CCA Summer School Repertoire

Over the course of the week we will have the opportunity to work in depth on a core repertoire of sacred works suitable for our daily evensong and compline services. In addition, we will be selecting works for smaller consorts from the madrigal, part-song and close harmony repertories for our end-of-week gala concert, and for more informal music-making sessions

BYRD ANNIVERSARY
To mark the 400th anniversary of the death of William Byrd, this year’s course will feature anthems and canticles by Byrd, including:

The Second Service (Magnificat & Nunc dimittis): one of the first examples of a ‘Verse’ service in the English choral repertoire
Iustorum animae: a serene and poignant motet for All Saints
Civitas sancti tui: one of Byrd’s ‘political’ motets, expressing the composer’s sense of alienation living as a Roman Catholic during the reign of protestant Queen Elizabeth

The course will also include a talk on William Byrd’s music and career by our course director, Dr Edward Wickham

THE SECOND ENGLISH RENAISSANCE
The end of the 19th century in England saw a revival in the English Choral Tradition, and in the music composed for it. This is the era of such greats as Charles Villiers Stanford and Charles Hubert Parry. From their oeuvre we will include:

Stanford: Canticles in C
Parry: Never weather-beaten sail
Stanford: The Blue bird

THE ‘HOLY MINIMALISTS’
The term ‘holy minimalists’ has been used to describe a group of composers whose music is characterised by great simplicity, yet expressing profound spirituality. The music of Arvo Part, Henryk Gorecki and John Tavener in particular has answered the need for a contemporary analogue to the devotional tradition of Medieval and Renaissance music. We will be working on:

Part: The Beatitudes
Gorecki: Totus tuus
Tavener: Hymn to the Mother of God
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NEW ADDITIONS!

Rutter Workshop:
Open thou mine eyes
Gaelic blessing

Drinking Songs for Wine Tasting in case you’d like to prepare at home!

Sung Grace for our Formal Dinner: Oculi omnium (Wood)

All music will be provided; but you might like to buy your own copy in advance of The Oxford Book of Tudor Anthems (compiled by Christopher Morris; Oxford University Press) and Madrigals and Partsongs (ed. Clifford Bartlett; Oxford University Press) which we will be using throughout the course.

Don’t worry if you’re feeling a little rusty – try Edward’s “dusting off the cobwebs” video. You could also practice singing along with with a Youtube video by one of the Cambridge choirs.

Enjoy!