Local music lovers are warmly invited to enjoy an uplifting evening of song and reflection when Newbury’s much-loved choir, The Cecilia Consort, presents its annual early spring concert on Saturday, 7 March, at St John’s Church, Newbury.
This year’s concert, titled Sea & Spirit, offers an inspiring musical journey celebrating the calm beauty of the sea and the deep sense of connection that music brings to nature, to faith and to one another.
A special highlight of the evening will be the appearance of renowned mezzo-soprano Rebecca Outram. Rebecca has sung at the BBC Proms, Wigmore Hall and St Paul’s Cathedral, and has made numerous recordings for major classical labels. Her expressive voice and warm stage presence promise to add something truly memorable to the concert.
Directed by Janet Coxwell and accompanied by Steve Bowey, the choir has a gorgeous programme in store, which includes Cecilia McDowall’s beautiful Ave Maris Stella, Jonathan Dove’s radiant Seek Him that maketh the Seven Stars, and two popular works by Sir John Rutter: the joyful Feel the Spirit and the much-loved Look at the World. Also featured are Bob Chilcott’s moving In the Heart of the World and Aaron Copland’s dramatic In the Beginning.
Doors will open in readiness for a 7.30pm start and tickets, priced at £17.50 for adults and £5 for under 18s, are available from the choir’s website below or by calling 07775 743 445.
Review by Julia Rowntree
Newbury Weekly News 12th March 2026
On a damp, grey evening the warmth of St John’s Church was welcoming! This was unusual and brave programming of accessible, ‘easy listening’ compositions, entirely written by contemporary composers, all portraying different approaches to composition.
The evening opened with Look at the World by Rutter. Here, Rutter lays before listeners all the tools of composition and craftsmanship and transforms these into sheer beauty! The rippling, intricate piano parts make his songs into mini masterpieces – and are uplifting. The well-balanced choir of twenty or so women and fifteen men sang with enjoyment and clarity. Equally at home in unison and harmony the choir shared a confident and feel-good factor with the listeners. Cecilia McDowall’s more extended Ave Maris Stella demonstrated in particular the lovely tone of the soprano line with it’s clear vocal focus. This was followed by In the Heart of the World by Bob Chilcott. Chilcott’s harmonies are quite ‘meaty’ but his writing is always accessible and meaningful.
Renowned soloist Rebecca Outram joined the choir in In the Beginning by Aaron Copland. This was more of a challenge for the choir but much of the challenge was due to the unidiomatic vocal writing. Thanks to Rebecca Outram’s impeccable diction the audience could follow the creation as it happened in Genesis, day by day. This work of Copland was unaccompanied and the choral pitch did suffer a little. It is interesting that Copland was the only one of tonight’s composers to live through war – two World Wars in fact.
Jonathan Dove’s Seek Him That Maketh Seven Stars followed a pleasant interval. His lyrical writing flowed with a lightness of touch. The high registers of the twinkly piano accompaniment painted the word ‘stars’ so brightly. In Feel the Spirit, by Rutter, a collection of seven spirituals, the choir was again joined by Rebecca Outram, in which the tragedy of slavery, but upsurge of hope, was richly conveyed. Steal Away was an example of outstanding chamber choral singing, showing perfection of intonation, control of tonal forces and conveyance of the heart of the words. The evening ended with Sleep by Eric Whitacre. His sheer indulgence in dissonances and resolutions was excellently performed.
The Cecilia Consort had a good balance of all four vocal lines, never forced the tone and always had clear diction. Janet Coxwell, who formed the choir, demonstrated clear and unflappable conducting and direction. The choir was accompanied by Steve Bowey, whose unassuming presence belied his elegant and skilful playing throughout – often, as in Rutter, the piano part is in a dual role with the choir – he performed this role admirably.