I Was Glad Cathedral Classics

For one afternoon, St Peter & Paul’s Old Cathedral becomes Westminster Abbey when Brett Weymark, renowned organist David Drury and Symphony Chorus come to Goulburn. 

Please note: this event is not held at the Sydney Opera House.

The English cathedral is a place of sanctuary from the distractions of a hectic world. It’s also the home of a rich and enduring choral tradition, and you don’t have to be a believer to find comfort in the transcendent beauty and reflective spirituality of sacred music. 

For this Sydney Philharmonia Choirs concert, Brett Weymark turns to the cathedral for inspiration, assembling some of the great hymns and anthems in a stirring program featuring the 120-voice Symphony Chorus and renowned organist David Drury at the magnificent St Peter & Paul’s Old Cathedral organ. This is music that has filled the air at coronations, weddings, jubilees and funerals – the perfect accompaniment for pageantry and celebration, for meditation and mourning. 

The musical treats range from Hubert Parry’s I Was Glad, sung at every English coronation since 1902, and the luscious sounds of Henry Balfour Gardiner’s Evening Hymn, to Howard Goodall’s poignant setting of Psalm 23, which began life as the theme for The Vicar of Dibley. The concert concludes with the Australian premiere of music from A Season to Sing, a choral transformation of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons with words by Emily Brontë.

Presented by Sydney Philharmonia Choirs