World-renowned choir set to return to Buckfast Abbey for April concert

On Saturday 23^rd April, Buckfast Abbey, in South Devon, will host the world-renowned choir of Westminster Cathedral for a concert of choral and organ music for Eastertide. The highly anticipated performance, titled Surrexit Christus!, follows the success of the choir’s participation in the 2018 Festival of Sacred Music at Buckfast Abbey, which was a complete sell-out event.

Acclaimed as one of the world’s great choirs, and the only Catholic Cathedral choir in the world to sing daily Mass and Vespers, Westminster Cathedral Choir will perform a programme of ancient Gregorian chants and Renaissance polyphony from the richest of liturgical seasons.

A centre of culture and arts in the South West of England, Buckfast Abbey is recognised as both a place of worship and a centre of musical excellence. With its dramatic Lantern ceiling and unique Ruffatti Organ it is a perfect venue to host this special performance on 23^rd April.

Tickets for the concert are priced at £20 and are available to purchase now from www.buckfast.org.uk/boxoffice or from the Abbey Bookshop. Advanced booking is advised, as seating is unreserved and on a first come, first served basis. Doors will open at approximately 7:00pm, following the conclusion of Monastic Vespers.

Commenting on the upcoming concert, Philip Arkwright, Buckfast Abbey Organist and Master of Music, said: “This month we welcome the award-winning Westminster Cathedral Choir to the Abbey to celebrate the centenary of the translation of the statue of Our Lady of Buckfast.

“One hundred years ago, the Choir joined us as the statue of our Lady of Buckfast was installed in its present place in the Lady Chapel of the Abbey at a unique Ceremony of Inauguration. With great solemnity they led the litanies and hymns for our Monastic Community and a vast number of laity, and we’re truly delighted to be welcoming some of the world’s finest choristers and musicians back to the Abbey Church to commemorate this special moment in history.”

Guests will also have the option to enjoy a two-course fine-dining meal before the concert in the Abbey’s newly refurbished Conference Centre dining room. The meal will commence at 6:00pm for the cost of £23.95. Pre-concert meals can be booked online when purchasing a concert ticket, or by contacting the Conference Centre directly on 01364 645530 or conferences@buckfast.org.uk.

Westminster Cathedral Choir’s latest recording, on the Abbey’s own record label Ad Fontes, will be available to purchase at the concert at a discounted rate. For more information, visit www.adfontes.org.uk.

The Surrexit Christus! concert forms part of the Abbey’s exciting new series of concerts taking place this year. Other upcoming concerts this spring include a Bank Holiday Recital given by Ian Tracey of Liverpool Cathedral on Monday 2^nd May; a performance of Mozart’s iconic Requiem on Saturday 21^st May given by the Abbey Choir and Orchestra; and a launch event for Buckfast Abbey’s new Ad Fontes CD – celebrating the complete organ works of Dom Sebastian Wolff – on Sunday 15^th May. For more information on the other concerts and events taking place, view the new 2022 music brochure here:https://www.buckfast.org.uk/uploads/documents/Concerts%20&%20Organ%20Recitals%202022%20(web).pdf

Buckfast Abbey is conveniently located midway between Exeter and Plymouth, just off the A38. Home to a community of Benedictine monks, the Abbey offers a unique, tranquil ambience, and is open seven days a week to the public. For more information on Buckfast Abbey visit https://www.buckfast.org.uk