Following the grand success of our Mozart Requiem Come and Sing we are doing a Come and Sing Event again in 2026 with orchestra a connected children's concert and workshops!
Possibly the scope of this concert could be called an Oriel's Bach Fest! The layout will be as such:
- Friday before: Singer's Workshop: Rainer Thomsen our tenor and evangelist, singing professor at Hamburg's Hochschule für Musik und Theater will be giving a workshop for singers and singing teachers on Rabine Functional Singing Technique and on Bach Singing. Whether you are a singing teacher yourself or a singer on any level you can book a lesson with us. (registration link coming up soon)
- Saturday noon: After the orchestra and the core choir have familiarized themselves with each other and warmed up with the first rehearsals we will be delivering a 30-40 min special abridged and narrated version of the Christmas Oratorio specifically for children in a relaxed atmosphere concert! Ages 4-9 + (Details coming up soon)
- Saturday daytime: During the day starting from 2pm there will be rehearsals on the way for our Come and Sing event with the Oriel Singers as the core choir. (Score, details and registration link coming up soon)
- Saturday evening, 7pm: The big Come and Sing Concert with full orchestra of parts I-III
- Sunday: Singer's Workshop: see above: A second day for workshops from our tenor soloist.
Funding
We have applied for funding at multiple institutions, which we will name here, if the funding gets through. If it does not, we will need financial help to woop a project of this size and would ask for donations, so please watch this space.
Orchestra
We have a lovely orchestra assembled of people who believe in the idea of doing a special children's performance and many of them are donating their time to a significant and overwhelming proportion as contribution in kind. Also a vast proportion are Bach specialists from Germany who are making the travel to spread the joy of Bach's music over the channel and bring it to the next generation. For me as a child growing up and even today Christmas means hearing those first timpanis and trumpets in Bach's Christmas Oratorio.
We have nearly everyone preliminary agreed but are waiting for funding and some things to be confirmed. As soon as we have those, we will of course name all of our wonderful players and section leaders here.
Soloists
Soprano: Sara-Katharina Ochs, Hamburg
Alto: Faye Watson, Liverpool
Tenor & Evangelist: Rainer Thomsen, Hamburg (and Matt Bright, Liverpool in Children's Oratorio)
Bass: to be announced.
Come and Sing
We will publish a registration link and more details for the Come and Singers closer to the date.
- The chorales will be sung in English
- The choirs will be sung in German
- we will provide pdfs
Workshops
Find more details, registration link etc. on the sites for the workshops. All singers welcome.
Time, Date and Place
- Holy Trinity Wavertree, Church Road, Liverpool L15 9EQ
- Children's Concert: 28/11/26 1.30pm (tbc)
- Come and Sing I-III: 28/11/26, 7pm
- Come and Sing Rehearsals: 28/11/26 2.30 pm ff. (tbc)