Sing, Ye Birds, a Joyous Song Yale Schola Cantorum Simon Carrington, Conductor Thomas Murray, Organ

0 13491 345826 Sing, ye Birds, a joyous Song Yale Schola Cantorum Simon Carrington, conductor Thomas Murray, organ Music of the English Renaissance and 20th Century John Taverner (c. 1490-1545) Orlando Gibbons (1583-1625) Western Wind Mass (18:45) 9. Glorious and Powerful God (5:16) 1. Western Wind melody & Gloria (5:53) 2. Sanctus (3:59) Second Evening Service (9:59) 3. Benedictus (2:09) 4. Agnus Dei (6:44) 10. Magnificat (6:20) 11. Nunc Dimittis (3:39) - Lucas Wong, organ Sir Richard Rodney Bennett (1936-2012) Thomas Tallis (1505-1585) The Glory and the Dream (29:16) 5. There was a time (11.00) 12. Te lucis ante terminum (2:39) 6. Our birth is but a sleep (4:53) 7. Our joy! (6:09) 8. Then sing, ye Birds, a joyous song! (7:14) Total time: 65:57 - Thomas Murray, organ RECORDED LIVE IN CONCERT 2 3 Conductor’s Preface: ing with George Shearing. I was sad that by 2010 he was not well enough to make the trip I was delighted to be able to program Sir to New Haven to hear my Yale choir and the Richard Rodney Bennett’s “The Glory and amazing Tom Murray perform The “Glory the Dream” with Yale Schola Cantorum and the Dream”. He died two years later on and organist Thomas Murray. This glorious December 24th 2012. It’s worth pointing out work was commissioned jointly by a num- that Tom was seated some distance from the ber of choirs all round the world in 2000 at choir with the only sight line between us be- the initiative of English composer Christo- ing a camera and tiny TV monitor. pher Brown. One of those choirs was my own Chamber Choir at the University of The Western Wind Mass, by the early Kansas, where I had started my conducting English Renaissance composer, John Tav- and teaching career having stepped down erner had been one of my very favourite from The King’s Singers after 25 years. works since I was a student at King’s Col- lege Cambridge. The year I arrived there As I had moved on to Boston by the time the to sing in the chapel coincided with the piece was written, I was never able to mount release of a recording of this wonderful a performance at KU and finally made Mass by the choir under David Willcocks, up for this 10 years later at Yale! Richard and I remember marveling at the expertise Rodney Bennett was one of the prominent of those boys and undergraduate singers composers most closely associated with The negotiating those extraordinarily melliflu- King’s Singers in the early years, composing ous but florid vocal lines. I wanted to give two marvelous extended works in his serious the students in the Yale Institute of Sacred contemporary style, “The House of Sleepe” Music’s graduate voice program the oppor- and “Sermons and Devotions”, but also ar- tunity to tackle this style, which demands ranging Gershwin, Arlen and Blossom Dea- such vocal expertise allied to excellent in- rie for us wearing his jazz and cabaret hat. tonation and acute ensemble skills. He accompanied the Singers on a number of occasions on stage, TV and record, and many Orlando Gibbons, writing in his “verse an- of his arrangements featured on our record- them” style with organ or viol consort accom- 4 paniment, left us some of the most stirring The “Western Wind” tune, consisting and exciting music of the early 17th century, of sudden upward leaps and long mel- and is music I have loved ever since I was a ancholy descents, is easily recognizable chorister in Oxford 60 years ago. His powerful throughout Taverner’s mass. It is stated settings of the Amen are second to none! clearly in the soprano at the beginning of the Gloria, and is subsequently heard 35 Towards the end of my academic career in more times over the course of the mass, the US, I was immensely proud and grate- migrating through all of the parts except ful to find myself directing a choir with the for the alto. The ubiquity of this tune im- voices, the musicianship, and the under- parts a certain sense of somber continuity standing of counterpoint to perform this to the disparate parts of this mass: each music with such assurance and dedication. section has the quality of a contrapuntal variation on the original tune. - Simon Carrington John Taverner (c. 1490-1545) was one of the most prominent English composers John Taverner • Western Wind Mass of the first half of the sixteenth century. His extant works include eight complete Taverner’s Western Wind Mass is one of masses (each of which excludes the Ky- three masses (along with two others by rie, which was traditionally performed Christopher Tye and John Shepherd) bear- in plainsong), three Magnificat settings, ing this title from the early sixteenth centu- over twenty motets, and several secular ry. The title comes from a popular secular songs and