May 9 @ 4:30 pm – 5:30 pm
The blooming of Europe’s earliest music
Join us for an enlightening journey back into musical history set in the oldest church in Leeds!
From Hildegard to Gibbons, this programme tracks how choral music developed across Europe through the Renaissance. The latest work was composed just ten years before St John’s Church was opened in 1634.
English Tudor masters William Byrd and Orlando Gibbons will feature alongside Italian, Spanish and Flemish composers. Two of the earliest known female composers, Hildegard and the Italian nun Raffaella Aleotti, also get to strut their stuff!
Starting at 4.30pm, the concert will be relaxed: you will be able to come and go, and to make the most of this rare chance to take in the superb interior of this ancient building. The church will be open all afternoon, including while we rehearse, so feel free to drop in and be curious!
Admission is free: you will be encouraged to donate to the Churches Conservation Trust who care for the building and to whom all proceeds will be given.
The concert will last about an hour.
St Peter’s Singers are passionate about the music we sing and want to share it with as many people as possible. We will do all we can to make anyone who comes to our concerts feel welcome and at ease. So if you’ve not tried this music out before, why not come along and bring a friend? St John’s is an accessible venue, albeit with no toilet facilities. Everyone is welcome.
What to expect at a St Peter’s Singers concert.
Please note that while we make every effort to present the advertised programme, we cannot guarantee to do so or be held responsible if circumstances require a change.
Programme
| Laus Trinitati | Hildegard |
| Urbs beata Jerusalem | Guillaume Dufay |
| Ave Maria | Josquin |
| Virgo Prudentissima | Heinrich Isaac |
| Veni, Dilecti mi | Lassus |
| Missa O quam gloriosam | Tomas Luis da Vittoria |
| Haec Dies | William Byrd |
| O Rex gloriae | Luca Marenzio |
| Ascendens Christus in altum | Raffaella Aleotti |
| O clap your hands | Orlando Gibbons |
St Peter’s Singers
Alexander Woodrow director
Access and accessibility
St John’s Church can be accessed from the corner of Mark Lane and New Briggate (opposite the Grand Theatre), or from Merrion Street via Merrion Street Gardens. Care should be taken on the flagstones in damp or wet weather.
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Nearest railway station: Leeds (1 mile). Bus route numbers 12/13/13A/770/781.
Nearest car park: St. John’s Centre, Merrion Street.
St John’s is accessible to wheelchair users, who should use the Merrion Street Gardens entrance. There is a step up from the aisles into the pews, but there is room to accommodate wheelchairs at the rear of the church.
The nearest toilets are in the St. John’s Centre.
