The Birth of British Music - Part 2 - Handel, The Conquering Hero

Conductor Charles Hazlewood explores the lives and music of four composers intimately linked with Britain: Henry Purcell, George Frideric Handel, Joseph Haydn and Felix Mendelssohn.

Handel - The Conquering Hero - The second of four programs focuses on Handel, who made his home in Britain and became a celebrity and national icon in the process. In an unusual take on John Gay's 'The Beggar's Opera', Charles invites comedian Phill Jupitus to take a new approach to the music along with acclaimed folk singers Rachel and Becky Unthank, guitarist Adrian Utley from Portishead, and jazz drummer Martin France.

A Preview of the Music Selected for the Royal Wedding

Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton have announced a beautiful selection of music for their Wedding Service consisting of the greatest composers and traditional British choral music, including hymns often featured on this website. 

There will be two choirs, one orchestra, and two fanfare teams, including the Choir of Westminster Abbey, the Chapel Royal Choir, the London Chamber Orchestra, the Fanfare Team from the Central Band of the Royal Air Force, the State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry comprised of both the Band of the Life Guards and the Band of the Blues and Royals.

Before the Service

The music before the Service will begin with a selection of organ pieces: Fantasia in G (Piece dorgue a 5) by Johann Sebastian Bach, followed by Veni Creator Spiritus by the Master of The Queens Music, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies; Prelude on St. Columba Op. 28 by Sir Charles Villiers Stanford and Sonata for Organ Op. 28 (Allegro maestoso and Allegretto) by Edward Elgar.

Following this will be seven orchestral pieces:

Serenade for Strings in E minor Op. 20 (Allegro piacevole, Larghetto and Allegretto) by Edward Elgar.

Courtly Dance V: Galliard from Gloriana (Symphonic Suite) Op. 53a no. 7 by Benjamin Britten

Fantasia on Greensleeves by Ralph Vaughan Williams

Farewell to Stromness by Sir Peter Maxwell Davies

On Hearing the First Cuckoo in Spring by Frederick Delius

Touch Her Soft Lips and Part from Henry V Suite by William Walton

Romance for String Orchestra Op. 11 by Gerald Finzi

Three of these pieces Farewell to Stromness, Touch Her Soft Lips and Part and Romance for String Orchestra Op. 11 were played at the Service of Prayer and Dedication for The Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall in 2005.  The Couple specifically chose these pieces for that reason.  The final piece of music before the Service begins continues the broadly British theme: Canzona from Organ Sonata in C minor by Percy Whitlock. 

Processional Music

The Service will begin with a Fanfare by The State Trumpeters of the Household Cavalry to mark the arrival of The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh.  The Fanfare will be followed by three Processionals.  For the Procession of The Queen, Prince William and Miss Middleton have chosen March from The Birds by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry.  Prelude on Rhosymedre by Ralph Vaughan Williams will accompany the Procession of the Clergy, and was chosen for its Welsh echoes.  The Couple have selected I was Glad, also by Parry, for the Procession of the Bride.        

  

Hymns

Prince William and Miss Middleton have chosen three hymns for the Service: Guide Me, O Thou Great Redeemer, words by William Williams, translated by Peter Williams and others, and music by John Hughes.  The second will be Love Divine All Love Excelling, words by Charles Wesley and music by William Penfro Rowlands.  The third will be Jerusalem, by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry, words by William Blake.  All three hymns have been chosen because they are favorites of the Couple.

The Anthem and Motet

The Anthem, This is the day which the Lord hath made, has been composed specially for the occasion by John Rutter.  It was commissioned by Westminster Abbey as a wedding present for Prince William and Miss Middleton and will be performed by both the Choir of Westminster Abbey and the Chapel Royal Choir.  Mr. Rutter is a British composer, conductor, editor and arranger who specializes in choral music.  

The Anthem will be followed by the Motet Ubi caritas by Paul Mealor, a Welsh composer, who is currently Reader in Composition at The University of Aberdeen.

