Sunday 26 September 2021

Sankta Cecilia, the saint of music, is often depicted at a pipe organ or with a viola. These iconic paintings have inspired many poets and composers, including WH Auden and Benjamin Britten in his choral classic "Hymn to St Cecilia".
There are also other musical saints with remarkable stories. Four of them are described in works commissioned by the poet Adrian Salmon and the composers David Hansford, Tyrone Landau and Marianne Reidarsdatter. Two of them deal with saints from the Middle Ages – the Archbishop of Canterbury, St Dunstan, and Hildegard von Bingen, Benedictine nun, writer and composer. In addition, we meet two modern saints; the mandolin-playing Mexican Jesuit priest Miguel Pro, known for his jokes, and the guitarist Maria Orsola Bussone, who died in a tragic accident aged just fifteen.
The three-part program consists of music for All Saints' Day, the four original performances, and music celebrating the female saints we find in the altarpiece in St Mary's Church.

Edvard Grieg Vocal Ensemble
Paul Robinson – musical director

Edvard Grieg Vocal Ensemble is founded and based in Bergen, as a residence a cappella ensemble at Edvard Grieg's home, Troldhaugen. The ensemble's repertoire spans across genres, and the singers can often be heard together with the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra and as the core of the choir at Bergen National Opera's performances. Since its inception, the vocal ensemble has had regular performances during the Festspillene i Bergen and the Bergen church autumn festival.