instrumental pieces. Despite tune that was used as the cantus firmus in his general renown, little is known about each, the poignant “Westron wynde”: his life and career. Both, however, were clearly embroiled in the political and re- Westron wynde when wylle thow blow ligious upheavals of the reign of Henry The smalle rayne downe can rayne VIII. Taverner began his career as a lay Cryst yf my love were in my armes clerk at the collegiate church in Tatter- And I yn my bed agayne shall, Lincolnshire. In 1526 he moved to 5 Oxford to become instructor to the cho- Gloria risters at Cardinal Wolsey’s newly-found- ed Cardinal College (later to become Gloria in excelsis Deo. Christ Church). Following Wolsey’s Et in terra pax hominibus bonae volun- downfall in 1529, Taverner was forced tatis. to leave the fledgling institution, and he Laudamus te. Benedicimus te. lived out the rest of his life in genteel re- Adoramus te. Glorificamus te. tirement in Lincolnshire. Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam. Several unusual features of the Western Domine Deus, Rex coelestis, Deus Pater Wind Mass may have been enabled by omnipotens. the religious changes afoot in England Domine Fili unigenite, Iesu Christe. during Henry’s gradual distancing from Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris. – and eventual break with – Rome in the 1530s. The practice of basing sacred Qui tollis peccata mundi, music on a secular tune was virtually miserere nobis. unknown in England during Taverner’s Qui tollis peccata mundi, time, as was the four-part SATB texture suscipe deprecationem nostram. of this mass. These features, in fact, had Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, more in common with Lutheran musical miserere nobis. practices than with English musical tra- Quoniam tu solus Sanctus. Tu solus ditions during Cardinal Wolsey’s time. Dominus. While Taverner’s own religious beliefs Tu solus Altissimus, Iesu Christe. and the date of composition for the Cum Sancto Spiritu, in gloria Dei Patris. Western Wind Mass remain unknown, Amen. the mass was clearly the product of this transitional time in the history of English Glory be to God on high, sacred music. and on earth peace, good will towards men. -Karen Jones We praise thee, we bless thee, 6 we worship thee, we glorify thee, Sanctus we give thanks to thee for thy great glory, O Lord God, heavenly King, God the Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Father Almighty. Dominus Deus Sabaoth. O Lord, the only-begotten Son, Jesus Pleni sunt coeli et terra gloria tua. Christ; Hosanna in excelsis. O Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, Holy, holy, holy Thou that takest away the sins of the Lord God of hosts. world, Heaven and earth are full of your glory. have mercy upon us. Hosanna in the highest. Thou that takest away the sins of the world, Sherezade Panthaki, Kathryn Aaron, receive our prayer. soprano; Thou that sittest at the right hand of the Debi Wong, alto; Father, Joseph Mikolaj, Dann Coakwell, tenor; have mercy upon us. Dashon Burton, Paul Max Tipton, bass For thou only art holy; thou only art the Lord; Benedictus thou only art most high, O Christ, with the Holy Ghost, in the glory of God Benedictus qui venit the Father. in nomine Domini. Amen. Osanna in excelsis. Sherezade Panthaki, Kathryn Aaron, Blessed is he who comes soprano; In the name of the Lord. Fabiana González, alto; Hosanna in the highest. Dann Coakwell, tenor; Paul Max Tipton, bass Sherezade Panthaki, Kathryn Aaron, soprano; 7 Debi Wong, alto; Richard Rodney Bennett • The Glory Dann Coakwell, tenor; and the Dream (2000) Dashon Burton, bass The Glory and the Dreamwas commis- Agnus Dei sioned by the New Cambridge Singers, with assistance of a grant from Eastern Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, Arts Board, and the following choirs: miserere nobis. Albany Pro Musica (Albany, USA), Agnus Dei, Bel Canto (Denver, USA), Canticum qui tollis peccata mundi, (London, UK), Choral Arts Ensemble miserere nobis. (Rochester, USA), Grand Rapids Cantata Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, Choir (Grand Rapids, USA), Hljomeyki dona nobis pacem. (Reykjavik, Iceland), New Choral Soci- ety (Scarsdale, USA), Ohlone Chamber Lamb of God, Singers (San Francisco, USA), Pasade- who takest way the sins of the world, na Classical Singers (Pasadena, USA), have mercy on us. Seattle Pro Musica (Seattle, USA), St Lamb of God, who takest way the sins of Michael’s Church (New York, USA), the world, Susquehanna Chorale (Hershey, USA), have mercy on us. Sydney Chamber Choir (Sydney, Austra- Lamb of God, who takest way the sins of lia), University of Kansas Chamber Choir the world, (Lawrence, USA), Vancouver Bach Youth grant us peace.

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