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Carols, Wassails and Seasonal Songs Join us for our seasonal concert at St Luke’s. Vox Holloway will be joined by the David le Page Ensemble, Dan Moriyama on the piano and soloist Kate Brook for an evening of festive music directed by Harvey Brough. Doors open at 6.30pm. There will be a pay bar from 6.30pm, at the interval and after the concert.
Photo: Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
Vox gave an excellent performance of Requiem in Blue at St. John Smith Square for our summer concert. It was a great challenge – but the reception from the audience and from friends and family made us feel it was worth working hard to achieve. it was a special venue to perform in and a real celebration of 15 years of the mighty Vox Holloway.
We plan to do two projects next term, dividing the term in half. The first project will be to learn some songs by the Beach Boys. As you will know, Brian Wilson died a few weeks ago. A few days before that happened, JimmyJo was asking me (not for the first time) if we would do a Beach Boys programme with Vox. I said yes, so when the death was announced, I felt that I should honour that promise. I also felt that we should do something quite fun after the serious commitment of the Requiem in Blue concert.
Following the strategic review and the requests and comments that the choir made as part of it, we won’t do a performance but will learn some songs, do some workshop sessions on technique etc and then do an social evening to sing some of them informally to each other. That will be on the 19th of October and we will be joined by Lea Cornthwaite as our soloist.
The Beach Boys (Brian Wilson in particular) wrote some amazing songs – I hope to include some of the well known hits, but also to introduce you to several less well known, really profound songs.
For the second half of the term, we have an exciting opportunity to do a Christmas concert (on 7th December) with the supremely talented David le Page and his players. He has arranged many well known and less well known Carols and Christmas songs for an 8 piece group of excellent musicians. We will sing some of of those with them and then add some Christmas material of our own – perhaps a few things from the Bells of Paradise programme, perhaps some new material.
We very much look forward to seeing you at the start of term on the 9th of September. In the meantime have a great summer.
Harvey and the committee.
Requiem in Blue
Harvey Brough
VOX HOLLOWAY
Sinfonia Smith Square, Westminster
Saturday July 19 2025
Written in 1998 in memory of his brother Lester, Requiem in Blue is perhaps the best known and most performed of Harvey Brough’s choral oeuvre. Like all his compositions, the Requiem mixes together different and unusual genres for a choral piece. Although based firmly in the tradition of the Latin classical Mass, it mixes together adult and childrens voices with plainsong, folk song, early music influences and jazz improvisation, to dazzling effect.
It has been performed over 100 times all over the UK and in Europe, including venues such as the Barbican, St Johns Smith Square, Cadogan Hall, Union Chapel, (London) – Ely Cathedral, Portsmouth Cathedral, Bath Abbey, Great St Mary’s, Cambridge and The Usher Hall, Edinburgh. And by many schools, including Christ’s Hospital, Dulwich College, Uppingham, Oundle, Clifton College, City of London School.
Many outstanding musicians have performed in the piece and in the CD recording, including Liane Carroll, Jacqui Dankworth, Natacha Atlas, Gerard Presencer, Mike Outram, Alec Dankworth, Julian Siegel, Winston Clifford, Andy Hamill, Tom Arthurs and James Maddren.
The Pie Jesu and the final movement, Lux Aeterna feature words from Spoonface Steinberg by Lee Hall (writer of Billy Elliot) – like all of Requiem in Blue, this last movement, although rooted in a Christian tradition is a powerful plea for universal redemption.
Vox Holloway will perform with Harvey’s band of musicians and soloists Charles Daniels and Maurice Wren, conducted by the composer.
Remarkably, the soloists in Requiem in Blue are Kate Brook and Emily Dankworth, both of whom performed as youngsters in the work’s premiere in Eye Church, Suffolk.
Other pieces in the programme are Valete in Pace (Brough), commissioned for the 60th anniversary of DDay, and Five Mystical Songs (Vaughan Williams).
After their triumphant concert in July 2024 singing two Kinks albums (newly arranged by Harvey Brough) in the presence of Ray Davies, Vox Holloway community choir return to Alexandra Palace Theatre with another outstanding musical venture.
We salute The Special AKA, leading lights of the Two Tone movement – and specifically, the remarkable third album In the Studio written primarily by the great Jerry Dammers.
In The Studio is named ironically, because they spent over two years making the album. It has a wealth of fine songs including Free Nelson Mandela, War Crimes, both really serious songs – also What I like Most about you (is your Girlfriend), a droll chat up song. The other songs are equally strong and varied, touching on themes that were important to Jerry in 1984 and still resonate today – about racism, social issues, mental instability. They are very varied musically a little more jazz influenced than the first two albums but still with an irrepressible ska edge to them.
Vox Holloway is joined by an all star band and powerhouse soloist Sarah Brown for an unmissable tribute to Jerry Dammers and The Special AKA.
Age recommendation: 12+
Jerry Dammers has written some amazing and very influential songs. He has given us permission to perform their third album. Their first album was revolutionary – the group was a black and white mix – and the songs were heavily influenced by ska and reggae. Their second album reflects Jerry’s interest in muzak and was equally successful.
For me, the third album is the best of all – in spite of the original group having broken up, with the Fun Boy Three leaving after More Specials.
It’s called In The Studio (ironically because they spent over two years making it). It has a wealth of fine songs – the only one that was a chart success was Free Nelson Mandela, a hugely important part of the campaign for his release. The other songs are equally strong and varied, touching on themes that were important to Jerry in 1984 and still resonate today – about racism, social issues, mental instability – they are musically very sophisticated (with some humour in them) – singing these songs will be a powerful experience.
Vox Holloway 