A Musical Christmas Countdown

Christmas arrived early this year with a flurry of carols, seasonal music and rollicking comedy pieces, thanks to The Downland Singers’ Christmas concert: A Musical Christmas Countdown. To mark their forthcoming Silver Anniversary, they had polled the membership for their top ten favourite Christmas songs. The results were presented in Top 10 countdown style to a packed audience - each choice suitably heralded with a vocal peal of bells and interspersed with seasonal favourites.

As always with The Downland Singers, the standard of singing was exceptionally good. Beautiful harmonies, carefully observed dynamics and perfect diction ensured we could hear every word and enjoy the complexity of the music. Director Avril Pinkney has obviously drilled her singers well – they were all attentive, waiting for their cues. Equally good was the accompaniment provided by Mark Langtry on the piano, ably assisted by Chris Hyson and Margaret Parry. Between them they gave the piano a thorough workout – there can’t have been any dust left in the strings by the end of the evening! The pieces were introduced by Roger Rixon and Yvette Welsh who also added their own touches of humour and some interesting nuggets of information.

If I were forced to pick my top three favourites of the evening, they would have to be:

No. 3: “The Holly and the Ivy”, sung to a tune I hadn’t heard before and taken much faster than usual. It worked really well and prevented the song becoming tediously repetitive.

No. 2: “If I Were Not Upon This Stage”, which was hilariously funny, not just the lyrics, but the crazy antics the singers got up to as they sang - though how they managed to keep singing I’m not sure!

No. 1: “O Holy Night”, most beautifully sung by soprano Veronica Folkard with touching accompaniment from the rest of the singers.

It was difficult to choose just three because every number in the programme was performed to perfection, whether sung by the whole choir, part of the choir or soloists. Audience participation was very much encouraged (only one brave soul dared not to join in!) and you felt you were being welcomed into the warmth of an extended family gathering.

The whole concert was performed in front of a very professional set featuring a snow scene, santa hats and stockings ready for their presents, and a specially made countdown clock. Movement of the choir on and off stage was accomplished slickly, so that just the people involved in a number were left on stage, meaning no distractions from fidgeting singers.

This was a real treat to get you in the right mood for Christmas. The eclectic mix of music was well chosen to appeal to all tastes with a good selection of familiar and not-so-familiar songs. Downland Singers obviously take their music very seriously, but they never take themselves too seriously, and that is very appealing.

© NODA CIO. All rights reserved.