Directed by Simon Lindley “exquisitely musical”

Works by Tavener, Whitacre, Lauridsen, MacMillan,Parry, Harris, Bairstow, Jackson and others...

Prom ConcertSunday 6 July 8pmVictoria QuarterLeeds, LS1 6AZ

Admission: £2

www.stpeters-singers.org.ukRegistered Charity 507174

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St Peter’s Singers www.stpeters-singers.org.uk

Soprano Catherine Hicks Hannah Hunt Kristina James Principal Julie Kilburn Julie Oldfield Sarah Potter Principal Claire Rivers Sarah Rushton Jackie Coates Clare Gordon Christina Jones Patricia Rose Niki Roach Helen Strange Principal Anita Wiencelewski Principal Alto Lucy Appleyard Principal Tamsyn Durrant Helen Kingstone Sally Scott Kate Thatcher Jan Holdstock Vivienne Hughes Fiona Pacey

Alexandra Rous Linda Wellings Tenor Richard Myhill Matthew Oglesby Gary Skyrme David Strachan Philip Steel Ian Wellings Paul Boocock Graeme Gooday Jonathan Morrish Christopher Trenholme Principal Toby Ward Bass Quentin Brown Principal Peter Crawshaw Thomas Greig David Hawkin Press & PR Peter Boyle Tim Burleigh Chairman Christopher Spanton Jamie Stark Philip Wilcox Principal Alistair Wood

Additional to the important acknowledgements to many who have given invaluable and special support listed on page 4, the members of St Peter’s Singers wish to record especial gratitude to Quentin Brown for his inspiring and indefatigable leadership and coordination of the One Equal Music project.

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St Peter’s Singers www.stpeters-singers.org.uk

Soprano Catherine Hicks Hannah Hunt Kristina James Principal Julie Kilburn Julie Oldfield Sarah Potter Principal Claire Rivers Sarah Rushton Jackie Coates Clare Gordon Christina Jones Patricia Rose Niki Roach Helen Strange Principal Anita Wiencelewski Principal Alto Lucy Appleyard Principal Tamsyn Durrant Helen Kingstone Sally Scott Kate Thatcher Jan Holdstock Vivienne Hughes Fiona Pacey

Alexandra Rous Linda Wellings Tenor Richard Myhill Matthew Oglesby Gary Skyrme David Strachan Philip Steel Ian Wellings Paul Boocock Graeme Gooday Jonathan Morrish Christopher Trenholme Principal Toby Ward Bass Quentin Brown Principal Peter Crawshaw Thomas Greig David Hawkin Press & PR Peter Boyle Tim Burleigh Chairman Christopher Spanton Jamie Stark Philip Wilcox Principal Alistair Wood

Additional to the important acknowledgements to many who have given invaluable and special support listed on page 4, the members of St Peter’s Singers wish to record especial gratitude to Quentin Brown for his inspiring and indefatigable leadership and coordination of the One Equal Music project.

Additional to the important acknowledgements to many who have given invaluable and special support listed on page 5, the members of St Peter’s Singers wish to record especial gratitude to Quentin Brown for his inspiring and indefatigable leadership and coordination of the One Equal Music project.

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ONE EQUAL MUSIC

The project One Equal Music found its inspiration in William Harris’ exquisite setting of John Donne’s prayer Bring us, O Lord God. Wondrously expressive of mystery and the unforeseen, it is one of the jewels of the English Cathedral music tradition and the sort of music that every Cathedral chorister would wish to bring to a wider audience. For us ‘one equal music’ expresses purity and simplicity of musical expression (‘equal temperament’), serenity, and equality of access.

Here, at the commercial heart of the City of Leeds, the Victoria Quarter offers an extraordinary opportunity to let this music be heard at its best by anybody who cares to stop and listen: a place that people frequent as part of their daily economic activity, yet blessed with the space, light and acoustic resonance, allowing this music to work as well as it does in the churches for which it was written; the ‘house and gate of heaven’, perhaps?

Harris, who was influenced by the Orthodox tradition represented here by the excerpt from the Rachmaninov Vespers, also seems the starting point for what followed him in the 20th century: the rediscovery by modern composers of spiritual voices last heard in the Renaissance – music at once simple and complex that points to mysteries and places beyond our understanding. ‘Where words leave off, music begins’.

And what a variety of voices: the young, non-Christian Eric Whitacre, the devout Catholic James MacMillan, the Orthodox-influenced John Tavener and Arvo Pärt, the Protestant Morten Lauridsen, the Anglicans Parry and Harris; and in the midst of this, three composers from our own doorstep: Edward Bairstow, Francis Jackson and Philip Moore, the latter two with close ties to St Peter’s Singers, who between them were Organists of York Minster for some 95 years, and who are by no means out of place in this illustrious company.

We wish you a pleasant evening.

