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Swindon Choral Society is proud to present the world premiere of Brunel's Kingdom,
a musical journey through the life and work of Isambard Kingdom Brunel.
The music aims to touch all emotions and will appeal to people of all ages.
Come and enjoy this unique experience which takes place in the surroundings of
Brunel's own railway workshops, now a part of the
Steam Museum in Swindon.
The evening will be a fantastic showcase for local singers and also for Swindon
as a whole!
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Our professional soloists include Matthew Beale, tenor, who sings the part of Brunel. Matthew has lived,
for much of his life, in Wiltshire and first sang with Swindon Choral Society at the age of 7. He is
now a much sought after soloist and we are thrilled to welcome him back to sing with us.
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| We are also thrilled to be singing once again with the talented children
of the Ruskin School Choir with whom we had a
very successful Christmas concert last year
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| An independent critic reviews the work, from the score: |
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This attractive work has a very clever title, made from Brunel’s own name.
The music is clearly unlike the other choral work named “Kingdom” by Elgar,
but it certainly has been influenced by Britten. The most obvious link with several of that composer’s works, is Nelson’s inclusion of a children’s chorus – such a nice way of involving youngsters in a choral concert.
Another notable Britten influence comes in no. 13, where the cries of distress from the sopranos and altos in the “Dundrum Bay Incident” are so reminiscent of those in the storm scene in St Nicholas. Finally, by including an Agnus Dei, Nelson makes a clear link with Britten, who uses a Nunc Dimittis for his “Death of St Nicholas".
Nelson’s singable melodies are sometimes appropriately reminiscent of folk song, as in the songs sung by the railway builders; at other times they use catchy, irregular metres, as in the final chorus about modern travel. The words are set with convincing rhythms, and the composer often adds an extra bar to make the phrases last five rather than the more predictable four bars in length. This approachable cantata should certainly be taken up by other choral societies.
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© Quintus Benziger, July 2006
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| Box Tunnel - manifestation of Brunel's talent |
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