On Friday evening at Heliconian Hall Confluence Concerts presented a concert entitled Centuries of Souls II.  It was built around two longish works; Tomás Luis de Victoria’s Missa Gaudeamus and Eugène Ysaÿe’s Sonata for solo violin op.27 no.2.  The individual movements/sections of these two pieces were interleaved along with a couple of Indian mantras, some plainchant, some lute pieces and the Stravinsky Pater noster to make a pretty coherent programme with its roots in various traditions of chant.

The lute pieces were played by the always excellent Jonathan Stuchberry with the Indian chants performed by Suba Sankaran.  The Ysaÿe sonata was played very well indeed by young Tina Sievers.  I don’t often use the adjective “precocious” but it’s not inappropriate here.  It was a performance beyond her years.

The choir for the Victoria and other choral pieces was made up of Alison Beckwith, Rebecca genge, Clara Krause, Suba Sankaram, Simon Honeyman, Larry Beckwith Jonathan Stuchberry, Bryan Martin and Owen Phillipson conducted by Matthew Larkin and was excellent.  And for a bonus the programme included the Wesleyan hymn Let saints on earth in concert sing so that we could all join in.

So, an intelligently constructed and very well performed programme.  Should you be so inclined it’s on again this evening (Saturday) at the same venue at 7.30pm.