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The Choral Pilgrimage 2026: Cambridge

A programme exploring majestic music from the Spanish Renaissance alongside spellbinding works from James MacMillan and Kerensa Briggs.

  • 8th May 2026 - 8th May 2026
  • 7:30 pm - 9:15 pm

The Choral Pilgrimage 2026: Lead, Kindly Light

Spain’s Siglo de Oro, the Age of Gold, gave rise to some of the greatest sacred choral music of the Renaissance. We devote our latest Choral Pilgrimage to pieces by two outstanding Spanish composers, exploring majestic works by Cristóbal de Morales, famed throughout Europe and in the New World, and the exquisite polyphony of Sebastián de Vivánco, whose intricately crafted counterpoint adorned services at the cathedrals of Ávila and Salamanca during the late 1500s.

Our programme also features spellbinding settings of words by Saint John Henry Newman: Sir James MacMillan’s Nothing in Vain for soloists and double choir and the world premiere of Kerensa Briggs’ Lead, Kindly Light, specially commissioned for the Choral Pilgrimage.

Programme:

Vivanco: Christus factus est pro nobis
Morales: Emendemus in Melius
Vivanco: Assumpta est Maria
Morales: Gaude et laetare Ferrariensis civitas
Kerensa Briggs Lead, kindly light (new commission)
Vivanco: Magnificat Octavi toni

Interval

Morales: Jubilate Deo omnis terra
Vivanco: O quam suavis est, Domine
Morales: Exaltata est sancta Dei Genitrix
Morales: Lamentabatur Jacob
Vivanco: Caritas Pater est
James MacMillan: Nothing in vain (Commissioned in 2021 by the Genesis Foundation for Harry Christophers and The Sixteen)

Accessibility Facilities

  • Wheelchair accessible
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Did you know?

One of Cambridge’s most beloved community events is the Mill Road Winter Fair, which takes place annually on the first Saturday in December. Offering stalls, entertainment and a parade, it’s been running since 2005 and attracts around 15,000 people a year.