Concert 30 July 2023

Review: BCS, Hastings and 4 German choirs at De La Warr Pavilion, Bexhill-on-Sea

Elijah! The Whole Story

Whether or not you believe in the authenticity of the Old Testament, the story of the prophet Elijah is vivid and bloodthirsty. Mendelssohn’s Elijah! oratorio incorporates various parts of the prophet’s story, told in tableaux with a cast including Obadiah (another prophet), baddies Queen Jezebel and King Ahab, various angels and a running narrative by a huge chorus. It’s a gloriously dramatic work of power and genius, and hearing it sung so very well in the De La Warr, with its very particular acoustic, brought goosepimples to my flesh and tears to my eyes. 

This last concert of the season (a new season starts in one month, as Marcio Da Silva announced) was a tour de force that brought together a 40-strong Philharmonic Orchestra and a 200-strong choral  section: the Hastings Philharmonic Choir, the Billingshurst Choral Society, and four guest choirs from Germany, with three guest conductors and a choral director. All were in full splendid voice. The drama and dynamics of the score, the excellence of the De La Warr acoustics and above all the soaring voices were a sound to cherish. Something about the lush Romantic harmonies, complex voicings, and redeeming narrative of Mendelssohn’s finest achievement will appeal to most audiences, and this particular performance of it must surely be up there with the best. 

It was a unique collection of talent by any standards, all the more so because it is concentrated in this area. Marcio Da Silva and his partner Helen May are a combined musical force well-known to residents of Hastings and St. Leonards. Da Silva directs both orchestra and choir, conducts, and sings. Helen May has a magnificent, flexible, expressive soprano voice, and is also general manager and outreach co-ordinator for the Hastings Philharmonic. Anthony Flaum, the tenor, also lives locally, has founded Prologue Opera and is also associate producer of Barefoot Opera.

The evening was carefully choreographed to allow each conductor a section of the whole, but also to sing along with the choir on stage when they were not conducting, an endearing feature of Hastings Philharmonic concerts. The soloists sang from various different positions on and off stage, depending on which character they were voicing. One of the highlights of the evening was the nine-year-old boy treble, Antônio Ulucan da Silva, (continuing the family tradition!) with a glorious, breathtaking, needle-sharp purity of tone. In evidence throughout were the sheer joy of the choirs and orchestra and the enthusiasm and skill of all the conductors and choir leaders. A mighty accomplishment.

VERA BELL at the triumphant finale of the Hastings Philharmonic 2023 season from the Hastings Independent