A new choral compendium from the highly regarded choir of royal holloway, comprising twentieth and twentyfirstcentury works written in honour of saint cecilia, the patron saint of music. Till angels, voyaging in upper air, pause on a wing and gather the clear sound into celestial joy, wound and. Not surprisingly, there are many musical works in honor of the patron saint of music. View the wikipedia article on herbert howells see this part of a wikipedia page for howellss choral works. Britten hymn to st cecilia choral music compositions scribd. In 1960, at the close of the year in which he was master, howells composed his hymn for st cecilia, to words by ursula vaughan williams widow of the composer, for the livery club of the musicians company, paying tribute in the subject to the patron saint of music. Chamber orchestra flute, english horn, bassoon, horn in f, trombone, harp, and strings first published. Hymn to st cecilia sheet music for voice download free. A hymn for saint cecilia sing for the mornings joy, cecilia, sing, in words of youth and praises of the spring, walk the bright colonnades by fountains spray, and sing as sunlight fills the waking day.
To the everlasting father, and the son who reigns on high, with the holy ghost, proceeding forth from each eternally, be salvation. In 1960, english composer herbert howells 18921983 was commissioned to compose a hymn for st. Cecilia s day 1987 table of contents acknowledgements introduction chapter 1 a background to audens poem and brittens setting chapter 2 an. The wonderful dancingontiptoe nature of this piece takes its cue from the syncopated first vocal entry and each phrase finds increasingly. Here is a clickable table of the available midi files for this work. Cecilias day, and he later published the poem as anthem for st. Hymn to st cecilia choral version the second section is a scherzo with a modified fugue form. A hymn for st cecilia, commissioned by the livery club of the worshipful company of musicians to mark howellss mastership of the company in 195960, sets a poem in praise of the patron saint of music by ursula vaughan williams as a threeverse hymn. Prizes were awarded to the following two text writers. A hymn for st cecilia malcolm archer oxford university press. Rich harmonies, shifting tonalities, and expressive melodies.
The first is a lyrical invocation to the patron saint of music, who is asked in the concluding e n g lish. Fred momotenko composed cecilia, a composition for full mixed choir, a hymn to the past as well as to the future of the monastic tradition. In 1942 the midst of world war ii britten and pears decided to return home to england. Jun 30, 2019 hymn to st cecilia choral version the second section is a scherzo with a modified fugue form.
Sing for the mornings joy, cecilia, sing, in words of youth and praises of the spring, walk the bright colonnades by fountains spray, and sing as sunlight fills the waking day. Cecilia in the united states, certainly in june 1941 when a performance by the newly formed elizabethan singers was projected to take place in new york sometime later that year. Cecilias day auden honours the patroness of musicians in a poem set to music by benjamin britten, the poets friend and onetime lover, who was born on st. Hymn text competition association of lutheran church. A hymn for st cecilia sheet music herbert howells satb.
Cecilas abbey can be purchased via itunes and from the online st. Cecilias day 1987 table of contents acknowledgements introduction chapter 1 a background to audens poem and brittens setting chapter 2 an. Benjamin britten hymn to st cecilia choral version. There are two reasons for examining brittens hymn to st. Homage to paderewski variations on an elizabethan theme the somber cycling of the last poem is interrupted in the middle to make way for a. Ill be posting some scores for frequently requested hymns here, either as copies from the old hymnals, or newly transcribed. This is an anthem setting of the poem a hymn for st cecilia by ursula vaughan williams, for mixed choir and chamber orchestra. Brittens hymn to st cecilia enables the choir to display its virtuoso control of rapid brittten and textural changes. The wonderful dancingontiptoe nature of this piece takes its cue from the syncopated. Satb choir and organ sheet music book by herbert howells 18921983. In 1931 howells had been the first recipient of the john collard fellowship, awarded by the company to young musicians of. Les memes compliments pourraient etre adresses a lhymn to st cecilia et a rejoice in the lamb. Internet search just bringsup benjamin britten a bit our of our reach. But she was also an accomplished author and poet, with many published works including the definitive biography of rvw.
