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Choral conductor Simon Halsey delves into some musical storytelling

Simon Halsey opens up a selection of music from his point of view as a choral conductor - revealing familiar and unfamiliar works in a new light.

Choral conductor Simon Halsey鈥檚 choices include music for choirs both big and small, from an intimate motet by Orlando Gibbons to a Gustav Mahler symphony. He also admires a recording made by Jacqueline du Pr茅 and Daniel Barenboim when they were in their early twenties.

Plus, he finds beauty and power in pieces which at first glance seem simple.

A series in which each week a musician explores a selection of music - from the inside.

A Tandem Production for 大象传媒 Radio 3

1 hour, 56 minutes

Music Played

  • Jonathan Dove

    Figures in the Garden (I. Dancing in the Dark)

    Ensemble: Members of the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment.
    • WARNER CLASSICS.
  • Felix Mendelssohn

    Elijah (Pt. 1: Overture; 'Hilf, Herr!')

    Choir: MDR Rundfunkchor Leipzig. Orchestra: Israel Philharmonic Orchestra. Conductor: Kurt Masur.
    • TELDEC.
  • Johannes Brahms

    Cello Sonata No. 1 in E minor, Op. 38 (I. Allegro non troppo)

    Performer: Jacqueline du Pr茅. Performer: Daniel Barenboim.
    • WARNER CLASSICS.
  • Judith Weir

    Storm (II. Charm; III. Magic)

    Choir: 大象传媒 Singers. Choir: Choristers of Temple Church. Ensemble: Endymion Ensemble.
    • SIGNUM.
  • Jean鈥怭hilippe Rameau

    Les Bor茅ades (Contredanse en rondeau)

    Orchestra: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • ERATO.
  • Jean鈥怭hilippe Rameau

    Les Bor茅ades (Air andante et gracieux)

    Orchestra: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • ERATO.
  • Jean鈥怭hilippe Rameau

    Les Bor茅ades (Act 3, Sc. 3, Gavottes)

    Orchestra: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • ERATO.
  • Jean鈥怭hilippe Rameau

    Les Bor茅ades (Contredanses tr猫s vives)

    Orchestra: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • ERATO.
  • Gustav Mahler

    Symphony No. 2 (V. Mit Aufschwung aber nicht eilen, 'O Schmerz! Du')

    Singer: Arleen Aug茅r. Singer: Janet Baker. Orchestra: City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Sir Simon Rattle.
    • WARNER CLASSICS.
  • Trad.

    Old Abram Brown (Friday Afternoons, Op. 7)

    Performer: Wilfrid Parry. Music Arranger: Benjamin Britten. Choir: Elizabethan Singers. Conductor: Louis Halsey.
    • ELOQUENCE.
  • Hector Berlioz

    Roman Carnival Overture, Op. 9

    Orchestra: London Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: Colin Davis.
    • PHILIPS.
  • Howard Goodall

    The Lord is my Shepherd

    Performer: Theo Armon-Jones. Choir: Christ Church Cathedral Choir, Oxford. Orchestra: London Musici. Conductor: Stephen Darlington.
    • WARNER CLASSICS.
  • The Beatles

    Yesterday

    • EMI.
  • Franz Schubert

    String Quintet in C, D. 956 (II. Adagio)

    Performer: Heinrich Schiff. Ensemble: Hagen Quartett.
    • DG.
  • David Lang

    Come, Daughter (The Little Match Girl Passion)

    Choir: Ars Nova Copenhagen. Conductor: Paul Hillier.
    • HARMONIA MUNDI.
  • Jehan Alain

    Litanies, Op. 79

    Performer: Philip Ledger.
    • WARNER CLASSICS.
  • Orlando Gibbons

    Almighty and Everlasting God

    Choir: Choir of King鈥檚 College, Cambridge. Conductor: Boris Ord.
    • DECCA.
  • Nathaniel Dett

    The Ordering of Moses (VIII. Orchestral Interlude)

    Orchestra: Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra. Conductor: James Conlon.
    • BRIDGE RECORDS.
  • Johann Sebastian Bach

    St Matthew Passion (Final Chorus, No. 68: 'Wir setzen uns')

    Choir: Monteverdi Choir. Orchestra: English Baroque Soloists. Conductor: Sir John Eliot Gardiner.
    • SDG.

Broadcast

  • Sat 30 Oct 2021 13:00

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