Ely Consort summer concert at St Mary's Church in Burwell on June 24

We've had a number of concerts in Burwell during that time, the biggest being 'Zimbe!', in conjunction with children from BVCP, back in 2013, though our last was pre-pandemic in 2019.

I'm looking forward to bringing the choir back to my village again with an exciting programme of summer celebration music.

However, don't just take my word for it... so, here's our musical director, Matthew Rudd, on our concert programme.

Join Ely Consort for a summer celebration in Burwell at St Mary's Church on Saturday  June 24 at 7.30pm.

King Charles’s coronation will be fading in the memory by the end of June, but we will begin our concert with one of the four anthems Handel wrote for the coronation of King George II in 1727, The King shall rejoice.

Although less well-known than its companion piece Zadok the Priest, this is an equally fine and joyous work.

We will also celebrate all things pastoral: Ernest Farrar’s To Daffodils and John Ireland’s The Hills are paired with Paul Reade’s music for The Victorian Kitchen Garden, which won the 1991 Ivor Novello Award for Best TV Theme.

It is played by our guest clarinet soloist Claire Stevenson, who will play a number of solos during the concert. 

Alan Bullard has set a number of poems on summer themes in his recent extended work A Summer Garland.

In addition, the concert includes some choral classics: Gerald Finzi’s part songs, including My Spirit Sang All Day, and Ralph Vaughan Williams’ masterpiece Toward the Unknown Region.

Do come and hear this most diverse and entertaining programme in the idyllic surroundings of Burwell's St Mary's Church.

Tickets: £13 prior / £15 on door with u18s free are available online via https://ticketsource.co.uk/elyconsort (plus booking fee) or in-person from CentrePeace, PO & Tina's.

I really hope many of my fellow Burwellians, and those from surrounding villages, can join us to hear my choir, Ely Consort, perform a delightful summer celebration programme of music.