The Marian Consort
This concert has now sold out – email us (hello@dunsterfestival.co.uk) if you would like to be added to the waiting list.
Time & Date:
7.30pm, Saturday 29 May 2021
Venue:
Priory Church of St George, Church Street, Dunster, TA24 6SH
Who:
The Marian Consort | Rory McCleery, Director
Tickets:
£20. Available from 9 April for Festival Friends and 16 April for the general public. Please note that the audience will be socially distanced so there will only be a limited number of tickets on sale.
Running Time:
Approximately 1 hour (no interval)
Programme Info:
In a programme created especially for us, The Marian Consort will explore music from the time of Sir John Luttrell, feudal baron of Dunster in the 16th Century and a notable soldier, diplomat and courtier to Henry VIII and Edward VI. Beautiful sacred music by Tudor composers sits alongside new pieces, including a world premiere from award-winning young composer Ben Rowarth which sets Sir John’s personal motto, found on his portrait which hangs both in the Courtauld Institute of Art and in Dunster Castle.
Lamentations of Jeremiah I | Thomas Tallis (c1505 – 1585)
Tibi soli peccavi | Nathaniel Giles (c1558 – 1634)
Lament 16 | Donna McKevitt
Aspice Domine | Philip van Wilder (c1500 – 1553)
Ave Maria | Robert Parsons (c1535 – 1572)
Ave Maris Stella | Ben Rowarth (world premiere)
Salvator mundi | Thomas Tallis
Job tonso capite | Clemens non Papa (c1510 – 1555)
Lamentations of Jeremiah | Osbert Parsley (1511-1585)
Artist Biographies
The Marian Consort
The Marian Consort is a Gramophone Award-nominated vocal ensemble, recognised for its innovative presentation of a broad range of repertoire. Led by founder and director, Rory McCleery, The Marian Consort performs across the UK, Europe and North America, and features regularly on BBC Radio 3.
Praised by The Scotsman for ‘performances that glow with golden purity and soul’, the group is composed of the very best singers performing one to a part, allowing clarity of texture and subtlety of interpretation that illuminates the music for performer and audience alike.
The Marian Consort’s repertoire encompasses music from the fifteenth century to the present day, with a particular focus on exploring lesser-known works. TMC is committed to creating new music, and has commissioned leading British composers including Cheryl Frances-Hoad, Gabriel Jackson, Cecilia McDowall, and Matthew Martin.
The Marian Consort is a pioneer of projects which move beyond the confines of the traditional concert, bringing music of the past to today’s audiences. TMC has toured Breaking the Rules by musician and playwright Clare Norburn, a concert drama exploring the life and crimes of Carlo Gesualdo, to LSO St Lukes, Lichfield, Buxton, Cheltenham, Bath and Lammermuir Festivals, garnering five-star reviews.
The Marian Consort collaborates with ensembles including the Carducci Quartet, Berkeley Ensemble, Rose Consort of Viols, Illryia Consort, and the Choir of Merton College, Oxford, in repertoire ranging from Byrd to Monteverdi and Arvo Pärt to Michael Berkeley. TMC has released ten recordings on Delphian Records to critical acclaim, praised for ‘precision and pellucid textures’ (The Times) and for ‘drawing the listener in by quiet persuasion and musical intelligence of the highest order’ (The Guardian).
Recent performance highlights include concerts in the Bascule Chamber underneath London’s Tower Bridge; a debut performance in Estonia at the 24th Kuressaare Chamber Music Days; a Wigmore Hall recital presented in partnership with BBC Radio 3; a residency at the Cambridge Early Music Festival; a concert at the Misteria Paschalia Festival, broadcast on Polish National Radio; and a UK tour to celebrate the group’s tenth anniversary. The Marian Consort made its debut tour of the US and Canada in October 2018, and will tour Japan in spring 2020.