Forthcoming Concerts
Saturday 7 June - St John's Church, Wimbledon - 7 pm
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Purcell: Verse Anthems ​
JS Bach: Motet: Komm, Jesu, Komm and Lobet den Herrn
Handel: Water Music Suite No 1 in F
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Academy Baroque Players
Sam Laughton - conductor
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How better to celebrate a summer’s evening than at a concert of the most splendid Baroque choral and instrumental music. Purcell’s verse anthems, alternating expressive solo passages with rich choral textures are among his finest works - alongside My heart is inditing, his wonderfully majestic Coronation Anthem. Bach’s motets Komm, Jesu, komm and Lobet den Herrn have become two of Bach's best known and most performed motets, while Handel’s Water Music Suite No. 1, originally composed for a royal barge procession, remains one of his most celebrated orchestral works, brimming with regal fanfares, lively dances, and stately elegance. An evening of joy and splendour!
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Conductor: Sam Laughton
A former organ scholar at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, Sam Laughton now juggles dual careers as a barrister and musician. He is also the Director of the Craswall Players, the Chiltern Camerata, and the Speen Festival. He is in demand as a guest conductor, working with such orchestras as the Oxford Sinfonia, Kensington Chamber Orchestra, Kew Sinfonia, Orchestra of the City and Trinity Camerata. As a keyboard player he has also worked with groups as varied as Oxford Philomusica, the Joyful Company of Singers, English National Opera and Garsington Opera.
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Our concerts
We are determined to ensure that our concerts are not just highly enjoyable musical occasions but also an integral part of community life. They offer an opportunity to catch up with friends as well as make new ones; to hear familiar music and - hopefully - also some less familiar music that you will swiftly come to love. They are also events for all ages; we believe very strongly that high quality musical organisations - particularly those with a strong community focus - have a responsibility to share their music with everyone, not just those for whom attending a classical music concert is a routine experience. For that reason we always offer very affordable child tickets throughout our venues as well as affordable full price tickets. We also take our work into schools and invite local schoolchildren and parents to witness our final rehearsals free of charge. If you would like to support or take advantage of these opportunities please do get in touch.
Future concert plans
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As yet unscheduled concert plans include the completion of our cycle of the major Handel oratorios, motets by Bruckner and others, Bach's St Matthew Passion, Magnificats by JS Bach, CPE Bach and Arvo Pårt, further great English choral anthems and a series of new commissions.