THE CULWICK CHORAL SOCIETY
Sinéad Campbell-Wallace, soprano
John Molloy, baritone
The Culwick Orchestra
Brona Fitzgerald, Leader
Bernie Sherlock, Conductor

The Culwick Choral Society is delighted to bring to the NCH their 120th anniversary concert performance of two great choral masterpieces: the jubilant Gloria by Francis Poulenc and the sublime German Requiem by Brahms. Unique among choral requiems for setting passages from the Bible rather than from Catholic liturgy, the Brahms Requiem enjoys an enduring popularity with audiences because of its real, spiritual power. Non-believers and believers alike readily connect to an underlining universal assertion in this great work, namely that it is the living rather than the dead who stand in need of consolation. Conductor Bernie Sherlock directs the Culwick Choral Society with a professional orchestra led by Brona Fitzgerald, and highly-renowned soloists Sinéad Campbell-Wallace (soprano) and John Molloy (baritone).

The exuberance of Poulenc’s Gloria offers the perfect foil to the Brahms. ‘When I wrote this piece’, Poulenc famously recalled, ‘I had in mind those frescoes by Gozzoli where the angels stick out their tongues; and also some serious Benedictine monks I had once seen revelling in a game of football.’