Wimbledon Choral by Various, De la (2022/2022), Dirijor Neil Ferris, Cadogan Hall, London, United Kingdom

This is the first of Wimbledon Choral’s triptych of Passions. In this series of three concerts, the choir explores a number of different ways the story of the final days of Jesus Christ on earth are told in music. Alison Willis’ dramatic interpretation of the passion story, told through the words of the 17th-century poet Emilia Lanier, is interwoven with Hymns from Bob Chilcott’s St John Passion. The choir is delighted that Howard Goodall accepted its invitation to conduct Unconditional Love, his cantata of gratitude and remembrance, written in 2021 with the Covid pandemic very much in mind. Wimbledon Choral is over 100 years old. Today it is a modern, dynamic group of singers continuing its reputation as one of the finest amateur symphonic choirs in Southeast England.