Ditchling Choral Society has discovered a new operatic star. He is young baritone Rodney Clarke and he will go far.
He is still on the Royal Academy's opera course but already has a clutch of awards. As Jesus in Bach's St Matthew's Passion, performed by Ditchling and Eastbourne choral societies, he was stunning.
His forceful reading of Hove-based tenor Neil Jenkins' new translation of the work blew my socks off.
The orchestra, the ever-so-young-looking Marylebone Sinfonia, was in fine form and the excellent soloists included international tenor Neil Jenkins, musical director of the Ditchling singers, reprising his role as the Evangelist.
All in all, this was a memorable evening of local music-making, brilliant in its execution and a Passion performed with real passion.
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