The lunchtime recitals are Somerville Music Society's flagship series of concerts featuring the best singers and instrumentalists from across the university and the London music colleges. They are a fantastic opportunity to hear outstanding musicians in the beautiful surroundings of Somerville Chapel.
Admission to all lunchtime recitals is free with a retiring collection in aid of Somerville Choir's summer tour to America.
If you are interested in singing/playing a recital at Somerville Chapel or if you want to suggest soloists for future recitals, please contact Stefan Schwarz (SMS Recitals Coordinator). Recordings of some of our recitals are available from this page and the SMS YouTube Channel.
Week 1, Friday 2nd May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Nick Machin (organ and piano)
Works by Debussy, Liszt, Shostakovich, Stanford, Widor and others
Week 1, Friday 2nd May, 6pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Gala Concert: Show Tunes and Film Music
Emily Winkler (soprano), Ruth Akinradewo (soprano), Alexandra Worrell (soprano), Kate Jeffries-Harris (mezzo-soprano), Ian Buchanan (tenor), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), Matt Kerr (baritone), David Crown (baritone/conductor), Robert Pecksmith (piano/organ), Stefan Schwarz (baritone/percussion), Douglas Knight (piano), Orly Watson (piano)
Week 2, Friday 9th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Katie Jeffries-Harris (mezzo-soprano), Douglas Knight (piano)
Songs and arias by Gluck, Mozart, Wolf, Fauré and Elgar
Week 3, Friday 16th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Brian McAlea (baritone), Emily Bootle (piano)
Songs by Vaughan Williams, Ireland, Finzi, Quilter and Britten
CANCELLED
Week 5, Thursday 29th May, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Arbellio Quartet
Works by Haydn and Mendelssohn
Week 5, Friday 30th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Peter Shepherd (organ)
Works by Buxtehude, Schubert, Brahms, Reubke, Elgar and Walton
Week 6, Friday 6th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Beth McMillan (soprano/flute), Douglas Knight (piano)
Songs by Purcell, Vaughan Williams, Schubert and Lehrer
Week 6, Friday 6th June, 7:30pm, Somerville Chapel
David Crown (bass-baritone), Peter McMullin (piano)
Schumann: Dichterliebe; Finzi: Let us garlands bring
Week 7, Thursday 12th June, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Helena Moore (soprano), Orly Watson (piano)
Songs and Arias by Purcell, Boyce, Britten, Delius, Warlock and others
Week 7, Friday 13th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Orly Watson (piano)
Works by Czerny, Chopin and Schumann
Week 8, Friday 20th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Robert Pecksmith (piano)
Works by Händel, Schubert and Ireland
Week 1, Friday 24th January, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Miyuki Kato (piano)
Works by Bach, Scriabin, Chopin and Beethoven
Week 2, Friday 31st January, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Luke Faulkner (piano)
Works by Rachmaninov, Beethoven and Chopin
Week 3, Friday 7th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Jonathan Stamp (organ)
Works by Buxtehude, Frescobaldi, Boëllmann, Sweelinck and Vierne
Week 4, Friday 14th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Oxford Guitar Ensemble
Works by Vivaldi, Bizet and Poulenc
Week 6, Wednesday 26th February, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Emily Winkler (soprano), Joanna Perkins (soprano/piano), Ruth Akinradewo (soprano), Alexandra Worrell (soprano), Isabel Sinagola (mezzo-soprano), Katie Jeffries-Harris (mezzo-soprano), Ian Buchanan (tenor), James Aldred (tenor), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), David Crown (baritone), Robert Pecksmith (organ/piano), Orly Watson (piano), Douglas Knight (piano)
Week 6, Friday 28th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Simon Grange (bass), Guy Newbury (piano)
Songs by Loewe, Wolf, Zelter and Britten
Week 7, Friday 7th March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Tom Hammond-Davies (countertenor), Giles Masters (guitar)
Works by John Dowland and Michael Finnissy
