BBC Симфония хоры: тарихы мен жетістіктері

The BBC Symphony Chorus is a British amateur chorus based in London. It is the dedicated chorus for the BBC Symphony Orchestra, though it performs with other national and international orchestras.

In its early years, the BBC worked on developing its choral output, founding the BBC Wireless Chorus, a professional chamber choir of 16, to supply the smaller scale needs. For bigger choral works, the BBC turned to outside organisations, which performed either under their own name, or under the title of "The National Chorus". Participating choruses included the Civil Service Choir, the Lloyds Choir, and the Railway Clearing House Male Voice Choir, which would perform en masse together with the Wireless Chorus. Holst's choral ballet The Morning of the Year has the distinction of having been the first piece of music to be commissioned by the music department of the newly formed British Broadcasting Corporation. Its first performance was as part of a concert given at the Royal Albert Hall by the National Chorus and Orchestra, which was broadcast live, on the evening of 17 March 1927.

After the war, activities began again in earnest. Yuri Shaporin's On the Field of Kulikovo was another of the Russian works undertaken by the chorus in this period, on 7 November 1945, conducted by Albert Coates. To mark the 21st birthday of the BBC Choral Society in 1949, several special events took place, among them the first performance in London of a work by Leslie Woodgate, his oratorio Simon Peter. The following year, Adrian Boult, who had conducted many of the performances in the 1930s and 1940s as the BBC's Director of Music and Chief Conductor, reached retiring age and was not asked to remain with the corporation. In 1950 the post of Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra was given to Malcolm Sargent, and there began an era in which the performance of the great choral works became a particular feature of BBC concerts. Sargent was especially devoted to choral music. His special skills with singers were well described by Bernard Shore (the former principal viola of the BBC Symphony Orchestra) in his book The Orchestra Speaks: 'He is able to instil into the singers a life and efficiency they never dreamed of. You have only to see the eyes of a choral society screwing into him like hundreds of gimlets, to understand what he means to them. He is hypnotic with the choir – he plays upon the imagination and minds of the singers like a mesmerist.' Under Sargent the emphasis in the Society's repertoire shifted from adventurous new continental works to the 20th century compositions of British composers: Herbert Howells's Hymnus Paradisi, Vaughan Williams's Sea Symphony, Delius's Sea Drift, Ireland's These things shall be, along with the classics of the choral repertory such as Haydn's Creation, Beethoven's Ninth and the Missa Solemnis, Handel's Messiah. Premieres were fewer than before: significant works included Golgotha by Frank Martin and Hodie by Vaughan Williams. Important events included the ceremonial opening of the new Royal Festival Hall in 1951 (with a concert of English music by Thomas Arne, Handel and Hubert Parry) and a memorial concert for King George VI (Messiah with the Royal Choral Society). While Leslie Woodgate continued to be Chorus Master of the BBC Choral Society, Sargent was succeeded as Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra by Rudolf Schwarz. This took place in 1957; Sargent continued to conduct the Society on many occasions (particularly at the Proms), but a change in direction was immediately apparent with the inclusion in programmes of such new works as The Bermudas by lain Hamilton (on 30 October 1957) and such (then) rare works as Monteverdi's Vespers of 1610 (on 20 October 1958). Schwarz also conducted Ulysses by Matyas Seiber for two concerts in December 1957. In 1958 the BBC Choral Society under Leslie Woodgate travelled to Aachen, where they gave an a cappella concert including Britten's Hymn to St Cecilia, and then went on to the Herkulesaal in Munich, where Handel's Messiah was performed. In what he described as 'an act of faith', Glock promoted in 1967 the first performance in England of the St Luke Passion by the Polish composer Krzysztof Penderecki – a modern re working of the traditional large scale Passion setting which made exceptional demands on the choir. The occasion was a great success, and was repeated in the Proms on 2 August 1967. A typical example of the extraordinary demands made on the chorus during the Proms each year was the succession of works performed during that season: in addition to the Penderecki, Mahler's Second Symphony, Walton's Belshazzar's Feast, Liszt's Faust Symphony, Berlioz's Grande Messe des Morts, Delius's Appalachia, Vaughan Williams's Serenade to Music, Schubert's E flat Mass and Beethoven's Ninth were all sung. Under Antal Dorati, Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra from 1963 to 1967, the BBC Choral Society sang Mahler, a great deal of Stravinsky, some Britten, and much Beethoven. When Colin Davis took over in 1967, a new group of composers came to the fore: Berlioz, Liszt (the Dante Symphony as well as the Faust Symphony), and Michael Tippett. This last connection brought the BBC Choral Society its opportunity to make its first recording for a commercial company in recent years (though Mendelssohn's Elijah had been recorded as long ago as 1930): Tippett's oratorio A Child of Our Time was recorded under Davis's direction for Philips Classics Records. There followed a succession of major contemporary works: Voices of Night by Franz Reizenstein in 1969; La Transfiguration de Notre Seigneur Jésus Christ by Messiaen at the first night of the Proms in 1970; and the Requiem by Gyorgy Ligeti in 1971. in recognition of its status as a choir appearing in professional concerts under leading conductors, "with a repertory second to none". It made its first appearance under that name in the Sea Symphony by Ralph Vaughan Williams on 12 October 1977. In September and October 1978 the Chorus travelled to the Festival of Flanders, appearing under the baton of the new Chief Conductor of the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Gennady Rozhdestvensky, as well as that of their Chorus Master Brian Wright. They sang the Mass in F minor and motets by Bruckner. Works performed later that same season in 1979 included Thea Musgrave's Five Ages of Man, Michael Tippett's Vision of St Augustine, as well as performances in the Royal Albert Hall of the B Minor Mass on 10 January 1979, conducted by Brian Wright, to mark the 50th Anniversary of the Chorus and Elgar's The Music Makers on 8 April 1979 to mark the 90th birthday of Sir Adrian Boult. From 1984 to 1988 the director of the BBC Symphony Chorus was Gareth Morrell, who served in that capacity for a wide range of concert and recording projects with conductors such as Sir Colin Davis, Claudio Abbado, Lorin Maazel and Christoph von Dohnányi. With Seiji Ozawa he collaborated in performances of Olivier Messiaen's opera St Francis of Assisi in London and Berlin, and with Andrew Davis in performances of Sir Michael Tippett's Mask of Time, the recording of which has been critically acclaimed.

