Illuminations

Illuminations – Sacred Music of Europe opens our 2026 concert series with a pilgrimage of sacred choral music across northern Europe. Beginning in Finland with the stillness of Einojuhani Rautavaara, the programme visits the choral traditions of the Baltic states and Western Europe, exploring music shaped by prayer, ritual, and light.

Along the way, we encounter the distinctive voices of composers including Veljo Tormis, Ēriks Ešenvalds, Paweł Łukaszewski, and Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn, before reaching France with the expressive intensity of Francis Poulenc. Our journey concludes at home in Britain with a radiant finale by Gustav Holst.

Conducted by our Musical Director, Stephen Layton MBE, this first concert sets the tone for Illuminations: a celebration of sacred sound as a shared European tradition, moving from winter stillness towards springtime renewal.