THIS concert’s printed programme had the Elgar Memorial Window on the back cover. Rather apt, wouldn’t you say, considering that the window is based on The Dream of Gerontius, the title of the oratorio work in Saturday’s concert at the Cathedral?

The event was in the programme's words ‘To Celebrate the 50th Bromsgrove Festival’. With Donald Hunt as conductor, the English Symphony Orchestra, the Elgar Chorale, St Peter’s Singers of Leeds, Bromsgrove School Chamber Choir and three soloists performed Elgar’s Gerontius, With Proud Thanksgiving (preceding Gerontius) and then Parry’s Jerusalem at the close, the audience joining in with this heartily.

Soloists Catherine Wyn-Rogers (mezzo), Paul Nilon (tenor), Jeremy Huw Williams (baritone) could hardly have made a better job of interpreting Elgar’s music in such a way that the occasion served amongst other things as a reminder both of Elgar’s place in English choral music and the power of Cardinal Newman’s words used in the oratorio. We got to hear Gerontius with these three choirs (each choir having its own director) coming to sing the work together. It may be a while before we are treated to an occasion of similar scale.