An exquisite evening with international opera star Sir Willard White performing popular folksongs showtunes, Frank Sinatra and cabaret songs alongside a celebrated string orchestra and a sprinkling of surprises!. Sir Willard is as dazzling when performing standards from the songbooks as he is on the stages of the world’s great Opera houses.
In this unmissable project, leading soloists & Sir Willard White pay tribute to the relationship between a classical great and his love of violin and song before turning to the songs of Frank Sinatra and strings which resulted in the epoch-defining 1957 album Close to You. Songs include Deep River, Blow Gabriel, Summertime, and My Way.
Artists
Jamaican-born bass Sir Willard White is one of the great all-round musical entertainers of our era, as dazzling when performing Songbook standards as he is on the stages of the world’s great opera houses. Sir Willard is a regular at the great opera houses around the world from the Royal Opera House to the Metropolitan New York. He has made countless recordings which are the pick of all interpretations including winning several Grammy’s.
Harriet Mackenzie “A knock out from start to finish” The Guardian is an internationally renowned concerto soloist performingacross five continents. Her recordings include concertos with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and other major projects, have without exception received critical acclaim, including Five Stars in The Times and frequently appear in the ‘Top Recordings of The Year’ charts. She directs her handpicked orchestra the Celoniatus Ensemble.
Programme
St Paul’s Suite – Holst
The Ash Grove (trad)
Foggy Dew (trad)
Shaker Melody - Aaron Copland
Long Time Ago - Aaron Copland
A River so Deep - Harriet Mackenzie
Go down Moses - (trad)
Deep River (trad)
Interval
Appalachian Waltz - Copland
Hoedown – Copland
Summertime, I got Plenty of Nuttin' from Porgy and Bess - George Gershwin, (arr. Paul Cassidy)
Blow Gabriel Blow - Cole Porter (arr. Paul Cassidy)
Close to You - Carl Lampl, Al Hoffman and Jerry Livingston (arr. Paul Cassidy)
They Didn't Believe Me - Jerome Kern, Herbert Reynolds (arr. Paul Cassidy)
My Way - Sinatra
Music in Action
The charity Music in Action is at the forefront of outreach projects in Jersey. In 2024 over 5000 children and care home residents have taken part in the Music in Action outreach programme.