BACH CHRISTMAS ORATORIO Parts 1 - 3
SATURDAY 23 NOVEMBER
St Michaels Church
Mill Hill NW7
75 Years
The Pro Arte Choir is celebrating its 75 years birthday and has around 50 members. The repertoire has extended beyond the well known oratorios to include modern works. The choir supports local charities and gives a charity concert each Christmas. (Saturday 14 December 5p.m this year)
In the last decade the choir has gone from strength to strength with one of the world's leading organists and choral conductors Tom Winpenny and accompanied by Phoebe Tak Man Chow another leading organist who is based at the West End's leading church for music St Martin in the Fields. (Biographies at foot of article)
The large and often sold out audiences at St Michael's Church in Mill Hill are treated four times a year to Choral Music with excellent quality, top soloists, accomplished orchestras and for just £20 for adults and free for Under 18s (£10 adults 14 December Carol Concert)
The anniversary main concert was the Bach Christmas Oratorio - with a large baroque orchestra with many period instruments - and several guest singers in the choir and some of the World's best soloists in the Bach repertoire.
We wish the Choir another 75 years of success so that more generations can enjoy beautiful music in a beautiful church. I hope to be around for the 100th anniversary in 2049!
How to join the choir plus future concerts follow the review and photographs of the evening.
The Concert
The Choir From the first phrases of the opening Chorus "Shout for Joy" it was clear that the choir were inspired by the wonderful musicians and soloists in front of them. They created a large and very balanced sound. After several years of working with Tom Winpenny they have developed into a very accomplished unit. The Chorales were unfussy (as they should be) giving prominence to the text and acting as support to the narrative being told by the soloists. The Chorale at the end of Part 3 again with the Trumpets was a triumphant finale to an evening of excellent music.
Tom Winpenny Since taking over the choir he has taken their singing to the next level and his choices of musicians and soloists have been first class. Long may he reign!
The Orchestra "Orpheus Sinfonia" is a young and vibrant London orchestra which plays most of London's concert halls. They provided a wonderful sound in the church with 3 period trumpets and woodwind which also was period. They played with an energy and supported the soloists and choir with sensitivity under the baton of Tom Winpenny.
The four soloists were probably the best I have seen with the Pro Arte Choir and they certainly lit up this anniversary concert and probably no concert hall in London could field such a superb quartet on this cold November evening!
Gareth Treseder (Tenor Soloist) appeared in the Pro Arte sold out Messiah performance several years ago and it was wonderful for him to return. He has developed into one of the World's leading Bach tenors with the Monterverdi Choir with whom he sang at the King's Coronation in Westmnister Abbey. Often heard on Radio 3 and an accomplished composer his performance was superb, He had clarity with beautiful tone and emotion.
Benjamin Williamson (Countertenor) an award winning singer with solo performances with some of the World's leading choirs and opera companies. The first cantata in particular has some lovely counter tenor arias and Benjamin thrilled the audience with his warm soaring notes.
James Oldfield (Bass) Emerging from the Cambridge colleges as an accomplished choral scholar he has forged a career in opera at venues including The Royal Opera House. James' huge and powerful voice was a delight especially in his aria Great Lord Mighty King.
Kirsty O'Neil (Soprano) has performed with Steven Layton's Polyphony and the Ora Singers but is possibly best known for the "Winter Songs" album by Royal Holloway College Choir on which she is a soloist a few years ago and is still available on streaming services. She has also founded well known choir Recordare in 2018. Kirsty sang beautifully although she had less to sing than the other soloists. Hopefully we will see her return in the future !
Thanks must go to the Williams Music Trust, Mr Leslie Morgan OBE and other choir members and supporters for donations to make this event take place. At a top price of £20 it was very clear to the audience that this was far below what they would pay to hear such top artists in London in such an intimate setting.
The future looks very bright for the Pro Arte Choir and they would love to have more join them whether the singers are trained or beginners. The Choir has a good social life and is exceptionally friendly. It really is the jewel in Mill Hill's musical crown.
So check out how to join below - and even if you cant join make sure you attend the next concerts and support this wonderful society who bring such joy to many people with their concerts.
To Join The Choir
We always give new singers a warm welcome and they are given a mentor to introduce them and help them with any practical issues. We expect members to have some understanding of music notation, but the most important consideration is the ability to sing the right notes in tune and in time. Rehearsal files, highlighting the individual voice parts, are available to assist with the learning process. There is no formal audition.
The subscription is £80 a term, including music hire and rehearsal files. Half price concessions are available on application without any forms for members who feel they cannot afford it or are under 25.
