The Fourth Choir presents a programme of commemorative music to mark the centenary of Armistice Day which brought to an end the years of horror of World War One. The Choir will be singing the serene and sublimely beautiful Requiem by Herbert Howells in the first half. The second half of the concert will explore themes of mourning and consolation with works by four English composers: Purcell, Vaughan Williams, Alexander Campkin and Toby Young. The concert will finish with Eric Whitacre’s masterpiece, When David Heard, a lament lasting seventeen minutes of highly dramatic vocal writing.
The centenary of the start of World War One was commemorated by the never-to-be-forgotten image of a river of poppies flowing from the windows of the Tower of London and filling the moat with 888,246 poppies, one for every member of the British armed forces who was killed. The Tower is marking the centenary of the end of the War with another installation by the same artists: for eight evenings leading up to Armistice Day itself, the moat will be filled with thousands of individual flames, creating a circle of light, radiating from the Tower. The Fourth Choir is honoured to perform this commemorative concert in such an appropriately historic venue.
The direct route through Tower to the Chapel is not wheelchair-friendly. Please let us know if you have mobility issues so that we can make special arrangements for you.