Our Gala Coronation Concert was fantastic!

The Choir of St. James Cathedral presented a gala concert with orchestra of the Coronation Anthems by G. F. Handel on Saturday, May 6, 2023 at 7:30pm. We celebrated the coronation of King Charles III.

Wow! What a weekend! In the midst (finally) of beautiful spring weather, we kept Coronation weekend in grand style. The Gala Concert was simply fantastic, with a full house and magnificent music, beautifully performed. Bravo and our deepest thanks to all who made this such a marvellous way to mark an important national event – our dedicated choristers, talented guest players, an indefatigable administrative and property staff who just pulled out all the stops to accommodate a full house, and all the pre-concert details; our wonderful ushers and stewards who so graciously gave of their time. A deep tip of the hat to all! And, of course, a deep bow to Tom Bell! Wonderful, wonderful.

Our Gala Coronation Concert was also live-streamed. Click here to watch it.

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ON CORONATION DAY:

“Ring for the King” ⛪👑🎼🎹🔔

On Saturday, May 6, 2023, Coronation Day we rang the bells of the Cathedral at 12 noon to mark and joyfully celebrate this historic occasion, joining the ‘Ring for the King’ initiative.

The St. James Cathedral Guild of Change Ringers surprised us by ringing a Quarter Peal at 5:15pm. It was ringing a method called “Plain Bob Caters” which is 10 bell ringers ringing non-stop for about 50 minutes. The general ringing continued leading up to our Coronation concert at 7:30pm.

The St. James Cathedral Guild of Change Ringers website here.

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PROGRAMME:

The four Coronation Anthems by George Frederick Handel were written for the coronation of George II in 1727. Our concert features all four, and concludes with the two mighty choruses from ‘Messiah’: Worthy is the Lamb and the ‘Amen’ chorus.

The music of Elgar is often featured at British coronations; his organ sonata will be presented between the choral music.

To whet your appetite here is the opening of Zadok the Priest, performed in the church where Handel was baptised: