Purcell: Lord, how long wilt thou be angry?, Z25

Purcell wrote so much in so many different spheres of musical activity that it is easy to forget that one of his main tasks was to be a royal composer, to provide music for the occasions of State in Westminster Abbey, just as the Gabrielis had done for the Doge at St Mark’s, or Lully for the French monarchs at Versailles. One of the most notable – and highly praised – accounts of Purcell’s choral music came from the Choir of St. John’s College, Cambridge, conducted by George Guest. They made three records for Argo – in 1964, 1972 and 1975 – covering Purcell’s Music for the Chapel Royal, a selection of Verse Anthems, the Te Deum and Jubilate and other works. The three are collected on a 2CD set. Texts are included in the booklet.

The Choir of Westminster Abbey under their inspirational director James O’Donnell delve into the Abbey’s vaults for this latest fascinating disc.

The triumphant mood of the Restoration required much glorious liturgical music, and the Abbey was home to some of the greatest composers and performers of the age. This recording presents music likely to have been sung by—and in some cases, almost certain to have been written for—the Choir of Westminster Abbey during the late 1670s and early 1680s. They sing four canticles from the compendious Service in B flat by Henry Purcell, together with psalmody in reconstructed contemporary style, and anthems and motets by Purcell and his contemporary John Blow, who famously both preceded and succeeded Purcell as Organist of the Abbey.

November 1694 was a busy month for Purcell. First, the triumphant return to London of King William III from the campaign in Flanders saw the composer produce a new anthem depicting the vanquishing of the King’s enemies. Secondly, for the celebration of St Cecilia’s Day, composed not the expected ode, but a Te Deum and a Jubilate. The Te Deum is full of grandeur, with the extra trumpets adding some thrilling drama to sections of the work. The scoring is also intimate, with some of Purcell’s most personal music – especially ‘ Vouchsafe, O Lord’, where the piling up of dissonances depicts a cry for mercy remarkable for the period.

These two works are masterpieces in Purcell’s output. However, the triumph was to be short-lived. In December 1694 a smallpox epidemic swept London, and Queen Mary died on 28 December. Purcell produced some of his greatest music for the Funeral Sentences, which he composed for her burial Setting words found in The Book of Common Prayer, Purcell’s music is moving and austere, and the sense of grief is almost palpable. The muted drums and Flatt trumpets in the Canzona leave a lasting impression on the listener. Purcell himself was dead eleven months later, aged 36.