Triumphant (From Penarth Times)

Triumphant

Penarth's Cantemus Chamber Choir of Wales's concert at St Augustine's Church last Saturday was a triumph of choral virtuosity.

The choir and orchestra, under the direction of Robert Court, presented a programme of works by Bach for performances in Leipzig during Christmas 1723.

The challenges of the choral writing were met with a display of rhythmic vitality by the singers, particularly notable in the eight-part motet Singet dem Herrn where the agility of the various sections shone through, particularly the tenor section, so often a weakness in choral groups.

The programme began with the cantata Christen, Atzet Diesen Tag where soloists and orchestra joined forces - Bach's writing for trumpets in the opening passages giving a foretaste of the high standard of orchestral playing which was maintained throughout.

The major work of the evening, and one which was of great musical interest was Bach's Magnificat in its original version, including the rarely heard Christmas interpolations. Here the soloists were heard to great effect, particularly in their solo arias, with Iona Jones (soprano) being particularly affecting in Quia Respexit, while the stylish orchestral playing displayed excellent obligato soloists, most notably perhaps that of the oboe.

The whole performance displayed a lightness of style, coupled with enormous vocal stamina conveying the commitment of the choir and the joy of the music to the large audience who were privileged to hear Cantemus on this occasion in the surroundings of this beautiful Butterfield Church in Penarth.

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