08:01:29
Gregorian chant: Alleluia, Confitemini
Monks of the Monastery of Christ in the Desert
Blessings, Peace and Harmony -- Monks of the Desert on Sony Classical 2011

 

Spell binding singing from monks who live in the desert. Here's their web site  http://www.christdesert.org/

 

Randall Thompson: The Eternal Dove
Harvard University Choir, Murray Forbes Somerville
Beach & Thompson: Choral Music Harvard Choir on ASV 2002

 

Randall Thompson would have been 114 years old today. Since he taught at Harvard,

I could think of no better choir to perform on of his choral works other than the Harvard University Choir.

 

Cesar Franck: Cantabile
Anthony Newman, organ
The Rieger Organ at the Episcopal Church of the Holy Trinity, New York City
Franck: Complete Works for Organ, Volume 1 on Newport Classics 1989

 

Dr. Anthony Newman has been one of America's leading recitalists for more than 50 years.

 

08:18:47
Carson Cooman: O quam mirabilis
Cambridge Consonance, Jeffrey Grossman
The Welcome News: Choral Music of Carson Cooman on Gothic 2012

 

Carson Cooman is a Boston based organist who is a prodigious composer with hundreds of compositions to his credit.

 

George Frideric Handel: Hallelujah, your voices raise ~ The Occasional Oratorio
Howard University Choir; Handel Festival Orchestra of Washington, Stephen Simon
Hallelujah Handel: Handel Festival Orchestra on Arabesque 1985

 

Handel choruses are sublime to listen to and great fun to sing. This chorus is from The Occasional Oratorio, one of 24 oratorios Handel wrote.

 

Joseph Gabriel Rheinberger: 2nd mvt (Cantilena) ~ Organ Sonata No. 11 in D minor, Op. 148
Bruce Stevens, organ
The 1888 Miller organ in Salem Lutheran Church, Lebanon, Pennsylvania
Rheinberger Organ Sonatas 3, 11, 12 Bruce Stevens on Raven 1988

 

Rheinberger was a German composer who lived from 1839-1901. The organ in this recording dates from the last decade of Rheinberger's life.

 

08:32:19
Felix Mendelssohn: Surrexit pastor bonus, Op. 39 No. 3
Chamber Choir of Europe, Nicol Matt
Mendelssohn Choral Works (Complete) on Brilliant Classics

 

The Latin translates as "The Good Shepherd has risen". This amthem is one of hundreds of small choral works Mendelssohn wrote.

Traditional, arr. John Rutter: Steal Away ~ Feel The Spirit
Cambridge Singers; BBC Concert Orchestra, John Rutter
Melanie Marshall, mezzo-soprano
Feel the Spirit on Collegium

 

John Rutter's arrangement of the spiritual 'Steal Away' comes from a cycle of spirituals he wrote for mezzo-soprano, choir and orchestra.

 

Eugene Gigout: Grand Choeur Dialogue
David Arcus, organ
Organs of Duke Chapel - David Arcus, organ on Gothic 1997

 

Dr. David Arcus is Chapel Organist of Duke University.

 

08:51:28
Traditional Gaelic: Morning has broken
Choir of Wells Cathedral, Malcolm Archer
Rupert Gough, organ
The English Hymn - 4 'All Things Bright and Beautiful' on Hyperion 2003

 

This beloved hymn of the Christian church is included in a 5 CD set entitled The English Hymn recorded by the Choir of Wells Cathedral.

 

Arvo Part: Magnificat
Choir of King's College, Cambridge, Stephen Cleobury
The Very Best of Arvo Part on EMI Classics 2010

 

Arvo Part is an Estonian composer whose music enjoys both critical acclaim and wide acceptance by singers everywhere.

 

Margaret Vardell Sandresky: Agnus Dei ~ L'homme arme Organ Mass
Frances Nobert, organ
Music She Wrote - Organ Compositions by Women - on Raven Oar 2001

 

Margaret Vardell Sandresky is the professor emerita of music theory and composition at Salem College in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, U.S.A

09:05:07
J.S. Bach: Cantata 12, "Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Zagen"
Holland Boys' Choir; Netherlands Bach Collegium, Pieter Jan Leusink
Ruth Holton, soprano; Sytse Buwalde, alto; Knut Schoch, tenor; Bas Ramselaar, bass
J.S. Bach Complete Edition on Brilliant Classics

 

Our Bach cantata this week translates as 'weeping, lamenting, worrying, fearing' and was first performed on April 22, 1714 which makes it 299 years old tomorrow.

 

09:30:04
W.A. Mozart: Missa brevis in C, K. 220 "Spatzenmesse"
Vienna Boys' Choir; Chorus Viennensis; Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Uwe Christian Harrer
Peter Jelosits, tenor; Gerhard Eder, bass
Complete Mozart Edition - Missae - Requiem on Philips 1991

 

A 'spatz' is a 'sparrow'. You can hear the bird-like chirpings of the violin in the Hosanna section.

 

Franz Liszt: Variations on "Weinen, Klagen, Sorgen, Sagen"
Marie-Claire Alain, organ
Franz Liszt - Marie-Claire Alain on Erato 1987

 

The late Marie-Claire Alain plays Franz Liszt's variations on the theme used in our Bach cantata earlier.

Liszt wrote the piece in 1862 having just resigned his post at Weimar which Bach had held 130 years earlier.

 

10:06:05
Sir Arthur Sullivan: Te Deum
BBC Concert Orchestra; London Choral Society, Ronald Corp
Teresa Cahill, soprano; Margaret Phillips, organ
Sullivan: Macbeth Overture, Cello Concerto, Te Deum on BBC

 

From the pen of the composer of those popular Gilbert and Sullivan operettas comes a serious large-scale choral work.

 

10:40:48
Ferdinando Bertoni: Veni Creator
Stockholm Radio Chorus; I Solisti Veneti, Claudio Scimone
Patricia Schuman, soprano; Margarita Zimmermann, mezzo-soprano
Bertoni - Veni Creator / Miserere - C. Scimone on Erato

 

Ferdinando Bertoni (1725-1813) wrote at least 200 choral works and 70 operas yet is one of the least known Italian composers of his era.

 

10:58:10
Robert Schumann: Sketch in C ~ Four Sketches for Organ, Op. 58
Phillippe Lefebvre, organ
Schumann: L'Oeuvre pour Orgue - Lefebvre

 

Schumann's sketches date from 1845.