Our first Oratorio Concert on Saturday evening was a wonderful success, with over 150 people in attendance. The night opened with an introduction by Fr Scot Armstrong, the concert was to be a guided tour through the development of western music out of psalmody; through plainchant, organum, polyphony, and its outgrowth into instrumental music, and finishing with some congregational singing of hymns by Cardinal Newman. Before each musical piece, Fr Scot briefly explained the history of the piece, and how it developed from what was done previously. Many of the pieces were performed by the Brisbane Oratory Mixed Choir and Schola, and others by members of our parish.
For those of you who missed this one, there will be another coming up later this year, so make sure to keep your eyes peeled for the event. But we do have a highlight that has been placed on Youtube for your viewing, as Fr Andrew Wise was able to record Mozart’s Laudate Dominum. The link to the video as well as some photos are below for your viewing pleasure.
There are many people who helped make the night a success, especially the performers who put in their time and effort in preparing the pieces that they delighted us with, and to them, we say a big thank you! The performers were volunteers, and as such, admission was completely free of charge. The idea behind the Oratorio comes from St Philip himself, who sought to give all people access to beautiful music which has the ability to raise our hearts and minds to God.
A short clip from our first Oratorio Concert, which was a guided tour through the development of western music. This piece is Mozart’s Laudate Dominum. Sarah Adeney on soprano solo, Warwick Adeney on first violin, Fr Scot Armstrong on second violin, Matthew Ventura on bassoon, Esther Adeney on cello, Eleanor Adeney on soprano, Michelle Adeney on alto, Luke Adeney and Xavier Piat on tenor and Ronan Reilly on bass.
Recorded on an iPhone.