By Christopher Sun
Ladysmith Chronicle
Nanaimo’s chamber choir is coming back to Ladysmith.
The Island Consort Chamber Choir is returning to the Ladysmith Waterfront Gallery for one evening titled, Lux Deterna, or, Eternal Light, on November 26.
The mixed voice choir of 19 performers will sing classical music by famous composers such as Bach, Byrd and Palestrina.
The second half of the program will be contemporary pieces, including pieces by Holst, Elgars and Whitacre. A guest artist, Hannah Wilson, will play Bach’s Cello Suite #1.
Musical director Bruce Farquharson said he looks forward to this second visit to Ladysmith, comparing the local venue to one of the most famous in the world.
“When I first went up there (last year), I had recently come back from Vienna where they have the famous concert halls and I said, ‘this is just like a miniature Musiverein,’” Farquharson said.
“It’s sort of the same shape, but very much smaller. And of course it’s a wooden structure, so it really resonates nicely.”
The Musikverein is a concert hall in Vienna, Austria, which opened in 1870.
The Island Consort Chamber Choir is a community chamber choir that formed in April 2007.
Their music selection generally focuses on sacred and secular music of the late Renaissance and Baroque periods.
The group produces two programs per year and performs it twice. Once in Nanaimo and the second one in a neighbouring community either north or south of the Harbour City.
Tickets are available at Salamander Books for $15 or at the door for $17.
