The Voice Project to Perform New Work in Norfolk

The latest new choral work from Norfolk's internationally renowned Voice Project Choir will make imaginative use of Norwich's medieval Friary complex St Andrew's Hall to mark the turning of the year. The atmospherically beautiful choral music will explore themes of dark and light, hibernation and awakening, and take us from the dark of winter to the promise of spring, from dark of the night sky to luminous sunrise.

Titled Red Shift, the performances will be on Saturday 23 January at 6pm and 8pm.

The Voice Project Choir creates innovative performances that bring together the massed voices of a completely open access choir and exceptional professional performers. Amongst others Red Shift features outstanding flautist Rowland Sutherland who has played as featured soloist with ensembles ranging from the BBC Concert Orchestra to the bands of George Benson and pop singer Joss Stone.

Music for the concert will be specially written for the 150+ voices of choir by Helen Chadwick, Orlando Gough, Karen Wimhurst and its co-director Jonathan Baker, with setting of words by Coleridge ,Tennyson and St Julian of Norwich as well as acclaimed contemporary poet George Szirtes to create a truly unique experience.

Voice Project co-director Sian Croose said 'We are really looking forward to creating a piece for St Andrew's Hall , which is the venue where The Voice Project started its life with our very first performance which was with Barbara Thompson. The choir is sounding great and we are planning to create an experience for the audience that is truly inspiring and uplifting'.

Previous Voice Project works have included collaborations with the likes of Jon Hassel, Gwilym Simcock, Arve Henriksen, Dennis Rollins, Nik Ba?rtsch and many other influential figures of contemporary music and jazz.

Winners of the People's Choice Award at the 2013 and 2014 Norfolk Arts Awards, the choir has a history of creating pieces that celebrate iconic Norfolk landmarks. Recent projects have included site-specific events at Norwich Cathedral, City Hall, The Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts and Holkham Hall. Created by singers and musicians Sian Croose and Jonathan Baker in 2008, the choir is now one of the best known in the East of England and beyond following appearances at international jazz festivals in London, and Europe, on British national TV and radio and French peak time national TV.

St Andrews Hall is the centrepiece of 'The Halls', a complex of several magnificent flint buildings that form the most complete friary complex surviving in England that date back to the 13th Century. In the intervening years, as well as for worship it has been used as a mint, a school and for over 100 years as a workhouse.

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