By Alan Hobby

On April 9, St Mary's Church, Bridport, was packed with a capacity audience keen to hear The New Elizabethan Singers (NES) and The Broadoak Choir combined to perform two choral pieces written by local composers.

Matt Kingston (pen-name Matthew Coleridge) has directed the NES since 2011. His Requiem integrates broad, lush vocal harmonies with exhilarating organ, string and percussion accompaniments and solo passages.  "It was inspired, Matt says, "by the joy of the arrival of my first child and the beauty of the Dorset countryside".  His Requiem premiered in 2015 and has received numerous, acclaimed performances in the UK, the US and Europe. Details of future performances of the piece can be found on matthewcoleridge.com

NES bass Chris Reynolds has lived and worked in the area for 30 years. With roots in folk and jazz, he has also written several liturgical pieces for the small  a cappella Broadoak Choir.  His 2019 choral cantata Three Trees, is a mystical, moving meditation on crucifixion and redemption; it reflects on the mystery and magic of real trees and the beauty of creation; and how close humankind is to destroying it. 

The audience were delighted and the church echoed with resounding applause for both pieces.

It was a concert of wonderfully uplifting music, grown organically in the Marshwood Vale and composed and performed by Dorset talent!