Blackbird Leys Choir
5th Birthday Celebration Concert

Join the famous Blackbird Leys Choir for its fifth birthday celebration in a glittering performance of Vivaldi’s Gloria, with soloists and orchestra.

Jacqueline du Pré Music Building, St Hilda’s College, OX4 1DY

Saturday 22nd Jan 2011 · Doors 7pm

£15 / £10 concessions — tickets 01865 305 305 / ticketsoxford.com

In The Singing Estate, a 4-part TV documentary in 2006, the nation followed the choir’s adventures as it formed from nothing to perform at the Royal Albert Hall. Although the TV cameras departed at the end of that Summer, some of the original choir members remain and the choir continues to meet and perform. This concert will mark five years since the filming began and will be performed in the presence of Ivor Setterfield, the choir’s original conductor for the TV series, and the High Sheriff of Oxfordshire. Julian Lloyd Webber has kindly agreed to provide programme notes. Julian performed with Oxford Philomusica in 2008 in a concert at the Sheldonian Theatre which also featured the Blackbird Leys Choir as special guests.

The highlight of the programme will be Vivaldi’s Gloria in D (RV 589), performed with instrumentalists and guest soloists. To lead up to this, the first half of the concert will feature some shorter sacred pieces and instrumental classics.

The concert will be held at the Jacqueline du Pré Music Building in Oxford on Saturday 22nd January 2011. Music will begin at 7.30pm; doors open 7pm. Running time will be about two hours, including one interval.

Tickets at £15 (£10 concessions) can be obtained:

Join In!

This event offers an opportunity for new voices to rehearse and perform with the choir, and to be a part of their remarkable story. Anyone who can sing is welcome to attend the choir’s first regular Wednesday rehearsal on January 5, or to come to a ‘crash course’ in learning Vivaldi’s Gloria on Saturday January 8 from 10am till 4pm. We would be especially pleased to hear from former members who wish to take to the stage again to mark the choir’s fifth birthday.

For futher information, please see our Join page or check our rehearsal schedule. The schedule page also has details on where to find the music if we haven’t managed to get it to you yet.

Further Information

Last updated on 30 January 2011