Chairman: Tim Burleigh Secretary: Patricia Rose

Treasurer: Jonathan Morrish Concerts & Library Manager: Quentin Brown

Press and PR: David Hawkin Music Director: Dr Simon Lindley

Organist: David Houlder

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About St Peter’s Singers www.stpeters-singers.org.uk

a Registered Charity, No 507174 St Peter's Singers is a mixed choir of about forty voices based in the City of Leeds. For getting on for forty years the Singers have enjoyed a close relationship with Leeds Minster (St Peter-at-Leeds), formerly Leeds Parish Church, where many concerts and liturgical appearances take place each season. At the same time, the choir performs at many other venues in and around Leeds, including Leeds Town Hall, St Anne's Roman Catholic Cathedral and the Minster Churches of Dewsbury and Doncaster. York Minster has been the venue for three memorable presentations in recent years. The choir sang Evensong at St Paul's Cathedral on Easter Monday in 2005 and 2008, and at Guildford Cathedral on Spring Bank Holiday Saturday in 2011. Other Cathedrals visited recently have included Derby, Ely, Leicester, Ripon and Worcester. Recent choral endeavour by the Singers in receipt of national media coverage took place in early Summer of 2011 and included participation in BBC4's award-winning production of Frankenstein's Wedding telecast live from Kirkstall Abbey and the provision of Dominic Haslam's exciting musical score for the critically acclaimed West Yorkshire Playhouse production of John Ford's 'Tis pity she's a whore. A visit to Mallorca at the end of October 2013 was the choir’s fourth overseas tour, following acclaimed trips to Romania in November 2007, Mallorca in October 2009 and Brittany in May 2011. The Singers’ tour last Autumn was under the direction of Halifax-based conductor and organist Alan Horsey, formerly of Bradford Cathedral, and the organist was David Houlder of Leeds Minster – who last year celebrated a fulfilling ten years of collaboration with St Peter’s Singers.

Dr Simon Lindley serves as Music Director of the acclaimed Leeds-based Chamber Choir, St Peter’s Singers, as well as Organist and Master of the Music at Leeds Minster and City Organist at Leeds Town Hall. In addition to these substantial West Riding-based commitments, he is Conductor of Sheffield Bach Choir, Doncaster Choral Society and Overgate Hospice Choir, Halifax and also the current Centenary President of Sheffield and District Organists’ and Choirmasters’ Association.

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Special thanks

St Peter’s Singers wish to acknowledge a debt of gratitude to:

Mr John Bade, Director, Victoria Quarter _

Leeds City Council Leeds Inspired

All our generous donors to the Crowdfunding endeavour _

Mrs Rosemary Hawkin Jonathan Morrish Esq

Barkhill Clinic Professor Graeme Gooday

Harry Whitham Esq _

Steve Swinden David Hawkin

Vivienne Hughes Matthew Oglesby Dr Simon Lindley

David Houlder Darius Battiwalla

_

The Rector of Leeds, The Reverend Canon Tony Bundock Martin Pinder, Design-IT Paul Abbott, The Venue

Jane Anthony, Leeds Lieder Quirin Gerstenecker, Opera North

Matthew Sims, Leeds International Concert Season

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PROGRAMME

William Henry Harris 1883-1973

Bring us, O Lord God [1959] Bring us, O Lord God, at our last awakening into the house and gate of heav’n, to enter into that gate and dwell in that house, where there shall be no darkness nor dazzling, but one equal light; no noise nor silence, but one equal music; no fears nor hopes, but one equal possession; no ends nor beginnings, but one equal eternity: in the habitation of thy glory and dominion, world without end. Amen. John Donne [1572-1631] – slightly altered

The composer wrote Bring us, O Lord God just two years prior to his retirement in 1961 and his move to Petersfield to be near to one of his daughters. A life-long supporter of the Royal School of Church Music, and hugely energetic in his commitment to many branches of the musical profession, Sir William’s busy schedule in maturity did not perhaps allow him as much time to compose as he would have liked. A choral and orchestral work for the Three Choirs’ Festival – Michaelangelo’s Confession of Faith [1935]– is, frankly, astonishing and one of the very best pieces produced by any English composer between the two World Wars; a similarly visionary work is his setting of Francis Thompson’s evocative text The Hound of Heaven.

Eric Whitacre born 1970

Alleluia Prominent American composer Eric Whitacre served a fruitful and productive period as Composer in Residence at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge some few years ago. An article in the Daily Telegraph recently acclaimed him as that rare thing – a modern composer who is popular and also original.

Alleluia was composed for Dr David Skinner and the Choir of Sidney Sussex, who gave its first performance on 25 June 2011 in the College Chapel. The piece comprises a single word, and thus follows in the tradition of a similarly successful 1940 setting by that doyen of 20th century American choral composers, Randall Thompson [1899-1984] ommissioned by Koussevitzky for

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PROGRAMME

William Henry Harris 1883-1973

Bring us, O Lord God [1959] Bring us, O Lord God, at our last awakening into the house and gate of heav’n, to enter into that gate and dwell in that house, where there shall be no darkness nor dazzling, but one equal light; no noise nor silence, but one equal music; no fears nor hopes, but one equal possession; no ends nor beginnings, but one equal eternity: in the habitation of thy glory and dominion, world without end. Amen. John Donne [1572-1631] – slightly altered

The composer wrote Bring us, O Lord God just two years prior to his retirement in 1961 and his move to Petersfield to be near to one of his daughters. A life-long supporter of the Royal School of Church Music, and hugely energetic in his commitment to many branches of the musical profession, Sir William’s busy schedule in maturity did not perhaps allow him as much time to compose as he would have liked. A choral and orchestral work for the Three Choirs’ Festival – Michaelangelo’s Confession of Faith [1935]– is, frankly, astonishing and one of the very best pieces produced by any English composer between the two World Wars; a similarly visionary work is his setting of Francis Thompson’s evocative text The Hound of Heaven.

