Filming session at St Lawrence's

We had a fun evening at St Lawrence's Church Stanmore with our 'Trials and Triumphs of Oriana' team, filming a few bits and pieces. This was the church where Handel used to play the organ when he was in the employ of the Duke of Chandos, whose house is just around the corner in Canons Park (now a school.) We were able to use various parts of this stunning church for different backdrops. We filmed the group madrigals in the Duke of Chandos's balcony (rather like a royal box it sits high at the back of the building for the best view and acoustic) and more of the domestic music up on the stage near the organ, surrounded by beautiful oil paintings, where Handel used to arrange his singers. As a bonus we had access to the stunning mausoleum, overlooked by the imposing statue of the Duke. While too live for some of the repertoire, the acoustic here was so beautiful we recorded a couple of things, very slowly, to make the most of it! It also had an atmospheric natural light in here with all the austere marble surfaces.

Scroll down for some photos and video clip! More soon.

P & A x