Saturday 14th March 2026 : 7:30pm
St John's Church, Newbury, RG14 7PY

American Choral Reflections

Aaron Copland - Four Sacred Motets
Eric Whitacre - The Seal Lullaby, This Marriage, Sleep
Stephen Paulus - The Road Home
Ola Gjeilo - Ubi Caritas, Northern Lights
Amy Beach - Peace I leave with you, With prayer and supplication
Roy Ringwald - Deep River
Bob Chilcott - Simple Gifts
Undine Smith Moore - We shall walk through the valley
George Gershwin
Samuel Barber

Musical Director - Ben de Souza
Soprano - Elisabeth Cullen
Piano - Georgina Robertson

Tickets £18. Under 18's £5.

This programme brings together choral works shaped by the American musical landscape — its faith, its folk traditions, and its gift for luminous, heartfelt expression. Stephen Paulus’s The Road Home sets the tone for an evening rooted in ideas of journey, belonging, and spiritual rest, echoed in Aaron Copland’s Four Sacred Motets.

The programme moves through the radiant contemporary harmonies of Eric Whitacre, from the intimate tenderness of The Seal Lullaby and This Marriage to the stillness of Sleep, and the glowing, expansive sound-worlds of Ola Gjeilo’s Ubi Caritas and Northern Lights, written while the composer was living and working in the United States. American choral tradition is further reflected in works influenced by spirituals and folk song, including Deep River, Simple Gifts, and We Shall Walk Through the Valley.

Together, these pieces form a portrait of American choral music that speaks of peace, love, and the enduring search for home.

We hope to see you at St John's for a wonderful concert. You can now buy your programme and interval drinks in advance!