The Chorus took part in numerous Blue Peter Christmas shows and between 1983 and 2010. The grand finale of the traditional Blue Peter Christmas programme comprised the Chalk Farm Salvation Army Band and children from various schools, assisted by members of the BBC Symphony Chorus, marching "up the hill" and into the studio from the cold outside (lanterns in hand!) singing a Christmas carol around the Blue Peter Christmas tree. Two carols, "Hark! the Herald Angels Sing" and "O Come, All Ye Faithful", were sung in alternate years, except in 1998 when there was a one off experiment with "O Little Town of Bethlehem". However, for the 2007 Christmas programme, leaving budgetary and studio constraints unspoken, Blue Peter decided on a change to the Christmas show format to host a party recognising the hard work and effort of young carers, relating to a recent Appeal. This event replaced the carol, and the Chorus was not required. In 2010 the closing carol was reinstated, featuring for one final time the Chalk Farm Salvation Army Band and members of the BBC Symphony Chorus, the last Christmas show before the programme moved to MediaCityUK. The Chorus featured occasionally in other editions of Blue Peter, notably in the programme on Monday 12 March 1984 (edition 1888). To publicise a concert at St Luke's Church, Chelsea, for The Knightsbridge Fund in aid of the victims of the Harrods bombing, Blue Peter invited the Chorus to the studio to sing the hymn "All people that on earth do dwell" (Old Hundredth) conducted by Brian Wright, accompanied by the Chalk Farm Salvation Army Band, who had been playing outside Harrods. Janet Ellis became a Blue Peter presenter in 1983. She was asked to audition with Chorus master Gareth Morrell and sing with the Chorus at the Last Night of the Proms on 14 September 1985. Zöe Salmon was unwrapped from a giant present under the tree as a new presenter in the Christmas 2004 edition of Blue Peter. Shortly after her debut, she famously said "I’ll try anything once", which started a trend in her being asked to do dangerous or embarrassing things. Among consequent challenges, a generation on from Janet Ellis she was asked to learn how to sing, to audition with Chorus director Stephen Jackson, to attend piano and orchestral rehearsals in Maida Vale Studios and to sing with the Chorus in the Last Night of the Proms on 10 September 2005.

