At the beginning of March, selected Senior and Chamber Choir members were invited to perform at the National Theatre’s prestigious ‘Up Next’ fundraising Gala and in doing so helped to raise over £1 million to support greater access to the arts for children and young people across the country. The event opened with an energetic cabaret by over 100 children, setting rhythmic gymnastics and modern, tap and street dance to an arrangement of David Bowie’s ‘Heroes’ sung by FCMG and Kaos. During the evening there were live performances from Sir Lenny Henry, Tamsin Greig, Rory Kinnear and Anne-Marie Duff, with guests including Billie Piper, Lily James, Nathan Lane, Adrian Lester and Danny Sapani. The event closed with an exhilarating performance of Queen’s “Don’t Stop Me Now” by FCMG and Rosalie Craig in which the singers performed on podiums amongst the star-studded audience to rapturous applause.
Author: Sammy
Grace Rossiter, FCMG Musical Director, appointed to exciting additional role with BBC Symphony Chorus
FCMG would like to warmly congratulate Grace on her appointment as Deputy Chorus Director for the BBC Symphony Chorus, one of the UK’s premier amateur choirs. This position will run in parallel to her continuing Musical Directorship of FCMG, an organisation she has led for 16 years, and sang in herself as a child. FCMG has enjoyed participating in many high profile events with the BBC recently, including the BBC’s Holocaust Memorial, a BBC Prom last year and the Christmas concert with the BBC Singers in December. We look forward to further opportunities in the future. The press release from the BBC can be found here.
Reviews: BBC Prom 48, A Midsummer Night’s Dream with BBC Scottish SO/Matthias Pintscher
On Sunday 21st August 2016, FCMG performed Mendelssohn’s incidental music for Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream alongside the BBC Scottish Symohony Orchestra and soloists Katharine Broderick and Clara Mouriz conducted by Matthias Pintscher.
Here are some selections from the reviews.
The Arts Desk:
“Katharine Broderick projected each bright vowel and tongue-twisting consonant of “You spotted snakes”, joined by Clara Mouriz and backed with impeccable diction by the Finchley Children’s Music Group.”
Bachtrack:
“The Finchley Children’s Music Group showed us just how bright-eyed singing is done, and did so with nary a score in sight.”
The Times:
“…with rich vocal contributions from Katherine Broderick, Clara Mouriz and the Finchley Children’s Music Group”
Classical Source:
“The Finchley Children’s Music Group, singing from memory, excelled.”
The Guardian:
“It was entertainingly done, with delicate vocal standouts from soprano Katherine Broderick and mezzo Clara Mouriz, and the Finchley Children’s Music Group providing the shaded tones of the fairy troupe.”
