Ryedale Festival and the Richard Shephard Music Foundation Present Seven Mercies
A new partnership between Ryedale Festival and the Richard Shephard Music Foundation is involving school children and community groups in a new Song Cycle inspired by the famous murals of Pickering Church. Young award-winning composer Joseph Howard is returning home to Pickering to write a piece of music with children from three local primary schools, including St Joseph’s RC Primary in Pickering where Joseph attended himself.
Seven Mercies, composed by Joseph Howard and written by Emma Harding, will be performed on 21st May at the Church of St Peter and St Paul Pickering. Commissioned by the Ryedale Festival and presented jointly with the Richard Shephard Music Foundation, Seven Mercies will be inspired by, tailored to, and performed by local people, harnessing local talent to unite and celebrate the community after the darkness and uncertainty of recent times. Celebrated mezzo-soprano Kathryn Rudge will perform alongside local groups and has been working with them in the lead-up to the performance.
The cycle is about countering dark times through small acts of kindness and selflessness and takes the form of a journey through hardship and into light. The medieval Seven Acts of Corporal Mercy are a less well-known counterpart to the Seven Deadly Sins: feeding the hungry, giving water to the thirsty, sheltering the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the imprisoned, visiting the sick and burying the dead. The lyrics will explore what these seven acts might mean in a 21st century context and offer a hymn of praise to small, everyday acts of kindness and bravery.
The core of this new work is a song cycle for solo voice and piano, with contributions being made by around 40 children from local primary schools, an adult community-based choir, the church’s bell ringing society and a local brass band. Joseph Howard’s music will be personally tailored to each group, and Emma Harding is holding workshops with everyone involved and incorporating their thoughts and phrases into the song cycle.
Pickering Community Junior School, Gillamoor Primary School and St Joseph’s RC Primary School, three of the Richard Shephard Music Foundation’s partner schools, are taking part and have been taking part in rehearsals and workshops alongside Ryedale Festival Community Choir. The performance of the piece at Pickering Church on Saturday 21st May will be a celebration of local heritage and talent, and is one of two major elements of Ryedale Festival taking place outside the main festival period in July.
Christopher Glynn, Artistic Director of the Ryedale Festival, said: “I’m thrilled that primary school children from across Ryedale are taking part in this community song cycle celebrating the talent and heritage of their community. We look forward to building on this collaboration to create many more such opportunities in the future.”
Joseph Howard said: “The project started from a desire I had to write a piece for my hometown and for the community of Ryedale. I’ve often been inspired by art in my composition, and I’ve always been fascinated by the murals of Pickering Church. My biggest hope for this project is that it will bring lots of different people together, and that everybody involved will find it meaningful and rewarding. After so much uncertainty and time apart, it feels now like a time to come together and to think hopefully again about the future.”
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