Having studied the St John Passion, Bach’s great choral work from 1724, Christopher Northam turned up to Monmouth Choral Society’s performance at St Mary’s Priory Church, Monmouth, on Saturday (March 18) with a certain trepidation.

“The challenges to a successful performance are great”, he said. “The writing is sometimes surprisingly unpredictable and unsettling in its illustration of the Passion according to St John, and it’s in German. Mention here should be made of the very thorough and well-planned programme, which included a good translated synopsis. The choir need to vocally “act” the crowd or mob and also interact with the story-teller (the Evangelist, excellently sung and portrayed here by Michael Gormley). Then, at various moments in the narrative, they must beautifully sing the moving Chorals that are Bach’s settings of Lutheran hymns. These were all managed with characterful and alert portrayals. There were moments of real beauty from the perfectly balanced and nuanced Regency Sinfonia, including stand-out performances from the woodwind players and solo cellist. The slightly murky acoustic meant some of the middle and lower registers of the orchestra and singers were occasionally lost, but this is a solitary quibble to what was a marvellously involving and uplifting experience. Particularly beautiful was the penultimate chorus, Ruht wohl (Rest well), as the drama reaches its close. It’s a story ending that everyone knows but this was moving in the extreme. My initial worries about the evening were totally unfounded.

“Soloists Melissa Davies, Daniel Robson (a very characterful Pilate), Deryck Webb, James Geist and the attractively crystal-clear soprano voice of Emily Wenman, all contributed in their roles with inspired performances of what were sometimes technically very difficult parts. At the head of the performance, Steven Kings seemed calmness personified, a good trick if you know how! A couple of “rescue jobs” here and there, were quickly rectified and the choir were encouraged as opposed to being brow-beaten. Everyone gave of their best and the enjoyment and connection with the subject matter came across to the large and very enthusiastic audience. In these days of music cuts (the BBC Singers as an example) we need to treasure our choirs and support groups like Monmouth Choral Society. This is an important part of our heritage, so if you read this review and were unable to attend the concert, come to the next one or think about participating as a member.”

Look on the society’s website for details: www.monmouthchoralsociety.co.uk

Christopher Northam