16th March 1997
Two More Anniversaries
We could not let Brahms's centenary pass. Particularly since April 3rd was also the first anniversary of the death of the conductor’s father. That coincidence led to us turning up in Hackney Town Hall on the evening of March 16th to perform Brahms's German Requiem in English. The choice of the rest of the programme almost made itself. "I know that My Redeemer Liveth" had been included in one of the early performances when Brahms bowed to his critics who felt that he had not put enough Christianity into the Requiem. All the proceeds were given to St Joseph's Hospice, Hackney. One evening during the previous Proms Season, while recruiting in the Albert Hall Arena before a Prom, the conductor found someone who regretted that he couldn't help because he was a member of a professional chorus (it turned out that he had thought we were a conventional group that rehearsed in the evenings). After being offered the Baritone solo in the Brahms and accepting it, Tony suggested that we would never believe his name.