Trunch Concerts 2014 – Music in an historic Norfolk Church

The Morley Consort of Voices is named after Thomas Morley, who was born in Norwich in 1557 and served as Master of the Choristers at Norwich Cathedral before he moved to London, soon becoming a Gentleman of the Chapel Royal.
Morley was one of the most prolific and versatile composers of his generation, exerting a powerful influence on his contemporaries and so shaping the course of English music during its golden age in the years around the turn of the 17th century.  The Morley Consort  performs vocal ensemble music from the Renaissance to the present day, though the focus is on music from the sixteenth and early seventeenth centuries.

The Consort performs vocal ensemble music from the Renaissance to the present day, though the focus is on music from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries.  The consort has performed across England and East Anglia in particular. The ensemble’s six original singers were all members of the University of East Anglia, as was their musical director Emeritus Professor Peter Aston, who was head of music at UEA from 1974 to 1998 and is acclaimed internationally as a composer and conductor.  Peter passed away in in September 2013 after suffering with cancer. Conductor Andrew Weeks, who co-founded the group in 2009, now directs the consort.

The consort gave their debut performance at the Assembly House in Norwich on Friday 23 April 2010, as part of the UEA Music at One series of lunchtime concerts. The programme included madrigals by Morley, Gibbons and Wilbye, a group of 16th-century chansons, sacred pieces by William Byrd and Claudio Monteverdi, and partsongs by Mendelssohn and Peter Aston.

Andrew Weeks – Artistic Director

Andrew is wholly devoted to continue the work of Peter Aston and the consort in its specialist performance of Early Consort music and music for voices.  It is his desire to maintain the legacy that Peter left behind and shares the same love of the music of that genre.  The consort aims to bring to life the music of the past that was written exclusively for voices, as well as performing new works and commissions.  We are ambitious about performing that music to the highest standards possible.

Andrew began his musical life as a classically trained percussionist and pianist. He went on to read Music at the UEA graduating in 2011. He studied contemporary percussion, singing and conducting, to complement an inclusive course of study.  Andrew still enjoys performing Oratorio works as a Bass soloist, as a percussionist for orchestras, and is particularly fond of English folk music and music from the Choral repertory.  In 2011-12 he held a scholarship at Norwich Cathedral as a Bass Choral Scholar and enjoyed singing for daily services, recording with BBC Radio 3 and touring to France with the Girls Choir.  Andrew has performed with choirs in some of the most prestigious venues in the UK and toured to Europe.  He is in demand as a bass soloist, particularly in Norfolk; his most recent solo appearance was with the Mid Norfolk Singers for a performance of Handel’s Messiah, and with Sheringham & Cromer Choral Society in Mozart’s Requiem and Bach’s Cantata BWV 140 Wachet auf, ruft uns die Stimme, ‘Sleepers Wake.’  He has studied with Andrew Yeats, David Lowe and currently studies with Ben Johnson.

Andrew is an ardent supporter of music education and outreach.  He has orchestrated drumming workshops and taken part in multiple theatre productions for children.  He currently teaches music at Norwich School and is pastoral tutor to the Choristers.  Andrew recently worked with English Touring Opera on the ‘Turtle Song’ project, in partnership with Turtle Key Arts, ETO, and the Royal College of Music with support from the Alzheimer’s Society.  He appears on a CD with folk-band Inlay on their self-titled album (2012) as an accordion player, singer and percussionist and has performed across the UK with the collaborative group.

www.andrewweeks.weebly.com

The Morley Consort of Voices consists of:

Frances Jackson – Soprano
Holly Leonard – Soprano
Helen Burn – Alto
Djinh Kamei – Tenor
Daniel Bartlette – Tenor
Dhilan Gnanadurai – Bass