Premiere Of Film On Harmonic Choir

Press, Volume CVIII, Issue 31660, 22 April 1968, Page 12

Premiere Of Film On Harmonic Choir

A film of the Christchurch Harmonic Society singing in Christchurch Cathedral had its New Zealand premiere screening in a Christchurch cinema last evening.

The 13-minute black and white film was made by the National Film Unit towards the end of last year, and was shown last evening in a special programme of films devoted to the arts. Because members of the choir were present, the film on the choir was shown twice. Later, the film will be shown as part of a fulllength feature programme throughout New Zealand and will be distributed overseas. The Christchurch Harmonic Society, which was invited by the unit to perform a brief programme of

selected works, enjoys an international reputation. It represented New Zealand at the Commonwealth Arts Festival in Britain and at an international choral festival in the United States in 1965. Last year it toured Australia for the Australian Broadcasting Commission, i “We were thrilled at the -offer to make the film bei cause it was a gesture by a very important national orgaI nisation acknowledging the reputation of the choir in its field,” said the conductor of the choir, Mr W. R. Hawkey. The film showed the choir performing four unaccompanied works in the cathedral and scenes relevant to the works. During the singing of Mr Hawkey’s own composition, “The Avon,” a setting of verse by Henry Jacobs, first Dean of Christchurch, scenes filmed in Christchurch were shown. Nativity scenes were shown as the choir sang a carol, “A Child This Day Is Bom,” and when the chorale —a smaller group—sang Benjamin Britten’s “Hymn to the Virgin.” The fourth work was “A Cowboy Carol.” Today the film will be returned to Wellington.