We are delighted to welcome ‘Wendy Long, with Sarah Lewis-Briggs and Isabella Briggs’ to the Fratry Hall. Please note this is part of our Free Afternoon recitals but this week takes place on a TUESDAY.

While entry to our concerts is complimentary, we encourage contributions during the collection at the end of each performance to support both the talented artists and the Cathedral. Your generosity will help us continue to bring such events to the community. We look forward to seeing you there!

Laudamus Te W. A. Mozart (1756 – 1791)

Taken from Mozart’s Mass in C minor, K.427/417a (1783), this joyful celebration of God sings his praises, to bless, worship and glorify Him.

Domine Deus A. Vivaldi (1678 – 1741)

From Vivaldi’s joyful ‘Gloria’ RV589 (1715), a song of love and adoration For God.

Solveig’s Sang E. Grieg (1843 – 1907) H. Ibsen (lyricist: 1828 – 1906)

Taken from Grieg’s ‘Peer Gynt’ suite Op. 23 (1875), Solveig sings of her hope that her love, Peer Gynt, will return, and her sorrow upon realising that his perilous journey may lead to his death. She prays that God will protect him and promises that, if he never returns, they will meet in heaven.

O Mio Babbino Caro G. Puccini (1858 – 1924) G. Forzano (lyricist: 1884 – 1970)

In Puccini’s comic opera, Lauretta pleads with her father to help in securing her betrothal to her beloved Rinuccio, despite his family’s contempt of her lower social status, by forging the will of Rinuccio’s wealthy relative so that his family will allow him to marry her.

O Del Mio Amato Ben S. Donaudy (1879 – 1925) A. Donaudy (lyricist: 1880 – 1941)

In this 1918 art song, Donaudy combines Classical and Romantic styles as an abandoned woman sings of the lost enchantment of her beloved, and her deep sorrow. Having only tears to nourish her heart, she laments that without him, life is in vain.

Sarah Lewis-Briggs will be performing:

Du Bist die Ruh F. Schubert (1797 – 1828)

Elizabeth’s Song M. Head (1900 – 1976)

Silent Noon R. Vaughan Williams (1872 – 1958)

O Had I Jubal’s Lyre G. F. Handel (1685 –1759)

In Handel’s ‘Joshua’ HWV 64 (1747), Achsah sings of her joy at the triumphant return from battle of her beloved Othniel.

The Loom Arr. G. Williams (1906 – 1977)

In this 1960 arrangement of a traditional Welsh folk song, an ageing woman mourns her lost youth and, despairing, leaves her home and her only possession, her loom. However, she finds solace in the beauty of the night sky and the song of the nightingale, returning with resignation to her home and her loom.

Elfenlied H. Wolf (1860 – 1903) E. Mörike (lyricist: 1804 – 1875)

In this 1888 song from Wolf’s Mörike-Lieder, a humorous situation created by a pun and a misunderstanding. When the night watchman calls ‘Elfe’ (a homophone meaning both ‘eleven’ and ‘elf’ in German) a little elf is awoken, stumbling into the village in a sleepy daze. Seeing a wedding, he decides to investigate, but due to his dozy state, he hits his head, and is subsequently scolded by the wedding guests, who think he is inebriated.

Les Berceaux G. Faure (1845 – 1924) S. Prudhomme (lyricist: 1839 – 1907)

Love and duty often come into conflict and in this sorrowful 1879 art song the narrator sings of adventurous men setting sail, lured by the sea, only to feel the pain of the little souls of the babies left behind, rocked in their cradles by their loving mothers, calling them home.

Da Tempeste il legno infranto G. F. Handel (1685 –1759) N. F. Haym (lyricist: 1678 – 1729)

Cleopatra, the heroine in Handel’s 1724 opera ‘Giulio Cesare in Egitto’ sings of her overwhelming emotion. She uses the metaphor of a ship returning safely from a storm-tossed sea, being filled with joy at being rescued from imprisonment by her lover Caesar, whom she had believed to be dead.

Wendy Long

Wendy Long studied violin and piano as a junior exhibitioner at the Royal Academy of Music, where she played second lead in the symphony orchestra and enjoyed singing in the senior choir, as well as winning second place in the Lila Collier Violin Prize.

After raising a family, she returned to her music studies to pursue her love of singing. She has performed principal roles in numerous musical theatre productions, including several Gilbert and Sullivan operettas – Patience, The Gondoliers, and Iolanthe – as well as contemporary musicals, including Sweeney Todd, Fiddler on the Roof, and many more.

She holds an ATCL instrumental and vocal teaching diploma, and now teaches a small number of singing students, alongside teaching English to international students. She is a member of Penrith Singers, and is working towards her DipLCM.

Bio – Sarah Lewis-Briggs

Sarah Lewis-Briggs studied Music with English at Nottingham University. She works full-time as a Chartered Surveyor, but has sung with Solway Singers since 2008, for whom she is a regular soloist. She also sings with other choirs including her own vocal ensemble, Amici. Sarah obtained her ARSM with Merit in 2021 and is currently working towards her LTCL.

Bio – Isabella Briggs

Isabella Briggs is currently studying at Junior RNCM, where she has performed in concerts as a soloist, member of a piano quintet and as a choir member. She studies piano as her first study under Polish teacher Marta Karbownicka, and has also taken lessons from great English pianists including Martin Roscoe and Kathryn Stott when attending the 2023 Chethams International Piano Summer School. She has also taken organ lessons with Carlisle Cathedral’s Assistant Organist, Edward Taylor. She also undertakes professional accompaniment for soloists and choirs as both an organist and pianist.

Isabella is currently in her gap year, and has accepted a place at the University of Manchester to study music as an undergraduate beginning September 2025. Isabella’s will have her first solo recital in the Fratry in May, again in July, with repertoire mainly taken from the programme of her LTCL recital, which she plans to take in the summer of this year.