This was Blake’s debut concert and was being held at St. James’ Church, Piccadilly to raise awareness of the War Widows Association, an organisation for which Blake had recently been made Ambassadors. Soprano, Natasha Marsh also performed during the concert and together with Blake provided a very fitting and beautiful tribute to the members of the WWA.
The concert started very movingly as the lights dimmed leaving only candle lights around the church and a solitary piper walked down the main aisle playing Amazing Grace. He was followed by a flag bearer with the flag for the WWA and as they walked slowly to the stage area, they were joined by Blake who performed a very stirring arrangement of the song.
Many of the songs that Blake performed throughout the evening were tracks from their album with arrangements by their musical director, Mark Williams, and so although they were familiar to the audience, seeing them performed live in such an intimate atmosphere, made the songs even more enjoyable and meaningful. Blake showed their versatility by performing not just strong powerful anthems, but also romantic ballads and even close harmony singing. Each song included the wonderful harmonies that we have come to know and love from them and their presentation was seamless and articulate. Blake’s performance was much more polished and stronger than any of the other performances I have seen them give and combined with the acoustics of the church provided a very dramatic and poignant feel to the evening. It was hard to pick a favourite song from amongst the many that they performed but for me, 1492, Conquest of Paradise, Amazing Grace and Vide Cor Meum would have to rank the highest. The arrangements of these songs together with the passion and emotion that Blake put into performing them made them the most memorable.
A special mention should also go to Natasha Marsh, who performed 4 songs throughout the evening and joined with Blake for a final encore. I had not heard Natasha perform before and was struck by how expressively and eloquently she sang. I particularly enjoyed her rendition of ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’ from Carousel, which she dedicated to the “special ladies of the WWA”. She sang it with such feeling and conviction that I doubt there was a dry eye left in the audience at the end. It was also a very fitting tribute to the work that the WWA do in providing comfort, friendship and moral support to those whose husbands (and wives) have been killed in action.
Seated in the audience were members of the WWA with their chairman, Jenny Green and the Secretary of State for Defence, Derek Twigg M.P. Speaking at the close of the concert, Jenny thanked Blake for such a touching tribute and told us a little bit about the work the WWA do in not just campaigning for better conditions and pensions, but also in helping the younger generations of war widows feel an association with the WWA. She paid tribute to Blake for being amongst those who would stand up and be counted and give of their time and talents to promote the organisation and on behalf of the 35,000 war widows thanked them for a wonderful evening.
Also present in the audience were many of Blake’s family members and friends and this made for some of the lighter hearted moments of the evening. At beginning of the concert, Stephen had remarked how it was good to see so many familiar faces in the audience – he recognised them from their Facebook profiles! Dom later shared with us that the piper, Ralph Kerr, had been his A level music teacher and also thanked Mark Williams for his wonderful arrangements as without him they would have been rubbish, adding that Mark had told him to say this.
Blake concluded their concert by singing Jerusalem with Natasha Marsh. This seemed an appropriate choice, not just because of the lyrics or the fact that they were written by the poet that inspired their name, but also because it was being performed in the very church where William Blake had been baptised. The combination of Natasha’s pure yet powerful soprano and Blake’s rich baritone voices created a truly incredible sound and really emphasised the beauty of the music and the poignancy of the lyrics.
Programme:
Blake
Amazing Grace
E Sara Cosi
I Knew I Loved You
In Paradisum
Natasha Marsh
O Mio Babbino Caro
Who Wants to Live Forever
Blake
Love Lift Us Up Where We Belong
Vide Cor Meum
Toglimi Il Respiro
Interval
Blake
1492 Conquest of Paradise
Steal Away
Celebration
Natasha Marsh
Tonight I Celebrate My Love for You
You’ll Never Walk Alone
Blake
Swing Low
Moon River
Hallelujah
Address by Jenny Green from the War Widows Association
Encore: Blake & Natasha Marsh – Jerusalem
Review by Sarah Fahey for Classicalx.