Eric Whitacre born 1970

Alleluia Prominent American composer Eric Whitacre served a fruitful and productive period as Composer in Residence at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge some few years ago. An article in the Daily Telegraph recently acclaimed him as that rare thing – a modern composer who is popular and also original.

Alleluia was composed for Dr David Skinner and the Choir of Sidney Sussex, who gave its first performance on 25 June 2011 in the College Chapel. The piece comprises a single word, and thus follows in the tradition of a similarly successful 1940 setting by that doyen of 20th century American choral composers, Randall Thompson [1899-1984] ommissioned by Koussevitzky for

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the opening of the Berkshire Music Center at Tanglewood. Here in our own country, John Rutter has devised a similar piece, entitled, simply, Cantus, written in memory of his American publisher, Donald Hinshaw. Of his piece, Eric Whitacre has written:

I’m not an atheist, but I’m not a Christian either, and for my entire career I have resisted setting texts that could be used in a liturgical context. However, after spending the 2010 Michaelmas Term at Sidney Sussex College, Cambridge, singing with Dr David Skinner and his marvellous choir, I began to see the deep wisdom in the liturgy. I found myself suddenly open to the history and the beauty of the poetry, and it was the word Alleluia – ‘praise God’ – that most enchanted me. So I transcribed my wind symphony work October for a cappella voices, using only that single word.

Marked rubato e molto cantabile, Whitacre’s essay is scored for solo soprano and unaccompanied chorus.

Francis Alan Jackson born 1917

Alleluia, laudate pueri Dominum Alleluia, laudate pueri Dominum: laudate nomen Domini. Praise the Lord, ye servants: O praise the Name of the Lord. Psalm 113, Verse 1

Francis Jackson’s ebullient eight-part motet Alleluia, laudate Dominum! is a work dating from the mid 1970s and published in 1978. The piece was devised especially for conductor (and composer) Andrew Carter and the Chapter House Choir (of York) and is inscribed to them. The tonality has a quasi-modal feel to it, with the opening figurations clearly inspired by the intonation of the eighth plainchant mode utilised in many settings of the night Office of Compline – the final service, or ‘completion’ of medieval monastic worship each day. Energy and projected sonorities abound throughout his most exciting and animated music. Dr Jackson begun composing during the late 1930s and early 1940s and has laboured ceaselessly at his great craft ever since – not least during and since his extensive tenure from 1946 to 1982 as Master of the Minster Music at York in succession to his great teacher Sir Edward Bairstow; by this means has he enriched beyond measure the valuable and much-loved corpus of English choral and organ music.

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Sally Beamish born 1956

In the stillness In the stillness of a church where candles glow, - In the softness of a fall of fresh white snow, In the brightness of the stars that shine this night, In the calmness of a pool of healing light, In the clearness of a choir that softly sings, In the one-ness of a hush of angels’ wings, In the mildness of a night by stable bare, In the quietness of a lull near cradle fair, There’s a patience as we wait for a new morn, And the presence of a child soon to be born. Katrina Shepherd Text reproduced by courtesy of Gorganza Music Limited

Acclaimed equally as viola player as well as composer, Sally Beamish was born in London and now resides in Scotland, to where she moved in 1990 to continue her development as a budding composer. Her music embraces many influences, particularly jazz and Scottish traditional music. The concerto form is a continuing inspiration and she has written for many soloists, including Tabea Zimmermann, Håkan Hardenberger and Branford Marsalis. Her music is performed and broadcast internationally and since 1999 she has been championed by the BIS label, and this concern has recorded much of her work. Recent commissions include a concerto for percussionist Colin Currie with the Bergen Symphony Orchestra, Scottish and Swedish Chamber Orchestras and Stanford Lively Arts, California. Reed Stanzas for the Elias Quartet received its premiere at the 2011 BBC Proms. Her beautiful choral miniature In the stillness sets a text by Katrina Shepherd in simple, traditional style as a reflective Christmas Carol. It has made very many friends since publication as recently as 2007 and achieved a place in the Choir Book for the Queen anthology publication of new music issued in 2012 to mark the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty’s Accession to the Throne. Katrina Shepherd grew up by the sea in Ayrshire on the west coast of Scotland. After studying English at Glasgow University, she did a postgraduate course in primary education before going on to teach a variety of enthusiastic and inspirational children. She loves the living beauty of the natural world and is often inspired by people and nature. Her haiku poems are published in Canada, the USA, Australia, New Zealand and Europe. Some have been given awards.

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John Tavener 1944-2013

Take him, earth, for cherishing Take him, earth, for cherishing, to thy tender breast receive him. Body of a man I bring thee, noble even in its ruin. Helen Waddell [1889-1965] from Medieval Latin Lyrics [1929] – text from the 4th century Latin of Prudentius in his Hymnus circa exsequias defuncti

The loss of Sir John Tavener in November of last year was a grievous blow for British music. From the trail-blazing early works through a substantial corpus of pieces inspired by the Orthodox traditions he espoused so fully in later life, Tavener made his own very special mark on our national cultural heritage. His glorious antiphonal setting of Take him, earth, for cherishing (subtitled Adieu Roger…) comprises a short portion of a well-known memorial text chosen in an earlier generation by Herbert Howells in memory of President John F Kennedy. Tavener’s music was devised following the death of the composer’s brother, Roger and first performed under the direction of Sir John’s friend and colleague Martin Neary at a memorial service held in Christ Church, Spitalfields, London on 12 December 2008. The two stanzas are set firstly for full choir with a reprise for a semi-chorus of four upper voices, two each of sopranos and altos. Piquant harmonic flexibility and sustained sonority are each utilised to great effect in this deeply-felt and expressive setting.