Week 8, Friday 14th March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Olivia Alice Martin (soprano), Samuel Swinnerton (piano)
Songs and Arias by Bach, Mozart, Schubert, Fauré and Sullivan
Week 1, Friday 18th October, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Giulio Potenza (piano)
Works by Janáček, Schumann and Tchaikovsky/Pabst
Week 2, Friday 25th October, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Vani Rajendran (clarinet), Matt Rattley (bassoon)
Works by Bozza, Beethoven and Poulenc
Week 3, Friday 1st November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Nicholas Freestone (organ)
Works by Mendelssohn, Britten, Duruflé and others
Week 4, Friday 8th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Hannah Woolmer (violin), Daniel Roberts (piano)
Violin Sonatas by Brahms and Franck
Week 5, Friday 15th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Danae Eleni Pallikaropoulos (soprano), Guy Newbury (piano)
Songs by Alban Berg, Emilios Riadis, Guy Newbury and others
Week 6, Friday 22nd November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Isabel Sinagola (mezzo-soprano), Andrew Dickson (piano)
Songs by Elgar, Schumann and Vaughan Williams
Week 7, Wednesday 27th November, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Emily Winkler (soprano), Joanna Perkins (soprano/piano), Ruth Akinradewo (soprano), Alexandra Worrell (soprano), Isabel Sinagola (mezzo-soprano), Katie Jeffries-Harris (mezzo-soprano), Ian Buchanan (tenor), James Aldred (tenor), Kaan Harwood (piano), Robert Pecksmith (piano/organ), Douglas Knight (piano)
Week 7, Friday 29th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Christopher Enston (organ)
Works by Bach, Karg-Elert, Morgan, Dunhill and Guilmant
Week 8, Friday 6th December, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Orly Watson (piano)
Works by Bach, Brahms, Chopin, Tchaikovsky and others
Week 1, Friday 26th April, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Aimee Taylor (flute), Lucy Nolan (harp)
Works by Johann Sebastian Bach and Henk Badings
Week 2, Friday 3rd May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Daniel Wyman (baritone), Robert Pecksmith (piano)
Songs and Arias by Mozart, Mendelssohn, Wolf, Debussy Korngold and Vaughan Williams
Week 3, Thursday 9th May, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Emily Winkler (soprano), Luke Faulkner (piano)
Songs and Arias by Vivaldi, Mozart, Schubert, Debussy, Novello, Rodgers and Berlin
Week 3, Friday 10th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
James Soper (saxophone), Orly Watson (piano)
Works by Pierné, Bozza and Milhaud
Week 4, Friday 17th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Oxford Guitar Ensemble
Works by Purcell, Brouwer and Villa-Lobos
Week 5, Tuesday 21st May, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Ian Buchanan (tenor), Stephen O'Driscoll (baritone), Laura Schack (mezzo-soprano), Isabel Sinagola (mezzo-soprano), Emily Winkler (soprano), Glenn Wong (countertenor), Robert Pecksmith (piano), Orly Watson (piano)
Songs and Arias by Händel, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Schumann, Puccini, Strauss and Vaughan Williams
Week 5, Friday 24th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Luke Faulkner (piano)
Works by Rachmaninov, Chopin and Godowsky
Week 6, Friday 31st May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Douglas Knight (clarinet), Guy Newbury (piano)
Works by Schumann, Carter and Brahms
Week 7, Friday 7th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Lucy Nolan (harp)
Works by Dussek, Fauré, Glinka, Mathias and Hindemith
Week 8, Tuesday 11th June, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
My Twentieth Century
James Donaldson (cello), Luke Shoham (piano), Kevin Sliwosky (tumpet), Emyr Wyn (piano), Andrew Watts (composer/live electronics)
Works by Andrew Watts, Scriabin and Ligeti
Week 8, Friday 14th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Glenn Wong (countertenor), Orly Watson (piano)
Arias and Songs by Broschi, Händel, Mozart, Mendelssohn, Strauss and Quilter
