A rare concert in the University of Cambridge’s Senate House, one of the highlights of the week-long Cambridge Cantat 800 choral festival, takes place this evening (April 16).

The concert will be presented in two parts; the first will be presented in the University church Great St Mary’s, and the second in the Senate House, which is primarily used for degree ceremonies and has not been used for a concert in more than a generation.

Since the 15th century, when Cambridge issued the world's first music degrees, the University's academic music requirements have resulted in the composition of some exquisite and eccentric choral music. A highlight of Thursday’s performance in the Senate House is Maurice Greene’s Ode for St Cecilia, which was penned for a degree ceremony in 1730 in that very building.

The Senate House was completed in 1730 to plans by James Gibbs and James Burrough, with woodwork by James Essex the Elder and a plaster ceiling by Artari and Bagutti. The first stone was laid in 1722 by Thomas Crosse, then the University’s Vice-Chancellor.

The building’s greatest claim to fame stems from an event on 8 June 1958, when passers-by were astounded to see an Austin Seven perched on the roof. The feat, perpetrated by a dozen engineering students at Gonville & Caius College, is perhaps the most famous student prank of all time.

This evening however, the action will be purely musical in nature. The concert will begin at 7.30pm at Great St Mary’s. Tickets range from £8-£15, and are available on the door or through the Cambridge Corn Exchange.

There are many more events taking place throughout the Festival, which runs until 19 April. Tickets are available through the Corn Exchange box office on 01223 357851.
 

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