Our 2017 Program
Verdure
Sunday 26 March, 5.30pm, Verdure, Village Centre, National Arboretum
A program featuring all things Green to celebrate our inaugural performance in the stunning surroundings and soaring acoustics of the Village Centre at the National Arboretum. This twilight concert, with music by Randall Thompson, Ralph Vaughan Williams and Leonard Bernstein, among others, is not to be missed.
Wonder
Saturday 3 June, 7.30pm, Wonder with the National Capital Orchestra, Llewellyn Hall
Canberra Choral Society and the National Capital Orchestra join forces for this stimulating orchestral and choral showcase. Be early for Carl Vine’s pre-show talk, then enjoy a stunning all-Australian program. The NCO, led by brilliant young conductor Leonard Weiss, present Graeme Koehne’s vibrant Tivoli Dances to set the scene. Then CCS, under the artistic direction of Dianna Nixon, will join with NCO to perform Carl Vine’s Choral Symphony. Vine’s setting of these ancient texts seems to come from deep in the earth and float to the heavens. After interval, the forces combine again in Matthew Hindson’s It Is Better To Be Feared Than Loved, a fiery and meticulous setting of Machiavelli’s famous words from Chapter 17 of The Prince. The concert concludes with the hopefulness of Vine’s glorious setting of Walt Whitman’s beloved poem Wonders, featuring Penelope Mills and Christopher Hillier who sang the solos for the world premiere in September last year.
Pomp
Sunday 10 September, Last night at the Proms with the Canberra City Band at Albert Hall
Two of Canberra’s best-loved musical institutions will combine forces on September 10th this year for Pomp. Canberra Choral Society and the Canberra City Band will present a Last Night of the Proms-style event, featuring rising star soprano soloist, Livia Brash. In true LNOTP-style, the first half will feature much-loved party pieces as a showcase for both ensembles and our lovely soloist. However - instead of night, it will be 2.30pm on a Sunday afternoon, instead of the Royal Albert Hall London, it will be in the Albert Hall Canberra, and instead of the usual second half surfeit of iconic British tunes, there will be an Antipodean focus to conclude a very entertaining and eclectic program.
Messiah
7.30pm, Saturday 25 November, Handel's Messiah, Llewellyn Hall
Launch yourself into the Christmas Season this year with the most performed and loved work in the choral repertoire - Handel’s Messiah. First performed in Dublin in 1742 for charity, this music has inspired myriad musicians and countless concerts, and still is a much-anticipated Christmas event around the globe. Canberra Choral Society’s Massed Choir, hand-picked orchestra and soloists will fill the stage for a performance that will shake the rafters of the magnificent Llewellyn Hall.
Conductor: Leonard Weiss
Soloists: Greta Claringbould, Tobias Cole, Paul McMahon, Jeremy Tatchell
With the CCS Massed Chorus and the CCS Orchestra
Opportunities
In addition to our busy concert schedule, we will be looking for more opportunities to ‘Sing for Our Supper” in 2017, performing at events that help spread the word on CCS and/or raise some valuable funds towards performance costs. Contact us if you have an event you would like us to participate in.