Summer Concert - the King's Music takes place at Horsham's Christ Hospital

Choir and orchestra in action at an earlier rehearsal

Saturday 17 June is the King's official birthday, celebrated with the Trooping the Colour parade in London - and Horsham with a Summer Concert presented by Christ’s Hospital Choral Society. The choir won't be offering any horses or such dramatic choreography on the night, but the singing and the music will likely make up for that.

The concert will feature Coronation music and known favourites of King Charles. The choir will sing Handel’s much loved anthem ‘Zadok the Priest’, Parry’s ‘I was glad’ Vaughan Williams’s ‘Old hundredth Psalm Tune’, as well as pieces by Elgar, Stainer, Ireland, and Howells.

‘Zadok’ was composed for the coronation of King George II in 1727 and has been performed at each coronation since. Trooping the Colour, by the way, has marked the official birthday of the reigning Monarch since 1760 when George III ascended the throne.

Looking into the lives of those composers it is fascinating to see how they lived, who they made music with, and how unbelievably gifted they were.

A few snippets: Edward Elgar had piano and violin lessons early on, but largely taught himself music reading through manuals, Parry’s, amongst others).

It would have helped that his father ran a music shop and the young Edward would go with his dad when he was tuning pianos. John Stainer joined St Paul’s choir aged 10 and soon became the principal soloist. He travelled up and down to the Cathedral by steamboat (how romantic does that sound?!).

He was also friends with Arthur Sullivan and Hubert Parry. Parry was the head of the Royal College of Music for 23 years, where he counted Vaughan Williams, Gustav Holst, and John Ireland among his pupils.

As a side note, John Ireland has his resting place not far from Christ’s Hospital, at St. Mary’s church in Shipley.

Vaughan Williams’s connection with Leith Hill is locally well-known and he was one of the founders of the Leith Hill Music Festival.

He believed strongly in making music as available as possible to everybody, and wrote many pieces for student and amateur performances.

The choir will end with Parry’s ‘I was glad’ - and hope you will be glad you came to the concert.

Has this whetted your appetite to come and listen? The day is Saturday 17 June, 7.30 PM at Christ’s Hospital School, Horsham, RH13 0LJ. Tickets £12.50 or £10 concessions, and £5 for children. Box office: 01403 247434. For further information please see chchoralsoc.org