This is a Premium Event. Regular and Youth Passholders can select the discounted « …with Pass » tickets. Click here to buy your Pass. / Cet événement est un événement Premium. Les détenteurs d’un passeport Régulier ou Jeunes peuvent sélectionner les billets è tarif réduit « …avec passeport ». Cliquez ici pour acheter votre passeport.
Your VIP ticket provides the best possible seating and includes a post-concert reception.
Votre billet VIP vous garantit les meilleures places possibles et comprend une réception après le concert.
The King’s Singers
Saturday, July 11, 2026 at 2:00 pm
Le samedi 11 juillet 2026 à 14 h 00
Premium Event / Événement premium
Patrick Dunachie – countertenor / contreténor
Edward Button – countertenor / contreténor
Julian Gregory – tenor / ténor
Christopher Bruerton – baritone / baryton
Nick Ashby – baritone / baryton
Piers Connor Kennedy – bass / basse
Such Stuff as Dreams are Made On
European Romantic Masterpieces through a Magical Lens
The Romantic impulse spread like wildfire across Europe during the 19th and early 20th centuries. Lieder, chansons and part songs – imbued with musical richness – became vehicles for the deepest expressions of human feeling, desire and fantasy. This programme pays deserved tribute to many of the greatest European composers of Romantic vocal music from that time: extraordinary storytellers that include Edward Elgar and Ralph Vaughan Williams in England, and Hugo Alfvén in Sweden; Felix and Fanny Mendelssohn and Franz Schubert in Germany, and Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel and Camille Saint-Saëns in France. Tonight, we want to honour their collective imagination and brave emotional vulnerability by taking you on a magical journey that explores some of their most compelling thoughts on life, love, nature, death, and even the supernatural.
“We are such stuff as dreams are made on, and our little life is rounded with a sleep.” – William Shakespeare
Chefs-d’œuvre romantiques européens à travers une lentille magique L’impulsion romantique s’est répandue comme une traînée de poudre à travers l’Europe au cours du 19e et du début du 20e siècle. Lieder, chansons et chants partiels – imprégnés de richesse musicale – sont devenus des véhicules pour les expressions les plus profondes des sentiments, désirs et fantasmes humains. Ce programme rend un hommage bien mérité à beaucoup des plus grands compositeurs européens de musique vocale romantique de cette époque : des conteurs extraordinaires comme Edward Elgar et Ralph Vaughan Williams en Angleterre, Hugo Alfvén en Suède ; Felix et Fanny Mendelssohn et Franz Schubert en Allemagne, et Claude Debussy, Maurice Ravel et Camille Saint-Saëns en France. Ce soir, nous voulons honorer leur imagination collective et leur courageuse vulnérabilité émotionnelle en vous emmenant dans un voyage magique qui explore certaines de leurs pensées les plus captivantes sur la vie, l’amour, la nature, la mort, et même le surnaturel.
« Nous sommes de la matière dont sont faits les rêves, et notre petite vie est entourée d’un sommeil. » – William Shakespeare
Program | Programme
Ralph Vaughan Williams – Over hill, over dale (from / de Three Shakespeare Songs)
Claude Debussy – Trois Chansons, L. 99
I. Dieu! qu’il la fait bon regarder!
II. Quand j’ai ouy le tambourin sonner
III. Yver, vous n’estes qu’un villain
Edward Elgar – Owls, opus 53, no. 4
Edward Elgar – Deep in my soul, opus 53, no. 2
Edward Elgar – Death on the hills, opus 72
Trad. arr. H. Alfvén – Och jungfrun hon går i ringen
Hugo Alfvén – Aftonen
Franz Schubert – Flucht, D. 825b
Fanny Mendelssohn Hensel – Abendlich schon rauscht der Wald, opus 3, no. 5
Camille Saint-Saëns – Saltarelle, opus 74
Maurice Ravel – Trois Chansons, M. 69
I. Nicolette
II. Trois beaux oiseaux du Paradis
III. Ronde
Intermission / Entracte
Ralph Vaughan Williams – The cloud-capp’d towers (from / de Three Shakespeare Songs)
Ralph Vaughan Williams – Valiant-for-Truth
Jean Sibelius arr. N. Ashby – Finlandia (Be still, my soul)
A surprise selection of songs from The King’s Singers world-famous close harmony library / Une sélection surprise de chansons provenant de la célèbre bibliothèque d’harmonies serrées des King’s Singers.
Each piece in this programme has been recorded in The King’s Singers discography and is available in a release called Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On / Chaque pièce de ce programme a été enregistrée dans la discographie des King’s Singers et est disponible dans un album intitulé Such Stuff As Dreams Are Made On
Their Short Bio
The King’s Singers have set the gold standard in a cappella singing on the world’s greatest stages for over 55 years. They are renowned for their unrivalled technique, musicianship and versatility, which stem from the group’s rich heritage and its drive to bring an extraordinary range of new and unique works, collaborations and recordings to life. The King’s Singers’ extensive discography has led to numerous awards, including two Grammy Awards, an Emmy Award, and a place in Gramophone magazine’s inaugural Hall of Fame.
Interesting Facts
Since March 2019, The King’s Singers have successfully crafted bespoke masterclasses and workshops to continue to deliver their in-person teaching skills online, opening up even more opportunities for ensembles around the world to work with six members of The King’s Singers.
During its 50th anniversary year, the group spent time thinking about how best to use the amazing legacy and profile of The King’s Singers in a way that gives some of that benefit back to the wider community. The result was The King’s Singers Global Foundation. Central to the essence of the Foundation is that the six members of The King’s Singers wish to give their platform, their time, and their expertise – unpaid – to widen the reach and impact of choral music.
“For our third USA Summer School we are thrilled to be hosting it once again in the beautiful surroundings of Princeton University, New Jersey. One of the finest academic institutions in the USA, Princeton has a strong reputation for excellence in choral music.
Media
The King’s Singers oozed class … the musical qualities they embody – pinpoint precision, total rapport, crisp diction, faultless tuning and a seemingly effortless ability to switch between different stylistic requirements – are so evident.
The Times
Their vocal production was effortless, stylistically varied and beautifully blended, even in the most complex polyphony.
Washington Post
A unified, harmonious whole with flashes of pure individuality.
Scotsman
Astonishing, exhilarating musicianship
Gramophone
Carleton Dominion-Chalmers Centre
Air conditioned! / Air climatisé!
Accessible entrance! / Entrée accessible! (290 Lisgar St.)
