Bach Choir & Wellington Brass Band present ANZAC Reflections

Join us for a contemplative afternoon of 'ANZAC Reflections' at the Sacred Heart Cathedral in Hill Street. The concert will feature the Bach Choir of Wellington and the Wellington Brass Band, honouring the ANZAC spirit through music and poetry.

The Bach Choir of Wellington will begin with Victoria’s setting of O Vos Omnes, a motet expressing deep sorrow and grief, and finish with a contemporary arrangement of the well-known hymn, Be Still My Soul, which reflects our human need for peace and patience. The choir will also perform Nigel Williams' setting of Amazing Grace, a hymn that resonates with themes of hope and redemption, and There is an Old Belief from Parry’s Songs of Farewell.

The Wellington Brass Band will give the Aotearoa New Zealand premiere of Liz Lane’s Silver Rose. This work is a musical response to five poems by poet Isaac Rosenberg, who died in action in World War I. The text and musical settings echo perspectives on the atrocities of war and hope for peace.
In collaboration, both ensembles will perform David Hamilton's A Call to Arms, featuring baritone Joe Haddow. This work sets texts by those intimately involved with the war, with the poets themselves as participants and observers. The final movement sets Robert Bridges’ Hymn in War Time to Tallis’ canon, in counterpoint to the baritone soloist’s reflections on the uncertainty in parting from their loved ones experienced by those called to serve.

We invite you to join us for an afternoon of reflection and remembrance.