The Messiah at Ampleforth Abbey

If you missed this great musical event ,make a note in your diary for next year .We are only 5 minutes down the road. Our guests who came from Switzerland and London to listen. Mince pies and drinks are served half way through. Wonderful setting for Handel’s masterpiece The Abbey Church at Ampleforth provided a wonderful setting and backdrop for a superb performance of Handel’s Messiah. Hundreds of people, including those who had travelled some distance, came together to hear schoolchildren and professionals sing the masterpiece. Parents and local residents to the Abbey, together with representatives of the College and monastic community, gave the performance an enthusiastic reception. The choral masterpiece remains a classic musical oratorio and a fixture in Yorkshire’s Christmas calendar. Performed in the Abbey’s church, more than 110 students aged nine to 18 performed alongside internationally renowned soloists. Soprano Julie Cooper was unable to be there and her place was taken by Bethany Seymour alongside Marie Elliott (contralto) Matthew Long (tenor) and James Platt (bass). The Ampleforth Chamber Orchestra, with leader Dara De Cogan, provided the music while the chorus was provided by the Abbey’s School Cantorum and the Schola Puellarum plus the Schola Sancti Martini. The conductor was Ian Little, director of music at Ampleforth College. The Ampleforth choirs with Leeds Roman Catholic Cathedral Choir will give a programme of sacred music on March 22