Arvo Pärt born 1935

Magnificat [1989] Magnificat anima mea Dominum My soul doth magnify the Lord Et exsultavit spiritus meus: And my spirit hath rejoiced in Deo salutari meo. in God my Saviour. Quia respexit humilitatem For He hath regarded: ancillae suae: the lowliness of his handmaiden, Ecce enim ex hoc beatam For behold, from henceforth: me dicent omnes generationes. all generations shall call me blessed. Quia fecit mihi magna For He that is mighty qui potens est: hath magnified me: et sanctum nomen eius. and holy is His Name.

Et misericordia eius And His mercy a progenie in progenies: is on them that fear Him: timentibus eum. throughout all generations.

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John Tavener 1944-2013

Take him, earth, for cherishing Take him, earth, for cherishing, to thy tender breast receive him. Body of a man I bring thee, noble even in its ruin. Helen Waddell [1889-1965] from Medieval Latin Lyrics [1929] – text from the 4th century Latin of Prudentius in his Hymnus circa exsequias defuncti

The loss of Sir John Tavener in November of last year was a grievous blow for British music. From the trail-blazing early works through a substantial corpus of pieces inspired by the Orthodox traditions he espoused so fully in later life, Tavener made his own very special mark on our national cultural heritage. His glorious antiphonal setting of Take him, earth, for cherishing (subtitled Adieu Roger…) comprises a short portion of a well-known memorial text chosen in an earlier generation by Herbert Howells in memory of President John F Kennedy. Tavener’s music was devised following the death of the composer’s brother, Roger and first performed under the direction of Sir John’s friend and colleague Martin Neary at a memorial service held in Christ Church, Spitalfields, London on 12 December 2008. The two stanzas are set firstly for full choir with a reprise for a semi-chorus of four upper voices, two each of sopranos and altos. Piquant harmonic flexibility and sustained sonority are each utilised to great effect in this deeply-felt and expressive setting.

Arvo Pärt born 1935

Magnificat [1989] Magnificat anima mea Dominum My soul doth magnify the Lord Et exsultavit spiritus meus: And my spirit hath rejoiced in Deo salutari meo. in God my Saviour. Quia respexit humilitatem For He hath regarded: ancillae suae: the lowliness of his handmaiden, Ecce enim ex hoc beatam For behold, from henceforth: me dicent omnes generationes. all generations shall call me blessed. Quia fecit mihi magna For He that is mighty qui potens est: hath magnified me: et sanctum nomen eius. and holy is His Name.

Et misericordia eius And His mercy a progenie in progenies: is on them that fear Him: timentibus eum. throughout all generations.

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Fecit potentiam in brachio suo: He hath shewed strength with His arm: dispersit superbos He hath scattered the proud, mente cordis sui. in the imagination of their hearts.

Deposuit potentes He hath put down the mighty de sede: from their seat: et exaltavit humiles. and hath exalted the humble and meek. Esurientes He hath filled the hungry implevit bonis: with good things: et divites dimisit in anes. and the rich He hath sent empty away.

Suscepit Israel puerum suum: He remembering His mercy recordatus misericordia eius. hath holpen His servant Israel Sicut locutus est ad patres nostros: As He promised to our forefathers: Abraham et semini eius in saecula. Abraham and his seed for ever. The 1989 setting of Magnificat [in Latin, but without a setting of Gloria Patri in conclusion] by esteemed Estonian composer Arvo Pärt deploys a special compositional technique known as tintinnabulation – a focus that the composer has made peculiarly his own – of which Pärt himself writes:

Tintinnabulation is an area I sometimes wander into when I am searching for answers – in my life, my music, my work. In my dark hours, I have the certain feeling that everything outside this one thing has no meaning. The complex and many-faceted only confuses me, and I must search for unity. What is it, this one thing, and how do I find my way to it? Traces of this perfect thing appear in many guises – and everything that is unimportant falls away. Tintinnabulation is like this. . . . The three notes of a triad are like bells. And that is why I call it tintinnabulation.

Scholars tell us that:

Musically, Pärt’s tintinnabular music is characterised by two types of voices, the first of which (dubbed the "tintinnabular voice") arpeggiates the tonic triad and the second of which moves diatonically (that is within the given notes of the scale without using any chromatic) in stepwise motion. The works often have a slow and meditative tempo, and a minimalist approach to both notation and performance.

Pärt’s compositional approach has expanded somewhat in the years since 1970, but the overall effect remains largely the same.

