Under the encouraging leadership of Hilary Michael, the Kellie Consort put out a rather nice programme of seventeenth-century Anglican liturgical music. Having heard a lot of positive remarks about this ensemble, which is a mix of students and aspiring professional musicians, I was immediately interested to hear for myself these outstanding performers.

Henry Purcell’s Te Deum in D (Z. 232) opened the concert. I was impressed by the breadth of sound issuing from some of these young singers in the first piece. The harmonies, when fully realised, were as lavish as the salons du jour at Versailles. Unfortunately, the trumpets were a little disappointing as they were not fully integrated with the ensemble and they lacked intonation and balance. However, I was especially entranced by both the mesmerising and powerful alto voice of Elizabeth Wilson and that of the soprano obbligato. The dark rich tone of their soli sections reminded me of the lavish melodies one would find in a Versailles motet—particularly in their parts for haute-contre. Even with minor issues in balance and intonation, there were glorious moments to be had.

Featured second in the programme was Suite from Abdelazer, also composed by Purcell. In a pre-performance monologue, Michael discussed how the audience would recognise the second movement, the famous rondeau. Most would know this as a ubiquitous melody from period dramas such as the 2005 film Pride and Prejudice. As I heard the instrumental music, I could pick out an ouverture à la française in the overture.

Even with an incident of a gut string breaking, in the first violins, which reduced the section to one violinist, the sound was evenly balanced. On a harsher note, the overture started out rather fast; and the second section galloped away out of control and lacked the majestic clarity that Christopher Hogwood captured when he conducted The Academy of Ancient Music’s performance of this work in 2004. However, I was pleased with the lower voices in the second section, as they took centre stage enhancing the rich timbres driving the sound. During the rondeau, it felt as if we were immediately transported back to the tasteful decadence of the seventeenth century.

As Abdelazer went on, there was generally a decent balance between the inner-voices. Airs one and two went on flawlessly, and by the minuet the tempo perked nicely. Admittedly, certain tempo choices again lacked elegance as seen in the third air. What should have been a gentle andante or andantino was quick and panicked. I found the choice to be excessively quick, robbing the audience of the courtly intention and harmonic pleasure. However, in defence of the tempo choices, in their album “Incidental Music To The Tempest / Music For His Majesty’s Sackbuts & Cornetts / Abdelazer” Hogwood’s tempo for the jig was far too slow – it was always like a funeral dirge! Kellie Consort carried the rest of the piece well by employing appropriately-paced tempos in the other movements.

There was a shift in focus for the next piece, O Lord my God as composed by Pelham Humfrey, where the dark, enchanting melody was carried well by the tenors. The pièce de résistance was the mixing of three-part vocal harmonies in response to the soloists. My only qualm: it felt treble heavy in some of the ensemble, which stifled some of the inner voices.

We returned to Purcell, with the ensemble performing Rejoice in the Lord Alway(s?) (Z. 49). The downward arpeggios imitated ringing bells, and these continued until the choir came in. Following a lively jig melody, the elaborate symphonic writing was beautifully captured by both ensemble and vocalists.

Following the euphonious ending of the previous piece, the opening dissonances of I will give thanks unto Thee, O Lord (Z. 20) were dealt with fluidly by the ensemble before giving way to the lush vocals. Stuart Murray Mitchell, one of the tenors, commanded the tenor obbligato with incredible ease and gravitas. By the end, the suspensions were resolved and the glorious ending chord was held like a perfect organ tone resonating deeply in the flamboyant gothic revival chapel.

Beginning much like the overture to Dido and Aeneas, Purcell’s Why do the heathen so furiously rage together? (Z. 65) continued to take us to new heights. Throughout this anthem the sounds were simply unadulterated ecstasy with the tension and release of suspensions.

Our programme closed with the Jubilate in D (Z. 232) and David Lewis, as alto, exhibited fantastic command in his melismas. If not for the returning issue of the trumpet synchronisation at points, the beginning would have been perfection. Niall Kennedy as the bass soloist added even more inspired sound. One can begin to ascertain the mystical quality of the English liturgy, with these entrancing octave harmonies between the two flawless voices. Ending on a glorious plagal cadence, the concert received a shockwave of applause for the fantastic performance.

Kellie Consort left me wanting to hear more Anglican liturgical music, as overall the concert was generally well-balanced on the instrumental and solo parts. Two vocalists who stood out were the sopranos Isla MacEwan and Hebe James, as each time I heard their high soprano lines I was instantly transported to another place and time because of how they had harmonised. Although this neo-gothic chapel was constructed in 1927, this was a marvellous choice of venue for this genre of music. With the choice of placing the musicians on the altar side, the resonance suited the selections of music we heard in the University Memorial Chapel at the University of Glasgow.

Kellie Consort performed at the University Memorial Chapel, University of Glasgow, on the 4th, 5th and 6th July 2019.