Recital with carillon

Leiden City Hall Square

Tuesday, 2^nd September, 18:00

On Tuesday, 2^nd September, at 18:00, Emma will give a recital from the square outside the Leiden City Hall. This concert has an unusual twist, for she will be accompanied by the carillon (city bells) in the clock tower, played by carillonneurs Levina Pors and Henk Veldman. The local press has advertised this event thus: “Mezzo-soprano takes on City Hall carillon.”

The City Hall carillon is no small opponent. It has 49 bells, the heaviest weighing 5,500 kg. It can be heard across the whole city, chiming a different tune every quarter hour during the day. It is a much-loved icon of the city of Leiden.

Emma’s recital is the first time the carillon that will be used to accompany a singer in a solo recital. This is a high-profile public experiment to show the possibility of using the carillon as an accompanying instrument. The repertoire is therefore broad, including Bach, Handel, Hahn, Grieg, and some musical theatre.

The concert is organised by the Leids Carillon Genootschap together with the city council.

On Thursday, 12^th June, Emma gave her final presentation for her Master’s course at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague. This was a full-length concert of her church-music compositions spanning the liturgical year from Advent to Trinity.

Emma worked together with the Pancras Consort, with conductor Hans Brons, organist Geerten van de Wetering, and trumpeter Leonard Evers. She sang three songs herself with pianist Isolde Troost.

The concert took place in the Hooglandse Kerk in Leiden. The church was filled with visitors, not just from Holland the the UK, but also from Germany, Belgium, and France. The Mayor of Leiden was also present.

It was a very special event. The concert took the form of a journey through the liturgical year, so the changing seasons of the church year were experienced in one evening. There were vibrant pieces with flamboyant organ accompaniment, intimate, a capella compositions, and a surprise trumpet solo. All in all the evening included eight premières: two songs and six choral pieces.

As well as the final presentation, Emma submitted a portfolio of compositions to the conservatoire, a thesis entitled “Music and Religious Experience: Developing a Theological Approach to Composition,” and was examined in several subjects. She was delighted to have been awarded a 9 (excellent) for her Master of Music.

For more information, click here.

On Thursday, 12th June 2014, Emma will have her first solo composition concert. The evening will showcase her church music, moving through the liturgical year from Advent to Trinity. Several pieces will be premièred, including her playful settings of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis.

For this concert, she is delighted to be working with the Pancras Consort, a super amateur choir based in Leiden. They will be conducted by Hans Brons, and joined by organist Geerten van de Wetering from the Kloosterkerk in Den Hague, the church of former Queen Beatrix, pianist Isolde Troost, and trumpeter Leonard Evers. Emma will sing herself, performing three Songs of Eden.

The concert will take place in the beautiful Hooglandse Kerk, a cathedral-sized church in central Leiden, with a seven second echo.

This promises to be a special evening indeed, since it marks the culmination of Emma Brown’s Master’s course at the Royal Conservatoire in The Hague.

For more information, click here.