The VOCES8 Foundation Choir: Hear My Prayer

Pure, sweet, serene, hear a radiant blend of unaccompanied voices rise in song. VOCES8 combines with its Foundation Choir to share its heavenly sound in music exploring prayer. This concert traces a path of devotion from the Renaissance to the present day. Performed by the VOCES8 Foundation Choir and directed by Barnaby Smith, Bach’s vividly expressive motet Jesu meine Freude stands at its centre.It’s framed by beautiful choral works from Palestrina, Rheinberger and Sheppard, and luminous contemporary reflections by Arvo Pärt, Kerensa Briggs and Paul Smith. Close your eyes to enjoy the exultant joy of Victoria’s Regina caeli and the programme’s closing climax - the searing intensity of James MacMillan’s contemporary masterpiece Miserere.VOCES8 is a Grammy-nominated British vocal ensemble and the world’s top-streaming classical vocal ensemble, whose 20th Anniversary concert in 2025 sold out the Barbican main hall. Programme Tomás Luis de Victoria Regina caeli Kerensa Briggs Media vita Josef Rheinberger Kyrie from Mass in E-flat Arvo Pärt The Deer's Cry Johann Sebastian Bach Jesu meine Freude, BWV 227 Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina Stabat Mater Paul Smith Nunc Dimittis John Sheppard Libera Nos I & II Henry Purcell Hear My Prayer Pablo Casals O vos omnes Edward Elgar Lux Aeterna James Macmillan Miserere Performers VOCES8 Foundation Choir Barnaby Smith Artistic Director