Youthful impulse and power: Mozart's Requiem from National Youth Choir, Sinfonia Smith Square and Nicholas Chalmers

The first page of Mozart's autograph score of the Requiem

Mozart: Symphony No. 35, Requiem, Bruckner, Rheinberger; Hannah Dienes-Williams, Bethany Horak-Hallett, Hugo Brady, Peter Edge, National Youth Choir (18-25 Years), Sinfonia Smith Square, Nicholas Chalmers; Smith Square Hall
Reviewed 17 April 2025

Vigour, flexibility and power with a lovely sense of impulse as the young singers of the National Youth Choir come together with the young emerging musicians of Sinfonia Smith Square in Mozart's late masterpiece

As part of its Easter Festival at Smith Square Hall, Sinfonia Smith Square came together with the National Youth Choir (18-25 Years) under the choir's principal conductor Nicholas Chalmers on Thursday 17 April 2025 for a programme centred on Mozart's Requiem with soloists Hannah Dienes-Williams, Bethany Horak-Hallett, Hugo Brady and Peter Edge. The first half of the concert featured Mozart's Symphony No. 35 'Haffner' and motets by Mozart, Bruckner and Rheinberger, with the choral items intriguingly interleaved between the symphony's movements.

This was a programme about youth, the choral singers were all in the 18 to 25 age bracket, the orchestral players are all emerging musicians hardly older than that whilst the four soloists are all rising stars. Sinfonia Smith Square brings together annually 34 young musicians in a programme aimed at bridging the gap between college and full time professional career. The programme aims to give the players real life problems, and the evening's programme was not just a musical challenge, but had been put together in a remarkably short time (a skill that orchestral musicians must learn). Whilst Chalmers and the youth choir had, until a couple of days ago, been on tour in South Africa.

A choral equivalent of John Adams' Short Ride in a Fast Machine? Bernard Hughes' Hear My Heart Sing to be performed by the National Youth Choir

The National Youth Choir (15-18 years), conductor Neil Ferris, is presenting Heart and Soul, a programme exploring themes of life, friendship, courage and love through the voices of different composers from a mix of cultures, places and eras on Good Friday (18 April 2025) at Albert Hall Conference Centre in Nottingham. As part of a diverse programme that includes Laura Mvula, Brahms, Parry and Stevie Wonder, the choir will be performing Bernard Hughes' Hear My Heart Sing about the the biology and imagery of the heart.

For a new piece of unaccompanied choral music, Hughes' piece has something of a history. He wrote it in 2024 for the Bath choir Lucis who workshopped the piece and then premiered in July 2024 conducted by Francis Faux. In a nice piece of circularity the commission was supported by a grant from the Francis Routh Trust and Bernard Hughes studied composition with Francis Routh as a teenager.

Last week, Hear My Heart Sing had its London premiere at a concert given by the choir Londinium, conductor Andrew Griffiths. The good news is that Hughes has made a recording of the piece with the Epiphoni Consort and you can hear the recording on YouTube, and there are plans for a sampler of Hughes' music.

Hear My Heart Sing sets words by writer Helen Eastman with whom Bernard Hughes has collaborated a lot. The piece combines ideas of the joy of singing with the rhythms and imagery of the human heart. It is part of Hughes project to write more fast music! Hughes' fast music includes Birdchant which was written for the BBC Singers at the BBC Proms in 2021 [see YouTube]

He explains, "I think there is a dearth of really good fast choral music these days, amid all the Whitacre and Lauridsen meditative stuff - which I like, which has its place, but I think dominates a bit." These thoughts were generated by a passing comment by the conductor Robert Hollingworth on the excellent podcast Choral Chihuahua, in an episode about fast choral music, when he asked rhetorically why there had never been a choral equivalent of John Adams' Short Ride in a Fast Machine.

The result was Hear My Heart Sing, a piece that is fast, punchy, rhythmic, a bravura showpiece that could begin or end concerts. The work is available from Wild Woods Music, full details of the National Youth Choir's concert from their website.

A pathway for the next generation of young voices: BBC Singers and National Youth Choir announce three-year partnership

BBC Singers and National Youth Voices with Nicholas Chalmers
at the BBC Singers' Centenary Concert, October 2024

The BBC Singers and the National Youth Choir have announced a three-year partnership between the two organisations to open the pathway for the next generation of young voices. The partnership will centre on the collective ambition for young singers to gain invaluable experience of performing and recording together, focusing on education initiatives to provide opportunities for students from across the country to experience the joy of singing. It will encompass work involving National Youth Choir’s oldest singers, aged 18-25; its chamber ensemble, National Youth Voices; and its professional development scheme for singers, conductors and composers; the Emerging Professional Artists programme.

The two groups shared the stage at the BBC Proms earlier this year performing Beethoven's Symphony No. 9 from memory with Aurora Orchestra, and the National Youth Choir joined the BBC Singers at their centenary concert at the Barbican on 2 October 2024, where they performed Numbers by former National Youth Choir Young Composer Shruthi Rajasekar, led by Nicholas Chalmers, who is principal conductor of the National Youth Choir’s flagship ensemble, National Youth Choir (18-25 Years), and associate conductor, learning at the BBC Singers.

All change at the National Youth Choir as they bid farewell to three principal conductors

Greg Beardsell and National Youth Choir [Photo: Belinda Lawley]

It is all change at the National Youth Choir as three principal conductors reach the end of their five-year contracts and will be finishing in their current roles at the end of September. The three are Greg Beardsell, principal conductor of the National Youth Choir (15-18 Years) - formerly the National Youth Training Choir, Joanna Tomlinson, principal conductor of National Youth Choir (9-15 Years) - formerly the National Youth Girls’ Choir and Lucy Joy Morris, principal conductor of National Youth Choir (9-15 Years) - formerly the National Youth Boys’ Choir.

Greg Beardsall's association with the National Youth Choir goes back 30 years as he was a choir member and then section leader in the late 90s, more recently roles have also included associate director and deputy artistic director. Highlights from his time include leading the International Youth Choir Festival in 2017, working with beatboxer SK Shlomo to create She Lost My Crossed Heart, supporting the development of five new commissions by graduate Young Composers and creating the staged performance of Eric Whitacre’s Leonardo Dreams of His Flying Machines at the National Youth Choir’s 40th anniversary concert in 2023. Greg Beardsall was also instrumental in developing early engagement work, including partnerships in Nottinghamshire, Cornwall and Cumbria.

Joanna Tomlinson & National Youth Choir [Photo: Sara Platt]

During her five years as principal conductor, Joanna Tomlinson premiered three new commissions including A Short Story of Falling by Joanna Marsh, which was nominated for an Ivor Novello award. She has also worked with our older participants, including preparing the National Youth Choir (18-25 Years) for the BBC Proms in 2022, and conducting the National Youth Chamber Choir. 

Highlights of Lucy Joy Morris' time with the choir include premiering the new commission I Am. We Are. by Oliver Tarney, and Just Being ME by Ben Parry (alongside Joanna Tomlinson). She has conducted the National Youth Choir (18-25 Years) for Carols at the Royal Albert Hall, and the National Youth Chamber Choir at the New Music Biennial festival. 

Full details from the National Youth Choir website.