Patrons: Monty Don OBE, Sir Donald Insall CBE, Kim Wilkie Alexander Pope Anniversary Concert St Mary’s Church Twickenham, 7th February 2019 An evening of music to celebrate the 300th anniversary of Alexander Pope’s arrival in Twickenham, held in the Church of St Mary the Virgin where Pope’s final resting place is marked by a plain stone in the aisle ‘A Prospect of Twickenham’, c. 1725, Peter Tillemans, reproduced by kind permission of the Richmond Borough Art Collection, Orleans House Gallery. Pope’s Villa is prominent to the left of centre. Alexander Pope Anniversary Concert Alexander Pope’s arrival in Twickenham in the spring of 1719 coincided with the growing attraction of the place as a seasonal resort for Londoners. He immediately began building his villa and grotto. This concert is the first of our events to celebrate the tercentenary of his arrival. The first part of the concert consists mostly of works by Pope’s contemporaries and associates and will be performed by the Petersham Consort. After the interval, the choir of Radnor House School, in the grounds of which the grotto lies, will perform works by Purcell, Handel and a contemporary arrangement of one of Pope’s poems. The Petersham Consort The Petersham Consort was formed in 2012 as a group of soloists to specialise in singing one-to-a-part sacred and secular choral music. They perform a wide range of solo and chamber works spanning five centuries. The singers are Katharine von Schubert (soprano), Elizabeth Benedetto (mezzo-soprano), Nick Richmond Smith (tenor) and Martin Johnson (bass), and they are accompanied on the piano by their director Ben Driver. The Consort’s next concert, , is at St Peter's, Petersham, on 24 March (details at concert-diary.com). Radnor House School Choir Radnor House Twickenham is home to three choirs, each of which is represented tonight. The Senior Choir, led by Jesse Pinazza and John MacLean, includes pupils from Year 7 to Year 13, and performs regularly at school events. They were recently heard at Hampton Court Palace providing carolling entertainment at the Festive Fayre. The Junior Choir, led by Emma Jones, includes Junior School pupils from Years 5 and 6 and the Staff Choir, led by Jesse Pinazza, involves keen musicians from across the academic and support staff. Speakers Judith Hawley is Professor of Eighteenth-Century Literature at Royal Holloway, University of London. She has published on a wide range of eighteenth-century topics and can be heard frequently on BBC Radio 4. Jeff Hopkin Williams has been Vicar of Twickenham since 2002. During that time he has sought to enrich the spiritual and extend the cultural life of St Mary’s. His Degrees are in English Literature and Theology, he is also an Associate of L.A.M.D.A. Pope’s Grotto Preservation Trust Pope’s Grotto Preservation Trust is working to raise money to conserve and maintain the Grotto. It promotes interest in and knowledge of the Grotto and its significance in local and national history and organises regular public open days. Programme Introductions by Rev. Jeff Hopkin Williams and Professor Judith Hawley To the hills and the Henry Purcell 1659-1695 vales Chorus from Dido and Aeneas Ode on solitude Joseph Baildon 1727-1774 A poem by Alexander Pope By music Hubert Parry 1848-1918 Baritone solo from Ode to St Cecilia (words thought to be by Alexander Pope) As steals the morn George Frederic Handel 1685-1759 Soprano/tenor duet from L’Allegro Per la gloria Giovanni Battista Bononcini 1672-1750 d’adorarvi Soprano aria from Griselda Where'er you walk George Frederic Handel 1685-1759 Tenor aria from Semele, words by Alexander Pope (from Summer, the Second Pastoral) Arise sweet Thomas Arne 1710-1778 messenger Soprano and alto duet from the Masque of Alfred, arranged by John Parkinson There is a garden John Ireland 1879-1962 in her face Tenor/bass duet words with by Richard Alison 1560-1606 Weep you no more Roger Quilter 1877-1953 Soprano/alto duet. Words anonymous 16th century Ombra mai fù George Frederic Handel 1685-1759 From Serse Happy we! George Frederic Handel 1685-1759 Soprano/tenor. From Acis and Galatea Interval (20 Minutes) When I am laid in Henry Purcell 1659-1695 earth Choral arrangement from Dido and Aeneas Lascia ch’io pianga George Frederic Handel 1685-1759 Choral arrangement from Rinaldo Sound and sense A contemporary setting of Alexander Pope’s poem from “An Essay on Criticism” by Radnor House School’s Composition Workshop group Programme Notes Pope seems to have shown little interest in, or appreciation of, music. It’s possible that he attended public concerts (a relatively new thing at that time) with John Gay or Richard Steele and may have been to Vauxhall Pleasure Gardens where the public could hear instrumental music and operas, but this is speculation. However, he associated with some of the leading musical figures of early 18th century England including Handel, Gay (as librettist) and Bononcini. Fragments of his literary works have been extensively used by composers and some those works will be performed tonight: Joseph Baildon, composer and organist, was a lay clerk at Westminster Abbey and organist at St Luke’s, Old Street. Pope’s poem was written in 1700 when he was twelve years old. The text for Hubert Parry’s is taken from the second stanza of Pope’s , written in 1708. Giovanni Bononcini was a prolific composer of operas and cantatas. He was invited to England in 1719 to become composer to the newly-formed Royal Academy of Music. He lived in Twickenham briefly in 1721. During his time here, Pope promoted his and probably held a concert in his honour in his newly-constructed villa. ( ) is taken from his three act opera which was composed in 1701. George Frideric Handel: “ ”. Thus wrote Pope in expressing his admiration for the German composer. The words of the well-known aria are taken from Pope’s 1709 poem, . The libretto of is by John Gay who may have collaborated with Pope on it. The words for are taken from Pope’s 1711 work, . The stone marking Alexander Pope’s grave in the centre aisle.