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Trinity Goes to Tinseltown
We Americans often find the concept of an established church difficult to grasp. As our fellow citizens debate school prayer, crosses in public parks, and vouchers for religious schools, official state support of the church remains de rigueur is other lands and is an integral part of state education. This is particularly apparent at the famous British universities...
Don't be surprised if you have to stop and repeat the first two tracks of this musically compelling, beautifully sung program of works--most of them written during the past 10 years--by British composer Gabriel Jackson. To Morning (2007) and Song (I gaze upon you), from 1996, are the kinds of choral pieces that immediately sound with a vibrancy and freshness sprung from what can only be the...
arly in his London career Handel did not have a chance to write much massed vocal music. The operas were pretty much single-voiced affairs, and the other work normally took the guise of chamber pieces for varied instrumentation. So it was to the church that he looked for opportunities to continue the type of work so brilliantly displayed in the 1707 Dixit Dominus. Though there were several...
These three Anthems for Cannons or Chandos Anthems as they are more widely known, make for a glorious programme from the choir of Trinity Choir Cambridge and their musical director Stephen Layton and at over 20 minutes each they deliver generous recording of Handel's music which maintains high standards throughout. The works date from about 1717 and were written to be performed in the church of...
Händels kirkemusik
"Chandos-hymnerne" består af 11 værker, som Händel komponerede fra august 1717 til sommeren 1718. Navnet refererer til greven af Chandos, hos hvem Händel var huskomponist i den periode, værkerne blev til. Der er tale om kormusik til brug i kirkeligt regi, og sådan som tre af værkerne er at høre på en ny cd, er der virkelig tale om vægtige sager fra mester Händels hånd. Men nu...
Gabriel Jackson is one of the growing number of composers riding the trend for ecstatic “spiritual” music. His long “Eastern” drones are straight out of John Tavener, the radiant harmonies are like Górecki’s famous Symphony of Sorrowful Songs , and there’s the odd hint of Stravinsky’s ritualised Mass.
But compared to them Jackson’s music seems very Anglican in its sweet reasonableness. Nothing...