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Edward Cuthbert Bairstow 1874-1946

Let all mortal flesh [1906] Let all mortal flesh keep silence, and stand with fear and trembling, and lift itself above all earthly thought. For the King of kings and Lord of lords, Christ our God, cometh forth to be our oblation, and to be giv’n for food to the faithful. Before Him come the choirs of angels, with ev’ry principality and pow’r; the Cherubim with many eyes, and wingèd Seraphim, who veil their faces as they shout exultingly the hymn: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia. Solo Tenor and Bass: Let all mortal flesh keep silence, and stand with fear and trembling. Liturgy of Saint James – version of the text as in Hymns Ancient & Modern, 1904 Text reproduced by courtesy of SCM Canterbury Press

Although not published until 1925, by which time its composer had been Master of the Minster music at York for twelve years, Bairstow’s Let all mortal flesh was written in the Summer of 1906 – and was probably the very first of a number of pieces devised during his tenure as Organist and Choirmaster at Leeds from 1906 to 1913. Bairstow had come to the West Riding from Wigan, and had earlier served as Organist of All Saints’ Norfolk Square, Paddington. Though born in Huddersfield, he was educated in Nottingham and London and articled as a pupil of Sir Frederick Bridge at Westminster Abbey. Let all mortal flesh is one of the most exquisite gems of the English choral repertory. The hushed opening, for tenors and basses in unison, is followed by sustained upper voices and a pulsating unison is then succeeded by a richly harmonised processional – Before Him come the choirs of Angels. The music builds to a vast tapestry of sound at the Alleluia refrain before subsiding to the awe-struck mood of the opening.

William Harris Faire is the heav’n [1925/1948]

Faire is the heav’n, where happy soules have place in full enjoyment of felicitie; Whence they doe still behold the glorious face of the Divine, Eternall Majestie; Yet farre more faire be those bright Cherubins, Which all with golden wings are overdight. And those eternall burning Seraphins Which from their faces dart out fiery light; Yet fairer than they both and much more bright, Be th’ Angels and Archangels, which attend On God’s owne person, without rest or end.

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Edward Cuthbert Bairstow 1874-1946

Let all mortal flesh [1906] Let all mortal flesh keep silence, and stand with fear and trembling, and lift itself above all earthly thought. For the King of kings and Lord of lords, Christ our God, cometh forth to be our oblation, and to be giv’n for food to the faithful. Before Him come the choirs of angels, with ev’ry principality and pow’r; the Cherubim with many eyes, and wingèd Seraphim, who veil their faces as they shout exultingly the hymn: Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia. Solo Tenor and Bass: Let all mortal flesh keep silence, and stand with fear and trembling. Liturgy of Saint James – version of the text as in Hymns Ancient & Modern, 1904 Text reproduced by courtesy of SCM Canterbury Press

Although not published until 1925, by which time its composer had been Master of the Minster music at York for twelve years, Bairstow’s Let all mortal flesh was written in the Summer of 1906 – and was probably the very first of a number of pieces devised during his tenure as Organist and Choirmaster at Leeds from 1906 to 1913. Bairstow had come to the West Riding from Wigan, and had earlier served as Organist of All Saints’ Norfolk Square, Paddington. Though born in Huddersfield, he was educated in Nottingham and London and articled as a pupil of Sir Frederick Bridge at Westminster Abbey. Let all mortal flesh is one of the most exquisite gems of the English choral repertory. The hushed opening, for tenors and basses in unison, is followed by sustained upper voices and a pulsating unison is then succeeded by a richly harmonised processional – Before Him come the choirs of Angels. The music builds to a vast tapestry of sound at the Alleluia refrain before subsiding to the awe-struck mood of the opening.

William Harris Faire is the heav’n [1925/1948]

Faire is the heav’n, where happy soules have place in full enjoyment of felicitie; Whence they doe still behold the glorious face of the Divine, Eternall Majestie; Yet farre more faire be those bright Cherubins, Which all with golden wings are overdight. And those eternall burning Seraphins Which from their faces dart out fiery light; Yet fairer than they both and much more bright, Be th’ Angels and Archangels, which attend On God’s owne person, without rest or end.

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These then in faire each other farre excelling, As to the Highest they approach more neare, Yet is that Highest farre beyond all telling Fairer than all the rest which there appear. Though all their beauties joynd together were; How then can mortall tongue hope to expresse The image of such endlesse perfectnesse? Edmund Spenser [1552-1599] – from A Hymne of Heavenly Beautie

London-born Sir William Harris taught music to Her Majesty the Queen and her sister, the late Princess Margaret, during their youth and his distinguished service as Organist of St George’s Chapel Windsor from 1933 to 1961. Harris’s early career had been as assistant at St David’s and Lichfield Cathedrals, and, whilst in London, to the Temple Church, as well as organist of the Anglo-Catholic shrine of St John’s Holland Road, West Kensington, Wimbledon Parish Church, Ewell Parish Church, St Augustine’s Edgbaston and from thence to New College and Christ Church, Oxford in turn. As a composer, he was gifted in being able to write equally with great effectuality for the finest choral forces on the one hand and for choirs of far more modest resources on the other. His two most famous anthems, both in the sumptuously rich tonality of D flat major, were produced in 1925 and 1959 respectively. The first, a magnificent setting of Edmund Spenser’s Faire is the heaven, was revised in 1948 and the second, John Donne’s exquisite prayer Bring us, O Lord God, each make full use of the antiphonal resources afforded by double choir formation as well as containing many passages written fully over eight parts rather than disposed for two choirs of four vocal lines each.

