Entertainment: Thrilling choral music featuring one of our own

Full disclosure: I sing in the Brighton Orpheus Choir. I have never sung in a choir before and it’s been great fun; there is something special about becoming part of a glorious, magisterial whole: a powerful combination of voices. Singing in a choir is spiritually, intellectually, physically and musically invigorating, and I cannot recommend it highly enough.

This Saturday we are singing Bach’s St John Passion. The chorus plays crowds, soliders, and priests and also passes comment on the story outside the action in chorales. The piece is thrilling, with the dramatic story of Christ’s crucifixion told in complex interweaving choral parts.

The ‘Sleep well…’ movement at the end is a highlight to listen out for, slowing the pace down for melancholic ruminations and deep, rich harmonies. The BOC will be joined by professional soloists Nicolas Chisholm, Nicholas Warden, Shona Knight, Corinne Hull and Rory Green, as well as the Musicians of All Saints orchestra and guest players.

Students can go for £6 and under 17s for free, so this is a great opportunity for a newcomer to enter the stunning world of classical music. I’m always moved when hearing choral music in churches; the sublime architecture and acoustics lend a sense of grandeur and transcendence to performances. The St John Passion is overwhelmingly beautiful enough for the secularist, the religious, or the theistically indifferent to enjoy on a purely musical level.

Brighton Orpheus Choir, All Saints Church, Hove, Saturday 19 March, 7.30pm, Tickets £6 to £15, Under 17s free, £12 concessions at www.brightonorpheus.org or on the door

By Joe Fuller