Sat, Mar 08
|Camelback Bible Church
Tales of Love and Majesty: Handel and Taylor-Coleridge
Our first collaboration with the Phoenix Chorus brings you the pomp and grandeur of Handel’s Coronation Anthems paired with a re-discovered Edwardian gem, a love story set in Imperial Japan by African-British composer Samuel Coleridge-Taylor that hasn't been played in the US since 1912!
Time & Location
Mar 08, 2025, 7:30 PM – 9:30 PM
Camelback Bible Church, 3900 E Stanford Dr, Paradise Valley, AZ 85253, USA
About the event
- G.F. Handel: Coronation Anthems
- Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: A Tale of Old Japan
A Tale of Old Japan was the last choral piece Coleridge-Taylor composed before his death in 1912 at the age of 37. His widow later wrote that he considered it his best cantata, preferring it over the more famous Hiawatha series. Yet it has almost never been played since its premiere.
Through his music, Coleridge-Taylor, who was of mixed race, grappled with questions of identity and belonging, reflecting on his African heritage and British upbringing. "A Tale of Old Japan" explores themes of cultural identity, albeit from a different perspective. It represents Coleridge-Taylor's engagement with diverse cultural narratives and his efforts to reconcile different aspects of his own identity.
Handel wrote his four Coronation Anthems for the coronation of King George II and Queen Caroline in 1727. They are quintessentially British, evoking themes of patriotism, loyalty, and national pride.
Learn more about the Phoenix Chorale here.