In 2002 the Chorus performed at Buckingham Palace, as part of the Prom at the Palace which marked the Queen's Golden Jubilee celebrations. The BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, under the baton of Sir Andrew Davis, formed the backbone of the concert, on 1 June 2002. The concert was broadcast live on BBC One television and BBC Radio 3, and released a month later on audio CD (EMI/Virgin Records) and DVD (BBC/Opus Arte). The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh returned the favour by attending a special BBC Proms concert celebrating the 50th Anniversary of Her Majesty's Coronation on 30 July 2003. Sir Andrew Davis conducted the BBC Symphony Orchestra and five massed choirs, including the BBC Symphony Chorus. Sofi Jeannin, future Chief Conductor of the BBC Singers, happened to be a member of the BBC Symphony Chorus at that time.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of the original Monty Python television programme, the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus conducted by John du Prez appeared alongside Eric Idle, Michael Palin, Terry Jones and Terry Gilliam in a remount of Not the Messiah (He's a Very Naughty Boy) at the Royal Albert Hall on 23 October 2009. It was produced by Geoff Foulkes and directed by Aubrey Powell. It was recorded for release for one night only on 25 March 2010 at digital cinemas across the UK and Ireland and distribution on DVD, and BBC Radio 3 also broadcast a recording of this performance on New Year's Day 2010.

The Chorus has performed Elgar’s oratorio, The Dream of Gerontius, Op. 38, many times since it first performed it at the Queen's Hall, London, on 18 May 1931, conducted by Stanford Robinson. A performance of the oratorio was given in the sixth century St Irene's Church as part of the 1997 Istanbul International Music Festival. Leonard Slatkin conducted the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, with mezzo soprano Jean Rigby, tenor John Aler and baritone Alan Opie. A special performance of the oratorio was given from St Paul's Cathedral on 26 November 1997 to mark the 75th anniversary of the BBC. Andrew Davis conducted the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, with mezzo soprano Catherine Wyn Rogers, tenor Philip Langridge and bass Alastair Miles. The concert was broadcast live on BBC Two television and BBC Radio 3, and later released on VHS video (NVC Arts), whereupon it was heralded as "the most convincing modern interpretation of Gerontius", and DVD (Warner Music Vision). The Penguin Guide to Recorded Classical Music, 2008, gave its maximum four star rating to this DVD recording of The Dream of Gerontius, rating it as "the finest recorded Gerontius ever". On 6 April 2014, another performance was given at the Barbican by Sir Andrew Davis conducting the BBC Symphony Orchestra and Chorus, with mezzo soprano Sarah Connolly, tenor Stuart Skelton and bass David Soar, following a recording of the work for Chandos Records. The recording was the winner, choral category, in both the BBC Music Magazine Awards 2015, and the Gramophone Classical Music Awards 2015.

Although normally associated with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, the Chorus does perform independently. Venues regularly visited include the Barbican Centre and the Royal Albert Hall. As the resident chorus at the BBC Proms, the Symphony Chorus usually performs both on the first and last night. It makes regular recordings for classical music station BBC Radio 3. New works play a vital part in the life of the Chorus. Premieres and commissions in recent years have included works by Peter Maxwell Davies, Dame Judith Weir, John Tavener, Hugh Wood

Under Davis, the Chorus has performed the major choral works of Elgar; the symphonies of Mahler; Berlioz's The Damnation of Faust and Romeo and Juliet; Walton's Belshazzar's Feast; Delius's A Song of the High Hills; and Tippett's The Mask of Time as well as The Vision of Saint Augustine, A Child of Our Time and The Midsummer Marriage. Grace Rossiter was appointed as Deputy Chorus Director. The appointment of Helen MacLeod in the new position of Choruses Manager of the BBC Symphony Chorus and the BBC Proms Youth Choir was announced at the same time. Neil Ferris made his BBC Proms conducting debut in August 2019, celebrating the 90th anniversary season of the BBC Symphony Chorus with the premiere of Jonathan Dove’s specially commissioned piece We Are One Fire. The final concert before the halting of the season owing to the COVID 19 pandemic in London was Beethoven's Missa Solemnis (4 March 2020), marking 250 years since the year of Beethoven's birth. In the last review of a BBC Symphony Chorus concert before the lockdown, Paul Driver said in the Sunday Times, "One was lost in admiration for the BBC Symphony Chorus, trained by Neil Ferris, in the BBC Symphony Orchestra’s account of the magnum opus at the Barbican, conducted by Donald Runnicles."