CE London Festival of Contemporary Church Music 11th May 2011

[colonial]

Colonial. Welcome! Is the tune Hurrle printed in any of the usual hymn books over here?

Many thanks, Ardcarp. To the best of my knowledge you've been deprived of MacNutt. (In addition to Hurrle there are a couple of other really fine tunes.)

[DracoM]

Yes, indeed. Thought it was the same chap.

[muticus]

Welcome indeed, it would need to be very fine to better Coefen.....

Is that the same MacNutt that set the William Blake texts - studied under Willan? -They are lovely.

[colonial]

Welcome indeed, it would need to be very fine to better Coefen.....

Is that the same MacNutt that set the William Blake texts - studied under Willan? -They are lovely.

Yes indeed ... the same fellow ... a quiet and unassuming man who lost most of his mss in a fire and sadly never wrote a note after that. I apologize for getting somewhat off-topic here - anyone who would care to know more is welcome to email me at calebsimper@yahoo.ca ... please, no comments on my choice of nom de plume

[muticus]

My dear chap, don't worry about wandering topics - that is par for the course. And in best Mother country tradition, I think you are on safe ground - colonials are almost OK, it is furriners we can't cope with .

[13]

Hi I'm one of the singers in the LFCCM

The score for the Rose Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis contains indications of exactly where the various ringing patterns fit in. Mostly they are in the organ part, I think, with elements from them being absorbed by the vocal lines. (The composer's note in the score says: "In the Magnificat most of these methods are in the organ part and not very literal, in the sense that the rings of bells are diatonic. However I have adapted these methods to my own compositional angle by adding accidentals, and this gives phrases a modal flavour")

The Anthony Pitts Te Deum is a large-ish setting, lasting over 10 mins, for 5-part unaccompanied choir. The vocal lines are in quite a muscular style. There are quite complex proportional relationships in the tempi. It seems to me that the composer is successfully finding new textures.

If you would like to read more about the Contemporary Church Music Festival the website is http://www.lfccm.com - on that page you'll see an events button you can click on. The choir of St Pancras Parish Church you'll hear tomorrow is giving 8 services/concerts over the eight days of the festival, with scarcely any repetition of material: in those eight days the St Pancras choir will be performing three mass settings, two settings of the evening canticles and 24 other motets and anthems - plus the Faure Requiem at a "Lunchtime requiem mass in memory of those who died outside St Pancras in the 7/7 bombings" on Thursday. For those with an interest in contemporary choral music this festival gives an opportunity to hear a tremendous amount of new music.

[french frank]

Hello 13 - and welcome

Thanks for the additional information.

[DracoM]

Many thanks, 13.

What you describe seems to indicate that a deal of this material sounds sufficiently forbidding for their take-up by non-professional choirs to be un-rosy? is that unfair?

[muticus]

Draco, my dear fellow, you would not suggest for one moment that non-professionals should stick to Rutter and leave the difficult stuff to the big-boys? Of course not. one of the joys of our chosen area of music making is the amazing work done by the grass-roots singers and players Sunday by Sunday in parishes across the land. Long may it be so.

[13]

DracoM

I would say that most of the pieces we've sung so far this year would be, with sufficient practice, accessible to amateur choirs.

Composers seem to be realising more and more that if they pay enough attention to the quality of the part-writing that, without their having to compromise their harmonic language, their compositions become likely to enter the repetoire. I don't think any choir particulary enjoys untangling a series of chords that have been composed at a keyboard and then arbitrarily allocated to the various parts. (Poulenc seems to include a handful of bars like that in every movement he wrote. Maybe he liked the sense of fear) Also composers seems to appreciate that not every piece needs to be as complex as Erwartung.

On Friday lunchtime we will be singing a whole concert of the music of Cecilia McDowall. Some pieces are more straightforward than others, but I would say that all of it would be in the realms of the possible for any enthusiastic choir, and all very rewarding to sing.

I would also like to mention the MacMillan Mass we sang on Sunday morning, his recent Missa Dunelmi: serious and involving but with no unnecessary difficulties.

[DracoM]

I am suggesting no such thing. Or are you trying to create trouble?

You know as well as I do that these days many composers have eyes more firmly fixed on the academic / professional choirs for their work rather than even top amateur singers, and certainly not ensembles of lesser credentials than that.

[David Underdown]

13, sounds like the info in the score is very much what was in the Ringing World article I mentioned.

[DracoM]

Decent, even somewhat anodyne stuff, well-performed. Rose canticles easily the best thing on view for me.

[ardcarp]

I liked the Pitts Te Deum...an interesting sound-world, slightly reminiscent of Tippett at times. The whole CE was very capably sung, directed and accompanied. As it came over online, the sound of the choir was a little unrelieved in tone and dynamics, especially the top line. But they had quite a task, and anyway things may have been different 'in the flesh'.

[13]

I liked the Pitts Te Deum...an interesting sound-world, slightly reminiscent of Tippett at times. The whole CE was very capably sung, directed and accompanied. As it came over online, the sound of the choir was a little unrelieved in tone and dynamics, especially the top line. But they had quite a task, and anyway things may have been different 'in the flesh'.

It seems to me from my personal perspective further down the line that the recording was a little top heavy and didn't get capture the full range of textures ... but I bet every performer faced with a microphone says that ;-)

I'm glad you enjoyed it. The pieces were enjoyable to sing and the congregation seemed pleased. I get the impression that future performances are being planned for all the works. The Pitts Te Deum, by the way, has been written in three seperate movements which may be performed individually.