Autumn into Winter Concert

New Opera Company are performing their Autumn into Winter concert at St Matthew's Church, Darley Abbey, on Saturday 28 November at 2.30pm. It's a miscellany of music marking the turn of the season, with pieces that fit Advent and Christmas as well as the autumn-to-winter shift, so it works as a late-November afternoon out or as a bit of early festive listening.

If you're not familiar with them, New Opera Company is a Derby institution that's been around since 1957. It's a registered charity and a member of The National Federation of Music Societies (Making Music). In the early days, they staged a full grand opera every year, playing at the Derby Theatre, Derby Playhouse, Buxton Opera House and Derby Guildhall. Their January 2012 production of Johann Strauss II's Die Fledermaus at Derby Theatre got very good reviews, and several past members have gone on to perform professionally.

Full opera restagings have become rare in recent years, though, because of financial constraints and the difficulty of finding suitable venues. These days the company programmes seasonal concerts instead, drawing from opera, operetta and lighter show music — sometimes performed in costume — in halls and churches across Derby and the surrounding area. They rehearse at All Saints Church on Etwall Road in Mickleover on Wednesday evenings at 7.30pm.

This particular concert also does something for the community: a donation is made to The Hope Centre, Derby, based on the number of people who attend. Tickets are £10, which includes interval refreshments, and it starts at 2.30pm on Saturday 28 November at St Matthew's Church, Darley Abbey.