Week 5, Friday 15th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Jake Barlow (countertenor), Giles Masters (guitar)
Lute Songs and Airs by Dowland and Purcell
Week 5, Saturday 16th February, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Organ Scholars' Recital - 75th Anniversary of the Chapel Organ
Works by Bach, Mendelssohn, Boëllmann, Guilmant and Elgar
Sam Bayliss (Organ Scholar/College Organist 2001-2005), Douglas Knight (Senior Organ Scholar), Robert Pecksmith (Junior Organ Scholar)
Week 6, Friday 22nd February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Antony Beere (guitar)
Works by Bach, Brouwer and Turina
Week 7, Thursday 28th February, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Stephen O'Driscoll (baritone), Ruby Riley (soprano), Jenni Butler (mezzo-soprano), Glenn Wong (countertenor), David Bowe (tenor), Isabel Sinagola (mezzo-soprano), Laura Schack (mezzo-soprano), Ian Buchanan (tenor), Douglas Knight (piano), Robert Pecksmith (piano) and Orly Watson (piano)
Week 7, Friday 1st March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Casey Burgess (cello/flute), Daniel Lewis (flute), Guy Newbury (piano)
Works by Bach, Widor, Rachmaninov and Ganne
Week 8, Friday 8th March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Andreas Kyrris (tenor), Robert Pecksmith (piano)
Arias by Verdi, Sorozábal and Bach/Gounod
Week 2, Friday 19th October, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Aimee Taylor (flute), Lucy Nolan (harp), Guy Newbury (piano)
Works by Glinka, Debussy and David Hughes
Week 3, Friday 26th October, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Daniel Tonks (piano)
Works by Beethoven, Chopin, Satie and Gershwin
Week 4, Friday 2nd November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Walton Quartet
Emi Itoh (violin), Catherine Morgan (violin), David Crown (viola), Desi El Kabir (cello)
Music by Bach, Haydn and Mendelssohn
Week 5, Friday 9th November, 1pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars’ Recital
Glenn Wong (countertenor), Ruby Riley (soprano), Jenni Butler (mezzo-soprano), Laura Schack (mezzo-soprano), Isabel Sinagola (mezzo-soprano), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), Daniel Reeve (tenor), Ian Buchanan (tenor) Stephen O’Driscoll (baritone), Robert Pecksmith (piano) and others
Week 6, Friday 16th November, 1pm, Somerville Chapel
Songs and Arias by Purcell, Mozart, Loewe, Strauss and Britten
Simon Grange (bass), Robert Pecksmith (piano)
Week 8, Friday 30th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Joyce Tang (piano)
Works by Chopin, Ravel and Liszt
Week 1, Friday 27th April, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Orly Watson (piano)
Works by Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Schönberg, Grieg and Watson
Week 2, Friday 4th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Guy Cutting (tenor), Steven Grahl (piano/harpsichord)
Arias by Couperin, Bach, Händel, Haydn and Britten
Week 3, Thursday 10th May, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Kate Piddington (soprano), Jenni Butler (mezzo-soprano), Daniel Reeve (tenor), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), Stephen O’Driscoll (baritone), Simon Grange (bass), Josh Jordan (baritone) and Robert Pecksmith (harpsichord/piano)
Songs/Arias by Mozart, Schubert, Wagner, Offenbach, Britten, Weill and others
Week 3, Friday 11th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Oxford Guitar Ensemble
Works by Dowland, Duarte, Granados, Turina and Inés Medina-Fernández
Week 4, Friday 18th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Finzi: Let Us Garlands Bring
James Poston (baritone), Tim Anderson (piano)
Week 5, Friday 25th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Somerville Choir Octet, David Crown (conductor), Douglas Knight (organ)
Choral Works by Palestrina, Victoria, Byrd and Bach
Week 6, Friday 1st June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Robert Pecksmith (organ and piano)
Works by Beethoven, Dudley Moore and others
Week 7, Wednesday 6th June, 8:30pm, Somerville Chapel
A Summer Night at the Opera
Andreas Kyrris (tenor), Simon Grange (bass), Robert Pecksmith (piano), Stefan Schwarz (guitar)
