Jubilee

On February 6 this year, Queen Elizabeth II became the first British (and Australian) Monarch to celebrate 70 years of service.

In celebration of this Platinum Jubilee, the Blackstone-Ipswich Cambrian Choir is marking this milestone with a concert of music from Her Majesty’s Coronation, from well-known works with long royal associations, such as Handel’s Zadok the Priest and Parry’s I was glad, renaissance works by Byrd and Gibbons, through to works written especially for the 1953 service by composers including Howells, Vaughan Williams, and Walton.

Accompanied by organ and brass ensemble, and featuring a dramatic narration of the ceremony, this will be a grand celebration not to be missed!

Our organist, Andrej Kouznetsov, studied at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music before spending time in the UK as Organ Scholar at Salisbury Cathedral and later at Westminster Abbey, where he regularly accompanied and conducted the Abbey's world-renowned choir, gave numerous recitals, and took part in high-profile events attended by Her Majesty the Queen and other members of the Royal Family.

The man who will be guiding us through the Coronation service is Blair Martin. The "voice" of the Abbey Medieval Festival, Blair is a multi-award-winning actor, speaker, broadcaster, MC, voice artist, writer, and director. He is also a keen “self-discovered” historian, with a particular interest in English and western European history, from late antiquity through the medieval period into the modern day.