James MacMillan born 1958

Dominus, dabit benignitatem [Strathclyde Motets] Dominus, dabit benignitatem: et terra nostra dabit fructum suum. Amen. The Lord shall show loving-kindness: and our land shall give her increase. Amen. Communion Proper of Advent Sunday [the First Sunday of/in Advent] – Psalm 84 Vulgate [BCP 85], Verse 3

Within the style of contemporary Scottish composer James MacMillan are represented elements of traditional Scots music, notably the “Scotch snap” as well as melismatic writing of great beauty often enhanced in terms of tonality much found in celtic folk music. Of The Strathclyde Motets the composer himself writes

The Strathclyde Motets grew out of ongoing discussions between Alan Tavener, Brendan Slevin, the Roman Catholic Chaplain at Strathclyde

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These then in faire each other farre excelling, As to the Highest they approach more neare, Yet is that Highest farre beyond all telling Fairer than all the rest which there appear. Though all their beauties joynd together were; How then can mortall tongue hope to expresse The image of such endlesse perfectnesse? Edmund Spenser [1552-1599] – from A Hymne of Heavenly Beautie

London-born Sir William Harris taught music to Her Majesty the Queen and her sister, the late Princess Margaret, during their youth and his distinguished service as Organist of St George’s Chapel Windsor from 1933 to 1961. Harris’s early career had been as assistant at St David’s and Lichfield Cathedrals, and, whilst in London, to the Temple Church, as well as organist of the Anglo-Catholic shrine of St John’s Holland Road, West Kensington, Wimbledon Parish Church, Ewell Parish Church, St Augustine’s Edgbaston and from thence to New College and Christ Church, Oxford in turn. As a composer, he was gifted in being able to write equally with great effectuality for the finest choral forces on the one hand and for choirs of far more modest resources on the other. His two most famous anthems, both in the sumptuously rich tonality of D flat major, were produced in 1925 and 1959 respectively. The first, a magnificent setting of Edmund Spenser’s Faire is the heaven, was revised in 1948 and the second, John Donne’s exquisite prayer Bring us, O Lord God, each make full use of the antiphonal resources afforded by double choir formation as well as containing many passages written fully over eight parts rather than disposed for two choirs of four vocal lines each.

James MacMillan born 1958

Dominus, dabit benignitatem [Strathclyde Motets] Dominus, dabit benignitatem: et terra nostra dabit fructum suum. Amen. The Lord shall show loving-kindness: and our land shall give her increase. Amen. Communion Proper of Advent Sunday [the First Sunday of/in Advent] – Psalm 84 Vulgate [BCP 85], Verse 3

Within the style of contemporary Scottish composer James MacMillan are represented elements of traditional Scots music, notably the “Scotch snap” as well as melismatic writing of great beauty often enhanced in terms of tonality much found in celtic folk music. Of The Strathclyde Motets the composer himself writes

The Strathclyde Motets grew out of ongoing discussions between Alan Tavener, Brendan Slevin, the Roman Catholic Chaplain at Strathclyde

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University, and myself. We drew the Strathclyde University Chamber Choir into an ongoing project at the Chaplaincy, and now at St Columba’s Church in Maryhill, that they would come a few times a year and sing the liturgy for us and I would write a series of new Communion motets for them.

Serge Rachmaninov 1873-1943

Bogoróditse dyévo [Ave Maria] from the All-Night Vigil [1915] Bŏgŏroditse dyevo, raduissya, blagŏdatnaya Mariye Gospod (s)Tŏboyu. Blagŏslŏvyenna Tyi vzhenakh, I blagŏslŏven plod chryeva Tvŏyego, Yako Spassa rŏdila yessi dush nashikh.

Rejoice, O Holy Mother of God, Virgin Mary, full of grace, The Lord is with thee; bessed art thou among women, and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, for thou hast borne the Saviour of our souls.

Following a performance in 1914 of the composer’s Liturgy of Saint John Chrysostom of 1910, Rachmaninov determined to produce another substantial setting of traditional Russian Orthodox texts. The All-Night Vigil was a great success following its first hearing by the Moscow Synodical Choir in 1915, but the Revolution just two years later resulted in the almost total neglect of the piece for almost half a century. Some of the music did survive, though, in editions of component pieces to English texts under the editorship of Glasgow University Organist, A M Henderson. Since the restoration of the All-Night Vigil to the choral repertoire in the 1960s, this noble fragment, known as the Hymn to the Virgin Mother and sometimes as Ave Maria, has achieved the widespread acclaim and performance that is it so justly deserves. The music comes at the very end of the first part of the Vigil, the Vespers.

Morten Lauridsen born 1943

O magnum mysterium O magnum mysterium, et admirabile sacramentum, ut animalia viderent Dominum natum, jacentem in praesepio! Beata Virgo, cujus viscera meruerunt portare Dominum Christum. Alleluia.

O great mystery, and wonderful sacrament, that animals should see the new-born Lord, lying in a manger! Blessed is the Virgin whose womb was worthy to bear Christ the Lord. Alleluia! Responsory from the Matins of Christmas

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Said by one fellow American musician to be “the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic, (whose) probing, serene work contains an elusive and indefinable ingredient which leaves the impression that all the questions have been answered”, Morten Lauridsen occupies in the public mind prime position as an American choral composer in the same manners as did Randall Thompson in an earlier era. O magnum mysterium is a responsorial chant from the Matins of Christmas. Lauridsen’s visionary setting has quickly moved into a position of great popularity with performers and listeners alike, vieing with the earlier classic settings of the text by figures of the calibre of Tomas Luis de Victoria, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina and Giovanni Gabrieli.

James MacMillan O Radiant Dawn

O Radiant Dawn, Splendour of eternal Light, Sun of Justice, Come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death. Isaiah had prophesied, ‘The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone.’ Amen. Magnificat Antiphon, 21 December – from the “Great O” Antiphons in days leading to the Feast of Christmas

Dominus, dabit benignitatem and O Radiant Dawn are the two most well-known extracts from The Strathclyde Motets. O Radiant Dawn is, clearly, inspired by Thomas Tallis’s fine Transfiguration motet O nata lux de Lumine.

