Joyous sounds of the Creation at St Mary's in Warwick this weekend

They will perform Haydn’s Creation at St Mary’s church on Saturday June 3 from 7.30pm.

Haydn took text from both the Bible and Milton’s Paradise Lost to compile an oratorio which covers the seven days of the Biblical account of the Creation.

Singers’ spokeswoman Kate Nash said: “The joy of the piece comes largely from Haydn’s astonishing word painting.

“The deep darkness of chaos is expressed in a spooky opening section, there is a moment of high drama at the appearance of light and, throughout the piece, the music paints vivid pictures of lions, great whales, the call of birds and even the slithering of snakes.

“There are storms, with thunder, lightning hail and snow, and there are moments of great calm depicting the moon and stars or a beautiful pastoral scene. There are huge choruses of praise and wonderful arias including one of the most delightful love songs between Adam and Eve.”

Conductor Julian Harris said: “This is one of my favourite works - optimistic, approachable and utterly magical.

“It is Haydn at his creative best and I am confident that the Saint James’s Singers, together with our wonderful professional players and soloists will make the evening unforgettable.”

The choir will be joined by three highly regarded soloists – soprano Helen Neeves, tenor Edmund Hastings and bass James Gower.

Tickets are £17.50 and £12.50 or £5 for children under 16 .

Call 07502 939498 to book.