Choir concert: Elgar and Fauré

Four choirs, 130 singers: Elgar and Fauré to be performed in Deventer and Enschede

No fewer than 130 singers from Deventer, Enschede and Hengelo will take to the stage together on 14 and 15 November for a special concert featuring works by Edward Elgar and Gabriel Fauré. The Euterpe Choral Society, Canteklaer Chamber Choir, Cordier Vocal Ensemble and Arte Vocale Chamber Choir will jointly perform Elgar’s *The Music Makers* and Fauré’s much-loved *Requiem*.

*The Music Makers* is a personal composition in which Elgar explores the significance of art and the role of the artist in society. The work combines tranquil passages with impressive choral and orchestral sounds and contains recognisable references to Elgar’s earlier compositions.

Fauré’s Requiem is renowned for its intimate and comforting character. Rather than drama, Fauré opts for tranquillity, warmth and melodic clarity. The work is performed with a symphony orchestra, which lends the music extra depth and colour.

The British mezzo-soprano Annabel Kennedy will perform as a soloist with The Music Makers. The soloists in the Requiem are soprano Elles Venhuizen and baritone James Quilligan. At the concert in Enschede, the ArtEZ Choir Class will join in singing the Requiem. The singers will be accompanied by Het Promenade Orkest. Musical direction is in the hands of conductor Jurriaan Poesse.

The combination of four choirs, the choir class, three soloists and a symphony orchestra makes this concert a special regional collaboration. Both *The Music Makers* and the *Requiem* offer space for reflection and explore themes such as art, connection and humanity.