The liner notes do not explain that this new CD is a reissue
of the Unicorn/Kanchana LP, DKP 9057. To this has been added the legendary
recording of Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols, performed by the Copenhagen
Boys Choir with the composer on the rostrum. This was originally released on
the Decca LP, LW 5070. It was (probably) recorded in the Danish Radio Concert
Hall, Copenhagen on 20-22 September 1953.
Geoffrey Bush’s In Praise of Mary for soprano, choir and orchestra was completed in 1955. The liner notes explain that Bush’s first thoughts for this cantata date from when in his teens, he heard “a broadcast of [Luigi] Dallapiccola’s Tres Laudi for soprano and chamber orchestra.” Further impetus came when he wrote incidental music for Henri Ghéon’s play, The Marvellous History of St Bernard.” And lastly, his discovery of Ancient English Christmas carols 1400 to 1700 edited in 1910 by the American medievalist, Edith Rickert, provided the texts.
It could be argued that this cantata is not really designed for Christmas, but for Passiontide. Yet, several of these carols from the middle-ages have become Seasonal favourites: There is no Rose, A Maid Peerless, Adam lay ybounden and Lully, Lullay. Other texts include the opening Hail Mary, Full of Grace and the final Alleluia.
Theologically, the work is oriented towards Our Lady as
“dispenser of universal grace and goodwill.” At the climax of the piece, Bush
balances the notion that Mary is Heaven’s Queen because of Adam’s fall
from grace: good coming out of evil.
In Praise of Mary is approachable, with little to
disturb the listener. It is typically tuneful and harmonically conservative.
Perhaps the most dynamic part is the rhythmically persuasive setting of Adam
Lay ybounden which is analogous to a “scherzo.” It displays “jerks” and “irregular timings”
with a complex and difficult organ part. There is also an intensity in the setting
of the Coventry Carol, Lully, Lullay with its heartrending soprano solo.
The finale is serene, with its repeated Alleluias, leading to a huge
climax and eventually resolving into perfect peace.
The original version of In Praise of Mary was scored for symphony orchestra, however, Bush latter made an updated edition for strings, organ and optional timpani. It is the latter that is heard on this CD.
It would have been useful to have had the texts of George Dyson’s A Christmas Garland for mezzo soprano, choir and string orchestra (1959). They are not featured in the invaluable The Lieder Net Archive. Paul Spicer’s important George Dyson: His Life and Music (The Boydell Press, 2014), provides a list of sections and texts, which I copy here for reference: Yet if his majesty, our sovereign Lord (Anon); Sweet music, sweeter far than any song is sweet (Anon); Tell us, thou clear and heavenly tongue (Robert Herrick); Come we shepherds whose blest sight (Richard Crashaw); Fairer than the sun at morning, Was the star (Prudentius); There came three kings from Galilee (Anon); Wake, O earth, wake everything! (William Austin) and But see the Virgin Blest (John Milton).
A Christmas Garland is presented as a single track on this recording, so it is not easy to locate the ends and beginnings of each poem/section as this lovely meditation unfolds. The liner notes give a detailed analysis of the work’s progress. The mood is typically easy going, melodious and varied in musical effect. It certainly has George Dyson’s “usual command of vocal writing.” (Spicer, op. cit.). This was the last major composition that Dyson wrote. There would be a few organ pieces and songs before his death in 1964.
It is well known that Benjamin Britten’s A Ceremony of Carols was written whilst sailing back to England from America in 1942. He claimed that it was to relieve the boredom, and presumably take his mind off German torpedoes, despite having berths on a Swedish (neutral) freighter. During a stop-off in Nova Scotia, Britten purchased a copy of The English Galaxy of Shorter Poems, edited by Gerald Bullett, which provided him with the texts.
The Ceremony is set for treble voices accompanied by
solo harp. The texts are mainly anonymous medieval carols but also poems by
James, John and Robert Wedderburn, Robert Southwell and William Cornish. The
premiere performance was given at Norwich Castle on 5 December 1942.
Listeners who have heard a live performance will recall that
the choir enter and leave the church/hall to Gregorian chant. In-between they sing
several standalone carols including Wolcum Yole, There is no Rose,
This Little Babe and As Dew in Aprille. The seventh number is a
harp solo interlude.
It has often been noted that the Old English texts may give
the choir some problems. The liner notes explain that in this “1953 recording
made by the Copenhagen Boys’ Choir, under the composer’s direction is
compromised now and then by suspect pronunciation…” For me this does not
matter. The overall performance is superb, full of vivacity and “youthful
brio.” Britten himself stated that “they sang my Ceremony of Carols as I
never thought it could be sung…” And that their “treble sound has the sweet
clarity of spring water on a sunny day bubbling with a little vibrato…”
The CD concludes with two charming bonus works. First is the straightforward arrangement for string orchestra of John Ireland’s ever popular The Holy Boy. First composed for piano during December 1913, it was published as the third of four Preludes for piano in 1918. The present arrangement, by Ireland, dates from 1941 and not 1914 as stated in the liner notes.
Equally delightful is Heathcote Statham’s The Bells of St Chad’s: Postlude for strings. It began life as the final piece in Four Diversions for organ, published in 1957. The liner notes explain that the present transcription for string orchestra was made during the 1980s by Christopher Palmer. It is a wonderfully vibrant piece, full of the joys of Christmas bells. It is not clear which St Chad is referred to.
I cannot be certain, but the programme notes by Christopher Palmer, Lloyd Moore and Charles Darke were those provided with the original releases. It would have helped to have had the texts for all three cantatas, this is especially so with some of the less well known poems chosen by George Dyson. I noted that the recording dates/venues are not included in the booklet or insert. I thank the record company for giving me this information for the Dyson and the Bush. A little research bottomed out the Britten. No biographical details are given about the performers.
It is not stated if these recordings have been repristinated
before transfer. That said, the sound quality is great in all cases, including
the 1953 Ceremony of Carols.
I missed the George Dyson and Geoffrey Bush recordings when they were first released. It is wonderful to have them as part of my collection. It seems superfluous to say that all the performances are excellent and probably definitive.
Track Listing:Geoffrey Bush (1920-98)
In Praise of Mary, for soprano, choir and orchestra (1955)
George Dyson (1883-1964)
A Christmas Garland, for soprano, choir and orchestra (1959)
Valery Hill (soprano), Jane Watts (organ), Royal College of Music Chamber Choir, Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/David Willcocks
Benjamin Britten (1913-76)
Ceremony of Carols, op.28 (1942)
Enid Simon (harp), Copenhagen Boys Choir/Benjamin Britten
John Ireland (1879-1962)
The Holy Boy, arr. for string orchestra (1913/41)
Heathcote Statham (1889-1973)
The Bells of St Chad’s: Postlude for strings (1957/1980s)
Royal Philharmonic Orchestra/David Willcocks
rec. 11-12 March 1986, St. Jude-on-the-Hill, London (Bush/Dyson/Ireland and Statham); 20-22 September 1953, Danish Radio Concert Hall (?), Copenhagen
HERITAGE HTGCD 151
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