Philip John Moore born 1943

Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer Morning Prayers – Prayers in time of distress – Evening Prayers

i) Morning Prayers Alto Solo O God, early in the morning do I cry unto Thee, Help me to pray, and to think only of Thee. I cannot pray alone. Choir In me there is darkness, But with Thee there is light. I am lonely, but Thou leavest me not. I am feeble in heart, but Thou leavest me not. I am restless, but with Thee there is peace.

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Said by one fellow American musician to be “the only American composer in history who can be called a mystic, (whose) probing, serene work contains an elusive and indefinable ingredient which leaves the impression that all the questions have been answered”, Morten Lauridsen occupies in the public mind prime position as an American choral composer in the same manners as did Randall Thompson in an earlier era. O magnum mysterium is a responsorial chant from the Matins of Christmas. Lauridsen’s visionary setting has quickly moved into a position of great popularity with performers and listeners alike, vieing with the earlier classic settings of the text by figures of the calibre of Tomas Luis de Victoria, Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina and Giovanni Gabrieli.

James MacMillan O Radiant Dawn

O Radiant Dawn, Splendour of eternal Light, Sun of Justice, Come, shine on those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death. Isaiah had prophesied, ‘The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone.’ Amen. Magnificat Antiphon, 21 December – from the “Great O” Antiphons in days leading to the Feast of Christmas

Dominus, dabit benignitatem and O Radiant Dawn are the two most well-known extracts from The Strathclyde Motets. O Radiant Dawn is, clearly, inspired by Thomas Tallis’s fine Transfiguration motet O nata lux de Lumine.

Philip John Moore born 1943

Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer Morning Prayers – Prayers in time of distress – Evening Prayers

i) Morning Prayers Alto Solo O God, early in the morning do I cry unto Thee, Help me to pray, and to think only of Thee. I cannot pray alone. Choir In me there is darkness, But with Thee there is light. I am lonely, but Thou leavest me not. I am feeble in heart, but Thou leavest me not. I am restless, but with Thee there is peace.

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In me there is bitterness, but with Thee there is patience; Thy ways are past understanding, Alto Solo But Thou knowest the way for me. Choir O heavenly Father I praise and thank Thee for the peace of the night. I praise and thank Thee for this new day. I praise and thank Thee for all Thy goodness and faithfulness throughout my life. Thou hast granted me many blessings: Now let me accept tribulation from Thy hand. Thou wilt not lay on me more than I can bear. Thou makest all things work together for good for Thy children. Lord Jesus Christ, Thou wast poor and in misery, a captive and forsaken as I am. Thou knowest all man’s distress; Thou abidest with me when all others have deserted me; Thou dost not forget me, but seekest me. Thou willest that I should know Thee and turn to Thee. Lord, I hear Thy call and follow Thee; Do Thou help me. Alto Solo Chiefly do I remember all my loved ones, my fellow-prisoners, and all who in this house perform their hard service. Choir Lord have mercy. Restore me to liberty, and enable me so to live now, That I may answer before Thee and before the world. Lord, whatever this day may bring, Thy Name be praisèd. [Alto Solo …..be praisèd.] ii) Prayers in time of Distress Choir O Lord God, great is the misery that has come upon me; My cares would overwhelm me, I know not what to do. O God, be gracious unto me and help me. Grant me strength to bear what Thou dost send, and let not fear rule over me. As a loving Father, take care of my lov’d ones, my wife and children. O merciful God, forgive me all the sins I have committed against Thee, and against my fellow men. I trust in Thy grace, and commit my life wholly into Thy hands. Do with me as seemeth best to Thee, and as is best for me.

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Whether I live or die, I am with Thee, and Thou art with me, my God. Lord, I wait for Thy salvation, Tenor Solo and for Thy Kingdom. iii) Evening Prayers Tenor Solo O Lord my God, I thank Thee that Thou hast brought this day to a close; Choir I thank Thee that Thou hast giv’n me peace in body and in soul. Thy hand has been over me and has protected and preserved me. Forgive my puny faith, the ill that I this day have done, and help me to forgive all who have wronged me. Soprano Solo Grant me a quiet night’s sleep beneath Thy tender care. [Choir: O Lord, my God.] Solo Baritone And defend me from all the temptations of darkness. Choir [Choir: O Lord, my God.] Choir [Chorale melody – Nun komm, der Heiden Heiland] Into Thy hands I commend my loved ones, and all who dwell in this house; I commend my body and soul. O God, Thy holy Name be praised. Amen.

Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer were commissioned by Equinox with funds provided from the South East Arts Association. The scores of the works were printed by Boosey and Hawkes in 2002. The texts are taken from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Letters and Papers from Prison © SCM Canterbury Press and here reprinted by permission.

