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More than 350 music lovers attended a major spring classical concert at Worcester Cathedral on Saturday 25th March, to enjoy one of the world's best-loved orchestral dance suites and an exquisitely moving choral requiem sung by 150 voices.  

Worcester Festival Choral Society performed Johannes Brahms's passionate Ein Deutsches Requiem (A German Requiem) at the concert, which was conducted by Worcester Cathedral’s Director of Music, Dr Peter Nardone. The well-known work, which was thought to have been inspired by the death of Brahms’s mother, has been described as the most comforting requiem ever written. Appearing as the Requiem’s soloists were internationally acclaimed soprano Helen Neeves, and baritone Andrew Davies.

The concert also featured a feast of orchestral folk dances that really got the audience's feet tapping. The eight, lively Slavonic Dances (Op.46) by Czech composer Antonin Dvořák were performed by the 40-strong Meridian Sinfonia orchestra and are among the composer’s most popular works.

Ben Cooper, Chairman of Worcester Festival Choral Society, said: “People often ask why I sing, and the answer is Brahms’s Ein Deutsches Requiem - it’s so full of colour, emotion, and passion. And the Slavonic Dances are a real treat for any music lover. It was truly thrilling to perform them to a packed Cathedral!”