Rochester Choral Society Announces 150th Anniversary Concert

By David Salazar

Rochester Choral Society will celebrate its 150th anniversary this March with a world premiere performance on March 18, 2023.

The showcase, which will take place at the Rochester Cathedral, will feature the first-ever performance of Thomas Hewitt-Jones’ “Regards from Rochester.”

“I was delighted when John Mountford approached me to commission this work for Rochester Choral Society’s very exciting 150th anniversary. Quite early on in our discussions, we decided that the richness of Medway’s history was conducive to a new text, so the result is a 10-movement oratorio which we hope tells the story of the area with sweeping melody and angularity where appropriate,” Hewitt-Jones said in an official press statement. “I have written it to be as both engaging and as musically interesting as possible. The final movement of the work brings us to the present day, with the audience joining together to sing with one voice.”

The Rochester Choral Society was founded in 1873.

“Rochester Choral Society has passed some significant milestones recently, with 2022 marking the 100th anniversary of our first performance in Rochester Cathedral. We wanted to commission a piece which reflected the diversity of this area’s rich and turbulent history, with a historically accurate, humorous and engaging new piece. We wanted to find somebody with a connection and passion for the Medway Towns and who wanted to help raise awareness of the cultural and social heritage of the area,” Director of Music John Mountford added.

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