12 Days



Critical Acclaim for 12 Days


One of The Guardian's Classical Picks for January:

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/jan/08/classical-higlights-concerts-and-opera-to-watch-in-january


The Times
as part of their streaming recommendations - described as "A wonderful collection of music"


The project was featured as part of Gramophone's Video of the Day
https://www.gramophone.co.uk/features/article/video-of-the-day-the-truth-sent-from-abov
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Filmed in the intimate beauty of Birdsall House in North Yorkshire, the 12 Days of Christmas presents a unique seasonal musical offering to the recipient’s inbox each day from 25 December to 6 January. From carols to Christmas classics, expect a wide range of music from the European Renaissance to the present day, including little-known gems from contemporary composers.


With options for a bespoke gift package or eco-friendly digital delivery, the 12 Days of Christmas is the perfect present for music-loving friends and family wherever they may be during the festive season.



COMPOSER SPOTLIGHT!


We wanted to introduce you to the winning composers of Echo’s Cadence Competition as part of the #12Days project. They are Joe George (UK) Aurélien Hallopeau (Switzerland), Luka Repanšek (Slovenia) and Lucy Walker (UK).



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Joe George


Joe began his choral training as a chorister at Birmingham Cathedral and went on to sing with various choirs around the region. He was assistant director of Bournville Young Singers for 10 years and is also the founder of the barbershop group Wax Lyrical. In 2006 he became Musical director of PODS at Pershore, and in 2012 took up the same role with Redditch Operatic Society. These musical theatre groups are both a joy and a passion. Joe has been nominated for Noda awards for this work on many occasions and was awarded 'best musical' three times, most recently for CATS!  Joe is a busy and experienced freelance event pianist, working with a number of agencies, and is the founder of the jazz quintet Swing Through! In addition to his music, Joe is a keen birdwatcher, cyclist and Wild-in-Art trail addict! 


Aurélien Hallopeau


Born in 1995, Aurélien Hallopeau is a French composer and pianist, who currently mainly writes for choir, usually a cappella, and piano solo. Based in Lausanne, Switzerland, he also sings as baritone in the chamber choir Ensemble Vocal Evohé, directed by Fruzsina Szuromi, which premiered his setting of the O Magnum Mysterium in September 2021. In October 2020, as part of the 7 notes in 7 days at 7pm project, British pianist Maria Marchant premiered Arabesque, a work for piano solo, written as a tribute to Claude Debussy. In October 2021, Petit Bestiaire, a piece for mixed choir a cappella, was awarded 1st Prize of the Jury of Eufonia-Bordeaux’s Musical Composition Competition for Choir and was premiered by Eufonia 21, directed by Damien Sardet. Alongside music, Aurélien works as an engineer in the Space industry.



Luka Repanšek


By profession I’m a historical linguist and professor of Indo-Iranian, Celtic and Germanic languages at the University of Ljubljana. Beside old languages my favourite thing in the world is to create music. Over the past couple of years I’ve composed several a cappella choral works for SATB div., choral music being the form of music that comes most naturally to me.


Lucy Walker

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I’m a composer and pianist based in Cambridge and have recently graduated from Gonville and Caius College where I completed my MPhil in Music. I was a choral scholar at Caius, and sang with Pembroke College choir during my final year of study. My compositions have been performed by the BBC Singers, St Martin in the Fields, and various chapel choirs across the UK and USA, and heard on BBC Radio 3. I’m currently working on composing projects alongside teaching theory and musicianship to the choristers of Ely Cathedral. Choral music is what I love the most, and I’m particularly interested in exploring the soundworlds and colours that voices can create. I’m also an advocate for inclusivity of gender and background in classical music, specifically choral music and composition, and have led several initiatives encouraging young musicians to try composing. Aside from music, I love cooking and learning languages!






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