The amazing Parliament Choir

From Coventry, London

What is unique is that the Parliament Choir is special as its members are both from the Houses of Parliament and of Peers and their staff make up this incredible world renowned Ensemble thus proving they could put party politics aside and unite to praise God in unison.

They often also perform at The Queen Elizabeth Hall at Southbank where the cream of world's symphonic and classical concerts are performed. They have a shared interest in their co-ordination with each other as a group as well as in aria for a solo voice in the opera. Such is their talent.

They are also at ease in their cantata which is usually on religious setting and appropriately debuted in cathedral.

The wondrous effect is the coda the Ensemble combines composition, which is a satisfying conclusion.

Listening thro’ their rendering of very implicative scores such as Mozart's Requiem and Britten's war Requiem, what crossed my mind was, are these the harmonious band of voices that hurl accusations at each other across the floor of Parliament as people's representatives, with the same voices now in concert and praising God;

Funny, isn't it?
Their MPs and Peers are:
Baroness Jolly
Baroness Hollis of Heigham
Baronoss Corston and
Jane Ellison MP
Cheryl Gillan MP
Caroline Spelman MP
Bernard Jenkins MP

Tho’ their conductor is Simon Oliver, it was Paul Leddington Wright who raised the baton for Coventry Cathedral performance which I thought was simply Magnificent. The Parliamentary Choir has achieved a remarkable feat of conscion without sacrificing human intensity. To some one like me who has studied and listened to classical music all my life, choral music had no place in it.

Then and there at the Coventry Carhedral my curiosity was roused not that I had not heard it before but may be the sacred atmosphere and the lyrical rendering of the choir made a great impact. I came back greatly inspired because music has always played a very important part in my life.

When alone or feeling sad, music hath soothed my nerves.

It happens to many, especially if one is sensitive. Inevitably I have accumulated a fair number of musical books, tapes etc. that comes in handy for my references, at times discovering some stuff I never learnt in school. They remain a testimony to my adoration for music.

The birth

Founded in 2000 and presently has a strength of 120 singing members and has performed with many world class soloists along with Sir Thomas Allen and Dame Emma Kirby, both patrons of the choir.

They perform some of the greatest choral works in prestigious places like the Chapel of the Royal Naval College, the Royal Albert Hall, the magnificent Locarno Room in the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, Lancaster House and Grey's Inn along the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden and the Southbank's Queen Elizabeth Hall.

The Choir's history has seen them go thro’ notable events such as the Coronation Jubilee Concert in the presence of His Royal Highness, Prince of Wales in 2003 and their major public concert in Westminster Hall in 2012, performing Mozart's Requiem and were privileged to join up with St Michael's Singers and to sing later Britten's War Requiem in Coventry Cathedral where I am seated right now, listening to them their singing of these two magnificent choral works.

Their future

The Parliament Choir is in active persuing with other national choirs of Parliaments. They are scheduled to sing Brahms's German Requiem in the Bundestag, Berlin this Christmas.The Parliament Choir makes up with both Houses of Westminster especially in choral music as their forte. It is registered as an All-Party Parliament Choir – no politics at all. Backed by a wondrous set of instrumentalists, it contains:-

49 Sopranos
42 Altos
13 Tenors and
31 Basses
Conductors are Simon Over and Paul Leddington Wright

Mozart's own requiem

This score which they performed at the Coventry has a sad story behind it and was an unfinished masterpiece. The circumstances under which Mozart died is no secret. Mozart had a stranger one morning with a commission to compose a Requiem Mass. Mozart who was not in his proper senses, thought the stranger to be from another world and that the Requiem was for his own soul.

The stranger was no other than an employee of the eccentric Count Franze Von Walsegg who wanted the score for his late wife and pass it off as his own work but Mozart did not live long to complete it and died few weeks before his thirty sixth birthday from streptococcal infection and renal failure which led to fever and swelling of limbs, vomiting, haemorrage and terminal broncho-pneumonia.

He had the cheapest wedding because his wife could not afford and after service with Mozart's body already putrefying, none volunteered to accompany the coffin to St Mary's Church only an hour's walk and very few people know about his sad end. The location of his burial place has never been confirmed. Thus the Parliamentary Choir singing The Requiem Mass, was in fact a tribute to this great Composer.