The Concord Chorale is kicking off 2017 with a trio of performances.
The chorale will present Handel’s Chandos Anthems, The Lord is My Light and O Come Let Us Sing, and are joined by baroque orchestra with two outstanding soloists, soprano Teresa Wakim and tenor Matthew Anderson.
Written by Handel for the Duke of Chandos at Canons, the anthems represent psalms artfully put to music with an effort to match mood, much like the Bach Cantatas.
Recognizing the chorale’s longtime love affair with baroque choral literature, music director Kristofer Johnson takes this opportunity to dive into the early 18th century, and the bravura writing of G. F. Handel’s Chandos Anthems provides an extraordinary, often neglected, program of works. These delightful pieces, almost mini-oratorios in stature, offer the chorale’s singers and audience a counterweight to the often-heard Messiah performances of December.
The chorale will first entertain on Friday at the Christ Church in Exeter followed by a pair of concerts in Concord. On Saturday at 7 p.m., and Sunday (3 p.m.), the chorale will perform at South Congregational Church, 27 Pleasant St.
Tickets, purchased in advance, are $20 and $15 for seniors. At the door, tickets are $25 and $20 for seniors. Student are free.
Tickets are available from chorale members, and at Gibson’s Bookstore, 45 S. Main St., and Merrimack County Savings Bank, 167 N. State St. You may also purchase tickets at concordchorale.org.
Elibet Chase
