A Concert to Celebrate St George’s Day,
in aid of The Royal British Legion
Wednesday 1st May 2019 - St George’s Church,
Hanover Square, London
T
he observant amongst
you will notice that St
George’s Day does not fall
on 1st May! However, with
Easter falling late this year,
this did not stop the Royal
British Legion holding a
celebratory concert for all
things English, on this fine
May day!
The programme was made up
of music and readings by
English composers and
authors, performed by the choir
of St George’s Hanover Square,
the Central Band of the Royal
British Legion, and two well-
known personalities.
It was a shame more was not
made in their promotional
material that there would be
celebrity speakers performing
at this concert. This would
explain the ticket price, and
could have encouraged a larger
audience had it been
advertised. So, it was a
pleasant surprise to learn that
Jenny Agutter and Matthew
Kelly would be reciting extracts
from patriotic passages, by Bill
Bryson, Michael Flanders,
Captain Alastair Bannerman,
George Mikes, PG Wodehouse
and Noel Coward.
The venue could not have been
more fitting for the occasion.
Named after the patron saint of
England, it was also the parish
church for G.F. Handel when he
lived in London, and very near
the house in which he wrote
his famous ‘Messiah’. Handel
moved to nearby Brook Street
in 1724, just as the church
was nearing its completion. His
advice was sought on the
suitability of the organ, and he
was asked to compose a work
for applicants for the post of
Organist to perform at their
audition. He loved England so
much that in 1726 he became
a naturalised British citizen,
and was a regular worshipper
at St George’s until his death in
1759.
The Central Band of the Royal British Legion with their conductor for this concert, David Cole.
Works by Handel in the
programme included ‘Zadok the
Priest’ (a personal favourite of
mine), ‘Since by man came
death’, and ‘Hallelujah’, both
from Messiah. There was an
opportunity for audience
participation, too, opening the
concert with Sir Charles Parry’s
‘Jerusalem’, and finishing with
Gustav Holst’s ‘I Vow to Thee,
My Country’. Despite his name,
Holst was English, growing up
in Cheltenham and spending
much of his professional life in
London.
Outstanding music filled the air.
Visit The London & UK DatebooK on www.thedatebook.co.uk
The choir of St George’s also
sang three movements from
‘Birthday Madrigals’ by John
Rutter. In addition, soloists
from the choir performed works
by Haydn Wood (‘Roses of
Picardy’), Arthur Sullivan (‘The
Dicky Bird and the Owl’),
Flanders and Swann (‘The
Hippopotamus Song’), which
were great fun and very
light-hearted.
The Central Band of The Royal
British Legion accompanied the
singers, alongside Organist
Nicholas Morris, and they were
also afforded their own solo
spots! The audience enjoyed
hearing a medley of songs by
The Beatles, including ‘Eleanor
Rigby’, ‘The Long and Winding
Road’, and ‘When I’m 64’.
Another medley of songs by
Arthur Sullivan from his famous
operettas were beautifully
arranged by David Cole, the
Central Band’s Director of
Music and conductor for this
concert.
It was an honour to have Terry
Whittles, National Chairman of
The Royal British Legion,
address the audience before
bidding us farewell and
introducing the final item: The
March of the Royal British
Legion. He is soon to step
down from the post in the
middle of May, but he was keen
to say what a pleasure it had
been to attend concerts given
by the Central Band of the
Royal British Legion during his
tenure. I’m sure this sentiment
was echoed by all those
attending this lovely, varied
evening, as we departed feeling
more patriotic than we did
upon entering!
JULIA BURT
THE LONDON & UK DATEBOOK
7