Lockdown didn’t dampen their ardour for engagement, with them regularly meeting on zoom to learn new repertoire.

The future also looks bright, as they continue to introduce singers to a variety of choral music, both secular and sacred, and provide high quality performances for local audiences.

The benefits of being part of Southend’s cultural heritage, whilst engaging the community and looking to its future, are manifold: “Singing has been proven to be extremely good for both physical and mental health, and we aim to provide plenty of opportunities for singers of all ages and experience, in a warm and friendly environment,” added Mr Humphries.

For more information, visit: southendchoral.org

Picture: The choir under the baton of Roger Humphries, with Southend Concert Orchestra and soloists.

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