One to watch

I have had a few musical 'I was there' moments in my life: I saw Thomas Allen's first 'Billy Budd', I watched the Terfel/Hvorostovsky Cardiff Singer of the World Final on BBC TV, I saw John Findon singing his first Peter Grimes (see previous Blog), and now I have heard Archie Inns sing his first St John Passion Evangelist. If you don't know Archie's name, I predict it will become familiar to you in the pretty near future.

My son Sam sings in the 'Fulham Camerata Choir' and on Sunday 17th March they performed Bach's St John Passion. Sam had already told me that their young Evangelist was one to watch, and so it proved.

Archie Inns is 22 and in his final year reading Theology and Philosophy at Christ Church Oxford where he is a member of the choir. He is already an experienced performer having started singing as a boy treble at Durham Cathedral and has already won a number of awards as a tenor. He also freelances with the BBC Singers.

His Evangelist was breath-takingly impressive. Archie Inns has a very sweet but also incisive tenor voice. He floated jaw droppingly beautiful head notes at the very top of his range but was also able to inject steel into his tone during his interaction with the chorus describing Jesus' trial and his condemnation to crucifixion; (for me, this section was the highlight of the entire performance). His phrasing, intonation and overall musicality were impeccable; crucially, accomplished though he is, he still sounds young. His teachers are, very sensibly, allowing him to mature at his own pace.

All in all, Archie is the most accomplished undergraduate tenor I have ever heard and I hope I am not tempting providence when I say I expect great things from him in the future.

Of course, a successful performance of the St John Passion depends on more than a star Evangelist and the Fulham Camerata Choir did their conductor, Harry Castle proud, in what was his final concert with them after a very successful six years at the helm. They produced a well-focussed and lithe tone, forceful when required.