A new member said: “The nerves that I felt soon disappeared as I was given such a warm welcome in a very friendly atmosphere. The thought of singing in Latin, French and German seemed a bit daunting. As I sang I just felt a passion for this beautiful music. Joining the choir has changed my life.”
Rehearsals are on Thursdays at 7.30-9.30 pm at Hartley Hall, Flower Lane, London NW7 2JA or occasionally in the adjacent St Michael’s Church. These are near bus routes 113, 114, 186, 221, 240, 251 and 302 and a short walk from Mill Hill Broadway Thameslink station. Members are expected to attend 70% of rehearsals.
If you want to sing with us contact our chairman, Loretta Cox at chairman@lpac.org.uk. or 07968 797847.
Rehearsals marked with * are in the church.
2025 REHEARSALS
Spring 2025 (11)
9 January
16 January
23 January
30 January
6 February
13 February
20 February
27 February
6 March
13 March
20 March *
Summer 2025 (12)
27 March
3 April
24 April
1 May
8 May
15 May
22 May
29 May
5 June
12 June
19 June
26 June *
22 March 2025
St Michael’s Church, Flower Lane, London NW7 2JA
7.30pm
Italian sacred music
| Puccini | Missa di Gloria |
| Verdi | Stabat Mater |
| Verdi | Pater Noster |
| Rossini | Ave Maria |
| Puccini | Requiem |
| Verdi | Chorus of the Hebrew Slaves |
| Phoebe Tak Man Chow | Accompanist |
| Tom Winpenny | Conductor |
28 June 2025
St Michael’s Church, Flower Lane, London NW7 2JA
28 June 2025 at 7.30pm
Music by Brahms, Schubert and Vaughan Williams
| Vaughan Williams | Toward the Unknown Region |
| Vaughan Williams | Five English Folksongs |
| Vaughan Williams | In Windsor Forest |
| Brahms | Shicksalslied |
| Schubert | Four Partsongs |
| Phoebe Tak Man Chow | Pianist |
| Tom Winpenny | Conductor |
Tom Winpenny (Musical Director) is a freelance organist and choral director and recently completed sixteen years working as Assistant Master of the Music and Director of the Cathedral Girls Choir at St Albans Cathedral. He studied as Organ Scholar at King’s College, Cambridge, where he played twice for the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, broadcast internationally. He was subsequently Sub-Organist at St Paul’s Cathedral, London, where he played for many great state occasions. He has broadcast regularly on BBC Radio and has been featured on American Public Media’s Pipedreams. In recent years he has performed throughout Europe, the United States and the UK at venues including St Stephen’s Cathedral (Vienna), Hallgrímskirkja (Reykjavík), Cathedral of the Madeleine (Salt Lake City), Hamburg Mariendom, and Kalmar Cathedral (Sweden). His many solo organ recordings include surveys of composers including Judith Bingham, Malcolm Williamson, John Joubert, Elisabeth Lutyens, and Francis Pott’s monumental organ symphony Christus. For Naxos he has recorded five critically-acclaimed volumes of music by Olivier Messiaen. His most recent releases for the same label include the complete organ works of Robert Schumann and Edward Elgar, the latter being selected as a Critic’s Choice in Gramophone magazine. His recordings as choral director include discs for Naxos of sacred music by Elizabeth Poston, Felix Mendelssohn, Michael Haydn and William Mathias. He is a trustee of the Royal College of Organists. tomwinpenny.org
Phoebe Tak Man Chow (Accompanist) studied in London at the Royal College of Music where she was awarded the Walford Davies Organ Prize. The Flentrop Organ Scholarship funded her internship with the Flentrop Orgelbouwand and organ lessons at the Amsterdam Conservatoire. After graduating, Phoebe became the Organist at Emanuel School, London, before moving to Ireland to become the Assistant Director of Music at St Fin Barre’s Cathedral, Cork, Ireland. She performed live on Irish National Television with the Cathedral Choir to commemorate the 500th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. She currently holds the position of Choral Leader for the Rodolfus Foundation, Accompanist for the London Pro Arte Choir, and Assistant Organist at St Martin-in-the-Fields working with professional and voluntary choirs, directing singing workshops at schools in the borough of Lambeth and Southwark each week, recruiting choristers for St John’s the Divine Church, where over 80 young people receive free music education. As an accompanist, she has worked with leading British choral conductors such as Ben Parry, John Rutter and Suzi Digby. With St Martin’s Voices and the Choral Scholars of St Martin-in-the-Fields, she has worked on several recordings for the BBC and the Church of England.
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