Mr. Mealors composing studio is on the Isle of Anglesey, where Prince William and Miss Middleton live. This version of Ubi caritas was written on Anglesey and premiered at the University of St. Andrews in November 2010. 

The National Anthem will be sung immediately before the Signing of the Registers.

The Signing of the Registers and the Recessional

During the Signing of the Registers, the choirs will sing Blest pair of Sirens, words by John Milton from At a Solemn Musick, music by Sir Charles Hubert Hastings Parry. 

Following the Signing, there will be a Fanfare by the Fanfare Team from the Central Band of the Royal Air Force.  The Fanfare, called Valiant and Brave, after the motto of No. 22 Squadron (Search and Rescue Force) was specially composed for this Service by Wing Commander Duncan Stubbs, Principal Director of Music in the Royal Air Force.

The Recessional, for the Procession of the Bride and Bridegroom, will be Crown Imperial by William Walton:  

Toccata from Symphonie V  by Charles-Marie Widor and Pomp and Circumstance March no. 5 by Edward Elgar will follow the Service:

These and many other beautiful hymns can be found at the Sunlit Uplands YouTube Channel.

  

Sacred, Beautiful, and Universal: The Sacred Music Colloquium

You are invited to sing with and experience the Sacred Music Colloquium, the largest and most in-depth teaching conference and retreat on sacred music in the world.

Gregorian Chant has been called the most beautiful music this side of Heaven. But as Pope Benedict XVI and the Second Vatican Council have emphasized, it is also integral to Catholic liturgical life and should be heard and experienced with wide participation in every parish. The Church Music Association of America is working to bring about this ideal with its Sacred Music Colloquium.

The primary focus of the Colloquium is instruction and experience in chant and the Catholic sacred music tradition, participation in chant and polyphonic choirs, nightly lectures and performances and daily celebrations of liturgies in both English and Latin. You are there not merely as an attendee but as a singer in some of the greatest choirs you will ever experience, singing music that will touch your heart and thrill your artistic imagination — music that is integral to the Catholic faith.

Attendance is open to anyone interested in improving the quality of music in Catholic worship. Professional musicians will appreciate the rigor, while enthusiastic volunteer singers and beginners new to the chant tradition will enjoy the opportunity to study under an expert faculty.

The Sacred Music Colloquium XX will be held at Duquesne University, June 21-27, 2010. Registration information is available here.

Musica Sacra - "Sing Joyfully" - William Byrd

Musica Sacra is a chamber choir of around 35 voices founded and conducted by Indra Hughes and based in Auckland, New Zealand. The choir performs regularly in concerts, choral services, recordings and radio and television broadcasts.

The choir's most recent CD recording, Christmas a cappella II, was in the top ten of the New Zealand Classical Chart for ten weeks, five of them at Number One.

In 2006 the choir became the proud owners of the 1981 Mander chamber organ featured in this video and first used at the Royal Wedding in St Paul's Cathedral, London in 1981.

The Priests: Bless Me! We're Pop Stars

From The Telegraph

Three priests have landed a £1.4 million record deal.

	Heartwarmers: The Priests

We've seen charts peppered with Benedictine monks, the Benedictine Nuns of Jamberoo, All Angels, the Choirboys, Libera (more choirboys) and Simon Cowell's Angelis (choirboys and choirgirls).

Yet none of these has created quite such an instant surge of international attention as Sony BMG's new signing, a trio of northern Irish clergymen called The Priests. The three fathers are brothers Martin and Eugene O'Hagan (who sing tenor) and their childhood friend David Delargy (bass/baritone), and they've been singing together since they were boy trebles at school more than 30 years ago.

"I suppose there are better looking groups than us, and I'm sure there are better sounding groups, but I suppose there is a kind of uniqueness to this lineup," reflects Father David, whose promotional schedule was delayed for 24 hours when he had to conduct the funeral of one of his parishioners.

"Three diocesan priests who are working full time in their parishes and have been singing together and have a friendship that stretches back decades. But obviously it's not just the story; ­ obviously the record company believes that the music we make together is of sufficiently high quality to be able to sell."