PERSHORE CHORAL SOCIETY has not featured often in this column so it was particularly good to be able to hear them at first hand last May. An all English programme included two Finzi pieces, God is gone up and Lo, the full final sacrifice, the work commissioned by that remarkable cleric Walter Hussey, vicar of St Matthew’s Northampton, in 1946. Both find the composer in reflective mood and, under the direction of Andrew Wilson, the choir showed themselves to be sensitive and assured interpreters.

Elgar’s From the Bavarian Highlands followed God is gone up and in the rumbustious numbers especially the choir were rhythmically alert and tonally well balanced. Of particular interest in the concert were Four Songs of Ivor Gurney, two of which had been orchestrated by Gurney’s friend, Herbert Howells. To make a set of four Ian Venables had orchestrated ‘Severn Meadows’ and ‘Even such is Time’ – a formidable task considering his orchestrations were to sit beside those of Howells. They worked really well, and aided by the sensitive singing of William Clements, came over strongly and reflected Gurney’s passionate longing for his homeland of Gloucestershire. The orchestra was at times a little too dominant but we had the words in the programme and could compensate.

Finally we had Stanford’s stirring Songs of the Fleet, full of imaginative orchestration and vivid painting of seascapes. Soloist, choir and orchestra gave everything and ensured that the concert ended with a rousing finale. This was a splendid occasion all round – the sopranos in the choir deserve particular praise for their clean line and unforced tone – and the buzz in the full Abbey both before the concert and during the interval was testimony to a society which clearly knows how to maintain a thriving local choral tradition.

PERSHORE CHORAL - the new name adopted by Pershore Choral Society - paired Haydn's Nelson Mass with Faure's Requiem in their Autumn 2004 Concert, and it proved to be a very popular and spirited occasion. A packed Abbey - all the best seats in the nave were taken by ten past seven! - was a good start and must have encouraged a choir of about a hundred, seated on well raked staging with excellent view of the conductor, to give of their best. Andrew Wilson set very brisk tempi in the Haydn, and if there were times when one wished for a little more relaxation, there is no doubt that it gave numbers like Et Resurrexit especially an almost reckless verve. Soprano soloist Katharine Fuge relished her soaring roulades and in the Faure's Requiem she excelled in the famous Pie Jesu.

I don't remember hearing John Rutter's edition of the 1893 version before with its unusual use of flugel horns, but it went well and it was an interesting experience to hear this version so well played by the small but expert orchestra. The choir carried its good form from the Haydn into the Fauré with some well-balanced and sympathetic singing. Verdi's Requiem is the society's next challenge and Verdi's explosive outbursts are sure to resonate impressively in the generous acoustic of the Abbey.