Following the critically-acclaimed recording released on Signum, soprano Francesca Chiejina, mezzo-soprano Dame Sarah Connolly and tenor Benjamin Hulett joined forces for a performance of Elgar's The Kingdom with the Crouch End Festival Chorus and conductor David Temple at London's Royal Festival Hall.
Critics have praised the soloists both individually and as an ensemble:
The soloists were terrific, as on the recording . . . Tenor Benjamin Hulett . . . was powerful and focused in a grand duet with Riches in Part 4. But for me the highlight of the piece, following the slightly overwrought opening section, is the long two-hander for soprano and mezzo, personifying Mary and Mary Magdalene, that comprises Part 2. Francesca Chiejina and Sarah Connolly here revelled in more relaxed music that recalls the sweep of “Nimrod” from the Enigma Variations, their voices well matched in gleaming intensity. “The singers are before the altar”, they sang, and there is a reverence to the music that carried me along.
- Bernard Hughes, The Arts Desk
The solo quartet could hardly be bettered; in fact, their performances persuaded me they could not be bettered . . . Benjamin Hulett offered a strong tenor as John, Francesca Chiejina (for me, the star of the evening) a radiant Mary (the Blessed Virgin) and Dame Sarah Connolly brilliantly creamy of voice and absolutely aligned with Elgar’s ethos as Mary Magdalene, and superb in the recitative that opens the fourth part, ‘Then they that gladly received his word’.
In duet, Chiejina and Connolly were beyond criticism (Part II, ‘At the Beautiful Gate’), Chiejina’s phrasing particularly Elgarian and subtle. Connolly’s most unforgettable moment was surely ‘Daughters of Jerusalem, weep not for Me,’ her sound unforgettable.
- Colin Clarke, Seen and Heard International
Topping the charts was soprano Francesca Chiejina, who has a voice of amazing flexibility. Its syrupy richness is present throughout her range, but she demonstrated its capability for both the sweetest intimacy in “The Sun Goeth Down” (the floated notes on “the night watches” were magical) and incisive heft in ‘Pentecost’ (where she soared above choirs and orchestra in the final chorus). Benjamin Hulett’s tenor has an attractive focus to it throughout its range, and he produced a perfect ‘English’ sound for this performance, taking the top notes in his stride, and delivering a characterful and flawless account of the Apostle John . . . Sarah Connolly is a national treasure, and her mezzo soprano worked well in the soloists’ ensemble work, and particularly in the duet work with Chiejina in ‘At the Beautiful Gate’.
- Barry Creasy, MusicOMH
