Delius: To be sung of a summer night on the water, No. 1

There is surely no more quintessentially English sound than that of the Choir of King’s College, Cambridge, its unaccompanied voices – evocative of immemorial sandstone, of cool cloisters, of evensong in church, chapel and cathedral – serene in the music of Shakespeare’s contemporaries Byrd and Gibbons, ethereal in Delius heard of a summer’s night across the Backs of the River Cam.

No less iconic is the chapel that lends its unique acoustic to that sound. One of the glories of the English perpendicular style of architecture, it was eventually completed in 1547, a little over a century after the founding of the college itself by Henry VI.

This collection opens and closes with coronation music: Zadok the Priest was written for the crowning of George II in 1727, I was glad for that of Edward VII in 1902. Both were so successful that they have been sung at every coronation since their premières. Parry’s ‘processional anthem’ is heard here in its full panoply of extra brass and shouted Vivats, the choir of King’s choir providing the semi-chorus in the exquisite interlude ‘O pray for the peace of Jerusalem’.

In between are motets ancient and modern – from the miniature If ye love me and the architectural splendour of the 40-part Spem in alium to William Harris’s dramatic double-choir Spenser setting Faire is the Heaven; well-known psalms sung to Anglican chant; and favourite hymns, notably All people that on earth do dwell, arranged ceremonially for another coronation, that of Elizabeth II.

As well as national rejoicing there is solemn remembrance. Come ye sons of art away is Purcell’s 1694 birthday ode for Queen Mary, Thou knowest, Lord part of the music he wrote for her funeral just nine months later. John Ireland’s Greater love hath no man is often heard on Remembrance Sunday; Sir John Tavener’s Song for Athene made a powerful impression at the funeral of Diana, Princess of Wales; while John Rutter’s small-scale, personal Requiem touched a wider public following the attacks of 11 September 2001. But ‘Nimrod’ above all epitomises music of national remembrance. Here a choral setting of it, Lux aeterna, represents our ‘Shakespeare of music’, Edward Elgar.

Peace is a choral album for our times, a rich collection of popular a capella works such as Barber’s Agnus Dei, John Tavener’s Song for Athene and Elgar’s Lux Aeterna (Nimrod), alongside lesser-known compositions by Rachmaninov, Schoenberg and American composers Randall Thompson and Morten Lauridsen. Quite simply, Peace is over one hour of gorgeous and inspiring music.

Grant Llewellyn, conducting the chorus of the Boston, Massachusetts-based Handel and Haydn Society, appropriately describes the spirit of Peace:

“I arrived in Boston to take up my appointment with the Handel and Haydn Society on the evening of September 10, 2001. I awoke early the following morning to witness the horror taking place in the skies over America. Growing up in Wales, I was sandwiched between the English and, just across the water, the Irish between whom the “troubles” raged throughout my childhood, and still simmer. For years, we have borne witness to tragedies in the Middle East, the Balkans, Chechnya, the Koreas, Afghanistan, and many other lands. It would seem this species of ours is hell bent on conflict. What can we as mere musicians possibly do to alleviate this situation?

“We have tried to find here music that can convey a sense of calm and tranquillity that will compel the listener to slow down, even stop and reflect on life and its beauty for a moment. We have chosen music from many lands, religions and cultures that is solemn, sometimes profound and always uplifting. We hope that in this small way we are contributing to Peace on Earth.”