FARMINGTON — The UMF Community Chorus, under the direction of Bruce McInnes, with accompanist Patricia Hayden, will present its annual Spring Concert in Nordica Auditorium at 3 p.m. Sunday, April 28.

The concert will be a program of coronation music. It will include Coronation Anthems 1 (“Zadok the Priest”) and 4 (“My Heart is Inditing”) by Handel, written in 1727 for the coronation of British King George II. It will also include the Coronation Mass by Mozart written in 1779 and performed on Easter Sunday of that year in the Salzburg Cathedral, then at the Enthronement of Francis II as Holy Roman Emperor in 1792.

The chorus will then move to the 20th century to perform “I Was Glad When They Said Unto Me,” composed for double chorus in 1902 for the coronation of Britain’s King Edward VII by Charles Hubert Hastings Parry.

The program will end with “O Clap Your Hands” by Ralph Vaughn Williams, offered in celebration of the longest reign in British history, Queen Elizabeth II, who celebrated her 93rd birthday one week ago on Easter.

Interestingly, Handel’s “Zadok the Priest” and Parry’s “I Was Glad” have been performed at every coronation since their composition in 1727 and 1902 respectively. For this concert, the UMF Community Chorus will be accompanied by a chamber orchestra made up of local musicians.

The soloists in the Mozart Coronation Mass will be Laura Grams and Lisl Fuson, sopranos; Anne Smith, alto; Daniel Woodward, tenor; and Paul Stancioff, bass.

Admission is $10 for adults and $7 for seniors. Free admission is offered to those 16 and under, and to students with ID.


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