Since publication as recently as 2002, the Three Prayers have become amongst Philip Moore’s most famous choral pieces. Along with his superb traditional anthem All wisdom cometh from the Lord, the Bonhoeffer Prayers must be among his most performed works. Moore’s work list comprises over 300 components and his creative output appears under the imprint of many leading publishers. The Three Prayers have been recorded by a number of famous choirs, notably that of St John’s College, Cambridge, conducted by David Hill and the Vasari Singers under Jeremy Backhouse. In common with his three immediate predecessors at York Minster, Thomas Tertius Noble, Edward Bairstow and Francis Jackson, Philip Moore (holder of

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posts at Eton College and at the Cathedrals of Canterbury and Guildford prior to his work as York) has risen to great prominence as a composer – pre-eminently a choral composer – within our own time. Utilising texts derived from Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s Letters and Papers from Prison, Moore’s settings are profoundly personal essays of great intensity. The nature of personal prayer is reflected by the use of segments for solo voices – alto in the first of the three settings, tenor (very briefly) in the second movement, and tenor, soprano and baritone, in that order, for the final component. The music fair burns with intensity from the first bar until the last. Unsurprisingly, these magnificent settings have been eagerly taken up by adult choirs such St Peter’s Singers, whose members are particularly committed to them, as well as by Collegiate and Cathedral Choirs.

Charles Hubert Hastings Parry 1848-1918

My soul, there is a country [Songs of Farewell –1916-1918]

My soul, there is a country far beyond the stars, Where stands a wingèd sentry, all skilful in the wars:

There, above noise and danger, sweet peace sits crowned with smiles, And One, born in a manger commands the beauteous files.

He is thy gracious Friend, and – O my soul awake! Did in pure love descend to die here for thy sake.

If thou canst get but thither, there grows the flow’r of peace, The Rose that cannot wither, thy fortress and thy ease.

Leave then thy foolish ranges, for none can thee secure But one who never changes, thy God, thy life, thy cure. Henry Vaughan the Silurist [1622-1695]

Parry’s position as leader of musical Britain was unassailable, not least as a hugely influential Director of the Royal College of Music in succession of Sir George Grove of ‘Dictionary’ fame – though it is as a composer that he is remembered today. Herbert Howells tells us that the years of the First World War that began exactly a century ago in August 1914 were ‘a scourge that cast a devastating shadow over Parry’s mind and heart’. Parry himself, sensing that his life was drawing to a close, wrote on his 70th birthday ‘I have reached the last milestone’. This private scenario for this very private man provides the

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ambience in which Parry created his remarkable cycle of six settings for unaccompanied chorus known universally as the Songs of Farewell. Only one, Lord, let me know mine end, is set to a specifically sacred text (in this case, the 39th Psalm). The others include an expansive setting in six parts of Thomas Campion’s Never weather-beaten sail. For the first song of the set, the composer turns to stanzas by the famous Henry Vaughan. The reflective text of My soul, there is a country has made its way into many hymnal compilations. Parry’s setting consists of a number of miniature movements and the whole feels a little like an extended choral recitative spun together by glorious vocal lines and generally homophonic movement. In just about 70 bars and a very short time-span, Parry wreaks his magic on listener and singer alike.

Francis Jackson Evening Hymn, Op 36 No 2 [1975]

The night is come like to the day, depart not thou, great God, away; Let not my sins, black as the night, eclipse the lustre of thy light. Keep still in my horizon, for to me the sun makes not the day, but thee.

Thou whose nature cannot sleep, on my temples sentry keep; Guard me ‘gainst those watchful foes whose eyes are open while mine close.

Let no dreams my head infest, but such as Jacob’s temples blest. While I do rest my soul advance, make my sleep a holy trance:

That I may, my rest being wrought, awake into some holy thought And with active vigour run my course as doth the nimble sun.

Sleep is a death, O make me try by sleeping what it is to die. And as gently lay my head on my grave as now my bed. Now ere I rest great God let me awake again at last with thee. And thus assured behold I lie securely or to wake or die. These are my drowsy days, in vain do I now wake to sleep again. O come that hour, when I shall never sleep again but wake for ever. Sir Thomas Browne [1605-1682]

Dedicated to Garrett O’Brien [1934-1995] and the Exultate Singers, Francis Jackson’s Evening Hymn is one of its composer’s finest, and most challenging, works for unaccompanied chorus. Dr Jackson sets an extended, meditative text by English polymath and medic, Sir Thomas Browne. The music unfolds using chords in positions other than traditional root positions – a technique providing an ambience of ‘lift’ from earth towards heaven as well as creating a spectacular sense of mystery. This magnificent work is inscribed to a great unsung hero of British music and a former student at The Royal School of Church Music during

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the RSCM’s years at Addington Palace. O’Brien was for a time Assistant Organist of Southwark Cathedral. Although never a full-time professional musician (Garrett numbered silver-smithing among many talents), O’Brien was active as Conductor of the Exultate Singers and, from 1980 when he moved to Scotland, the Roxburgh Singers. Jackson’s textures are rich, sustained and of very great beauty. Technically, the piece is quite a challenge in terms of both breath control and intonation. There was a particularly fine broadcast performance of this piece some years ago from the Britten (formerly the BBC Northern) Singers under the direction of legendary conductor Stephen Wilkinson.

UPCOMING WITH ST PETER’S SINGERS AT

The Moravian Church, Fulneck, Pudsey

HANDEL – SAMSON Bank Holiday Monday 25 August 2014 at 3.00 pm

Leeds Town Hall

BYRD, LASSUS, LAURIDSEN MACMILLAN, VICTORIA

Monday 27 October 2014 at 1.05 pm

SACRED CHORAL CLASSICS JESU, JOY AND ALL THAT JAZZ!

with David Houlder organ Monday 16 February 2015 at 1.05 pm

www.chorum.co.uk

ChorumRECORDS

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