CE Chapel of Trinity College, Cambridge Wed, Jan 2nd 2019 [Arch]

[DracoM]

CE Chapel of Trinity College, Cambridge Wed, Jan 2nd 2019 [Arch]
(First broadcast 10 January 1996)


Order of Service:


Introit: Epiphany Responsory (Marlow)
Responses: Smith
Psalm 72 (after Gibbons)
First Lesson: Haggai 2: 1-9
Office Hymn: Hail, Thou source of every blessing (Redhead)
Canticles: The Short Service (Gibbons)
Second Lesson: Matthew 2: 1-12
Epiphany Collect: O God, who by the leading of a star (Attwood)
Anthem: Here is the little door (Howells)
Hymn: From the eastern mountains (King's Weston)


Organ Voluntary: Overture in C, K399 (Mozart)


Christopher Allsop and Andrew Lamb (Organ Scholars)
Richard Marlow (Director of Music)

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m0001vbr

[ardcarp]

Only this morning I was reflecting on how rarely we hear 'Short Service' type canticles from the 16th/17th century on CE nowadays.
So we need an archive CE to get them!

[jonfan]

An hour of sheer beauty, nothing forced but with great serenity. What wonderful controlled and expressive singing with immaculate balance and articulation. Marlow’s Responsories wear their technical diffuculty so easily, everything seemingly effortless. Special lightness and clarity of diction in the unaccompanied psalm (Marlow’s pointing available on the Trinity site). Attwood and Howells anthems very moving. Beautiful balanced sound. Birdsong quite rightly joining in at one point. Thank you BBC for reminding us of past glories.

[ardcarp]

Very clean and tidy singing from Trinity. Richard Marlow was (by all accounts) very particular about a 'straight' soprano sound. The organ wasn't used much except in the hymns and the Voluntary. That Mozart arrangement is rather demanding to play, and I thought it was done spectacularly well. Does anyone know the provenance of the edition of the William Smith responses? There were some prelimnary bass/tenor notes in some of them. Were they 'cleaned up' for the Watkins Shaw Tudor Responses set....or did Marlow himself go back to sources? There is a bit of confusion about Smith anyway:

https://academic.oup.com/ml/article-abstract/43/3/248/1387997?redirectedFrom=PDF

...but this is old scholarship and things may have been clarified by now.

[hmvman]

An hour of sheer beauty, nothing forced but with great serenity.

Couldn't agree more, a lovely listen.

Birdsong quite rightly joining in at one point.

And a distant bell too!

Thank you BBC for reminding us of past glories.

Hear, hear.

[jonfan]

Advent St John’s, Christmas King’s and Epiphany Trinity was the BBC calendar at this season for many years. The service at Epiphany was quite creative in format I remember, sometimes Evensong and at others based on carols. Once Britten’s ‘A Boy was born’ was the basis of the service. This regular fixture seemed to come to sudden halt when Richard Marlow retired, which was a shame.

[ardcarp]

Once Britten’s ‘A Boy was born’ was the basis of the service

A brave and confident choir to broadcast that live [if it were indeed live]. A staggeringly wonderful piece!
My favourite recording is Layton, The Holst Choir with St Paul's choristers.

[Wolsey]

A brave and confident choir to broadcast that live [if it were indeed live]. A staggeringly wonderful piece!

It was, and the Britten was broadcast live in 1988.

[Vox Humana]

There is a bit of confusion about Smith anyway:

https://academic.oup.com/ml/article-abstract/43/3/248/1387997?redirectedFrom=PDF

...but this is old scholarship and things may have been clarified by now.

I think you will find this more up to date:

https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=jyDGkZulwPMC&printsec=frontcover&dq=%22WIlliam+Smith%22+Cannell&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwjx-P3LmtTfAhXBSBUIHVMoBhgQ6AEIKDAA#v=onepage&q=%22WIlliam%20Smith%22%20Cannell&f=false

[ardcarp]

I think you will find this more up to date:
https://books.google.co.uk/books?id=...annell&f=false

Thanks Vox.

[mopsus]

I suppose R3 continuity announcers don't have to utter the word 'collect' (in its liturgical sense) very often. Yesterday's didn't know how to pronounce it!

[cjba]

Watkins Shaw/Marlow Smith responses

Very clean and tidy singing from Trinity. Richard Marlow was (by all accounts) very particular about a 'straight' soprano sound. The organ wasn't used much except in the hymns and the Voluntary. That Mozart arrangement is rather demanding to play, and I thought it was done spectacularly well. Does anyone know the provenance of the edition of the William Smith responses? There were some prelimnary bass/tenor notes in some of them. Were they 'cleaned up' for the Watkins Shaw Tudor Responses set....or did Marlow himself go back to sources? There is a bit of confusion about Smith anyway:

https://academic.oup.com/ml/article-abstract/43/3/248/1387997?redirectedFrom=PDF

...but this is old scholarship and things may have been clarified by now.

I can't quite remember in detail, but I'm pretty sure that Richard Marlow was the co-editor of the Smith responses in the Watkins Shaw book (under a pseudonym in some printings, at least for the 4-part arrangement there) and that the Trinity choir sang from that edition, but with those extra initial notes pencilled in. I think RKM said that the sources weren't clear whether those initial notes were intended as organ pitch-givers or to be actually sung, and that he, RKM, differed in opinion with Watkins Shaw over it.

[ardcarp]

....but with those extra initial notes pencilled in. I think RKM said that the sources weren't clear whether those initial notes were intended as organ pitch-givers or to be actually sung

Thanks for that cjba. I did wonder if historically the 'extra notes' were something of the sort.

[Nevilevelis]

Superb! Free, warm and healthy - no tightness, nor any pushing - really great and heartening to hear.

BTW - their recording of Howells canticles (some rarities incl.) is very fine.

NVV

[jonfan]

Superb! Free, warm and healthy - no tightness, nor any pushing - really great and heartening to hear.

BTW - their recording of Howells canticles (some rarities incl.) is very fine.

NVV