May 25, 2019 brittens hymn to st cecilia enables the choir to display its virtuoso control of rapid brittten and textural changes. Over 90 submissions were received for the 2019 raabe hymn text competition. This thesis is in essence a study of compositional method. A hymn for st cecilia howells from cda66678 hyperion. This hymn was approved by the apostolic see in 1852. The story of her manner of death makes gruesome reading and the act of singing in extremis something of a miracle. The winner of the new text for the tunes bethold and seward.
Judith shatin wrote the passion of saint cecilia for piano and orchestra and fantasy on saint cecilia for solo piano. In 195960, howells was master of this body, which is one of the livery companies of the city of london with a history dating back to the middle of the fourteenth century. Choral sheet music book by benjamin britten 191976. Cecilia is, of course, the patron saint of musicians who is supposed to have sung praises to god as she was being martyred. Hymns to saint cecilia cda68047 hyperion records mp3. In 195960, howells was master of this body, which is one of the livery companies of the city of london with a history dating back to the middle of the fourteenth. Based on a new setting of an earlier poem a song for st. Cecilia is, of course, the patron saint of musicians who is supposed to have sung praises to god as she was being. At times the text setting is radiant, nowhere more so than the refrains with which each of the three sections end, beautifully tailored up to a high e on each occasion, but with subtly varied harmonies. Hymn text competition association of lutheran church musicians. Print and download in pdf or midi hymn to st cecilia britten.
Cecilia by herbert howells sing for the mornings joy, cecilia, sing, in words of youth and praises of the spring, walk the bright colonnades by fountains spray, and sing as sunlight fills the waking day. Homage to paderewski variations on an elizabethan theme the somber cycling of the last poem is interrupted in the middle to make way for a soaring solo for boy soprano. It is a nice coincidence that britten was born on st. Britten hymn to st cecilia free download as pdf file. Thinking of saint cecilia, reminds me of one of my favorite poems, a hymn for saint cecilia by ursula vaughanwilliams. The story of her manner of death makes gruesome reading and the. Faith for all defects supplying where the feeble senses fail. Download and print a hymn for st cecilia sheet music for satb choir by herbert howells from sheet music direct.
Sheet music ever since this site appeared on the internet, readers have asked me for help in locating sheet music for their favorite old hymns. Now haste ye to your crowns, cries cecilia to her brethren. Complete, fully searchable information about the st. Hymn to st cecilia sheet music for voice download free in. A hymn for st cecilia malcolm archer oxford university. Cecilias on june 18, 2012, conductor michael olbash led organist mark husey, a choir of professional voices, and the blackstone valley catholic youth choir in the following selections, recorded at st. Cecilia hymnal 1937 jeff ostrowski july 20, 2016 am currently working on a hymnal project, whichamong other thingsentails pouring through thousands of pages from old catholic hymnals. The most popular vocal score for brittens hymn to st cecilia is shown below. Cecilia, however, britten begins to incorporate superficial gestures of this sort into a more truly choral style in which the vocal forces are frequently deployed in rich parallel triads. Her feast day is celebrated in the latin catholic, eastern catholic and eastern orthodox churches and in some churches of the anglican communion on november 22. A hymn for st cecilia sheet music herbert howells satb choir.
Britten responds to auden s extraordinary imagery with relish. In many ways it was brittens hymn to saint cecilia first performed on the radio in 1942that rekindled musicians interest in celebrating their patron saint. It is written that as the musicians played at her wedding she sang in her heart to the lord. Nov 21, 2012 thinking of saint cecilia, reminds me of one of my favorite poems, a hymn for saint cecilia by ursula vaughanwilliams. Auden, each followed by a fourline invocation to cecilia, the patron saint of music. The text for the hymn comprises three separate poems in praise of st cecilia. Vaughanwilliams was of course, the wife of the great english composer ralph vaughanwilliams. Over this bass, the upper parts sing flowing compound time phrases which are almost hymnlike.
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