Week 7, Friday 8th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Margaret Irene Seymour Award Holders’ Recital
Tal Katsir (soprano), Douglas Knight (organ), Guy Newbury (piano), Robert Pecksmith (piano)
Week 8, Friday 15th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Benjamin Skipp (piano)
Week 2, Friday 27th January, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Wilfrid Jones (tenor), Ben Bloor (piano)
Songs by Finzi, Copland, Schubert and Schumann
Week 4, Thursday 9th February, 8pm, Somerville Chapel
Margaret Irene Seymour Award Holders’ Recital
Rilly Chen (flute and Chinese flute), Tal Katsir (soprano), Aimee Taylor (flute), Douglas Knight (clarinet), Michael Brendan Brett (trombone), Robert Pecksmith (organ), Guy Newbury (piano)
Week 5, Friday 17th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars’ Recital
David Bowe (tenor), Simon Grange (bass), Tal Katsir (soprano), Stephen O’Driscoll (baritone), Laura Schack (alto), Ruby Riley (soprano), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), Douglas Knight (piano) and Robert Pecksmith (piano)
Week 6, Sunday 19th February, 2:30pm, Somerville Chapel
Jenny Bacon (soprano), Craig White (piano)
Songs and Arias by Händel, Mozart, Barber, Britten and Sondheim
Week 7, Friday 2nd March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Oliver Longland (baritone), Steven Grahl (piano)
Works by Verdi, Vaughan Williams and Mozart
Week 8, Friday 9th March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Ben Bloor (organ)
Works by Bach, Rheinberger and Easthope Martin
No recitals due to the ongoing asbestos removal work in the college chapel
Week 2, Friday 13th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
William Blake (tenor) and Jonathan Katz (piano)
Songs and Arias by Arne, Eccles, Mozart, Beethoven and Debussy
Week 3, Friday 20th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
First Year Musicians’ Recital
Douglas Knight (clarinet), Lucy Nolan (harp), Aimee Taylor (flute), Guy Newbury (piano)
Week 4, Friday 27th May, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Oxford Guitar Ensemble
Works by Hume, Kuntz, Granados, de Falla and Fernández (World Premiere)
Week 6, Friday 10th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Choral Scholars' Recital
Simon Grange (bass), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), Jenni Butler (mezzo-soprano), Kate Piddington (soprano), Sam Baker (piano)
Week 7, Friday 17th June, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
John Mann (violin), Guy Newbury (piano)
Music by Mozart, Tchaikovsky and Debussy
Week 2, Saturday 29th January, 8:30pm, Somerville Chapel
Ann Liebeck (soprano), Marcos Madrigal (piano)
Songs by Granados, de Falla, Ginastera and others
Week 4, Friday 11th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Jonathan Clinch (organ)
Works by Bach, Darke, Howells and John Caldwell (World Premiere)
Week 5, Friday 18th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Timothy Motz (piano)
Works by Beethoven, Liszt and Prokofiev
Week 6, Friday 25th February, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Simon Grange (bass), Christoph Schnedermann (bass), Sam Baker (piano)
Arias, Songs and Piano Works by Mozart, Schubert, Verdi and Baker
Week 7, Friday 4th March, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Songs of Childhood: The Mountainside of Dreams
Danae Eleni Pallikaropoulos (soprano), Guy Newbury (piano)
Extracts from Song Cycles by Schumann, Wolf, Poulenc and Newbury
Week 2, Friday 22nd October, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Edward Small (piano)
Works by Bach, Beethoven, Howells and Liapunov
Week 5, Friday 12th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Ruth Hopkins (soprano), Tristan Mitchard (piano)
Songs and Arias by Ireland, Mozart, Bach, Massenet and Verdi
Week 6, Friday 19th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Schubert: String Quintet in C, D. 956
Gragnani Quartet
(Isla Mundell-Perkins, Adam Sealey, Frederick Reece, Chris Terepin and Tim Coombes)
Week 7, Friday 26th November, 1:15pm, Somerville Chapel
Chris Terepin (cello) and Michael Heighway (piano)
Works by Bach, Leighton, Schumann and Debussy