English Choral Music A Cappella Arrangements

Sir David Willcocks : Five English Folk Songs

Review: A fine collection of traditional British folks songs arranged for unaccompanied voices by Sir David Wilcocks which were originally performed by the Choral Scholars of King's College, Cambridge.

Songlist: The Lass Of Richmond Hill, Barbara Allen, Drink To Me Only, Early One Morning, Bobby Shafto

Stephen Cleobury : Advent For Choirs

Review: This unique collection approaches Advent afresh, drawing together 52 beautiful and accessible pieces that span the whole gamut of periods, styles, and traditions. Advent for Choirs is the perfect musical and liturgical resource for all church , cathedral, and concert choirs and includes approachable new settings, unjustly neglected music, and works not easily available elsewhere.

Songlist: Index Of Titles And First Lines, Thematic Index Of Music And Readings, Liturgical Introduction By Michael Perham, Advent Music, Other Suitable Advent Music, Adam Lay Ybounden, Advent Antiphons, Advent Prose, Advent wreath Prayers, Alma Redemptoris Mater, A Rose Is A Springin', A Tender Shoot, Blessed Are You Lord Our God, Blessed Are You Sovreign Lord, Blessed be the Lord God of Israel, Canite Tuba, Come Thou Redeemer Of The Earth, Ecce Concpies, E'en So Lord Jesus Quickly Come, Es Ist Ein Ros Entsprungen, Fuit Homo Missus A Deo, How Beautiful upon The Mountains, How Lovely Are The Messengers, I Look From Afar, I Sing Of A Maiden, Jacob's Ladder, Jesus Christ The Apple Tree, Linden Tree Carol, Lo, There Came A Man From God, Matin Responsory, and more

Stephen Cleobury : Hymns from King's

Review: Hymns from King's is a volume of 20 hymn arrangements for choir and keyboard by Stephen Cleobury - Director of Music at King's College Cambridge for more than 25 years. Covering the entire church year, Hymns from King's is not just a book of descants - it also contains varied arrangements and accompaniments for many of the most popular hymns sung not only at King's College, but also in churches around the world.

Songlist: O come, O come Emmanuel, Christians awake, salute the happy morn, As with gladness men of old, My song is love unknown, Jesus Christ is risen today, Thine be the Glory, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God almighty, Come ye thankful people, come, All creatures of our God and king, Alleluia, sing to Jesus, Just as I am, without one plea, Let all mortal flesh, Abide with me, O God our help in ages past, Lord of all hopefulness, Love divine, all loves excelling, Now thank we all our God, Praise my soul, the king of heaven, Glorious things of thee are spoken

Stephen McNeff : A Dickens Christmas: A Choral Suite

Review: The music on which this work is based was written for productions of "A Christmas Carol" and "Oliver Twist" at the Liverpool Playhouse. "This Suite of Christmas songs can be performed by any four-part ensemble or choir (there were eight voices in the Liverpool Playhouse productions). The accompaniment is optional and need not necessarily be a piano. The Suite could be performed as part of a carol service or in a Christmas concert. It does not have to be done in its entirety or even in order, and it could be interwoven with suitable Christmas readings such as excerpts from Dickens' "A Christmas Carol" (though there are many others). Given their origin, the songs might lend themselves to some theatricalization, but this shouldn't go too far." (Stephen McNeff)

Songlist: All Hail to the Days, King of the Seasons, Christmas Far Away, Chorale (Little Lamb), Catch (The Carnal and the Crane), Finale (Mr Fezziwig's Party)

Steve Martland : Three Carols for Unaccompanied Chorus

Review: English composer Steve Martland rejects academic dogma in favour of a plurality of musical influences, both ancient and modern, 'serious' and vernacular. His music has been adapted frequently for film and TV use, and scores for TV include the multi-media Albion, commissioned by the BBC and Granada TV's Children's drama Wilderness Edge. These are original compositions that will be rewarding and challenging for your choir and add a new creative element to any Christmas concert.

Songlist: From Lands That See The Sun Arise, Make We Joy, There Is No Rose

Swingle Singers : Ticket To Ride

Review: Since the release of Ticket to Ride, the Swingle Singers have received many requests from choirs and a cappella groups for their Beatles' arrangements. Finally, they have published a companion songbook to the popular album. The book contains the seventeen songs from the CD arranged for four to eight voices and features a bonus arrangement of "Here, There and Everywhere" for AATTBB. These wonderful arrangements include the original scat syllables used on the recording as well as alternated endings for the songs that fade out. Another great addition to the Swingle publications, this book will have your group creating a new wave of Beatle mania at your next concert.

Songlist: Penny Lane, Revolution, Day Tripper, Norwegian Wood, Birthday, Lady Madona, Yesterday, Strawberry Fields Forever, Drive My Car, Blackbird / I Will, When I'm Sixty-Four, The Fool On The Hill, All My Loving, I Am The Walrus, Goodnight, Here, There And Everywhere, Ticket To Ride

Tarik O'Regan : Alleluia, Laus Et Gloria

Review: Alleluia, laus et gloria was commissioned by the BBC for the Pro Musica Girls' Choir of Hungary, winner of the 2003 Let the People Sing competition.

Songlist: Alleluia, Laus Et Gloria

Tarik O'Regan : Lamentation

Review: Commissioned by Matti Hyokki and the YL Helsinki Male Voice Choir, Lamentation uses extracts from one of six laments by Peter Abelard (1079 - 1142) which were found in a manuscript that was only discovered in 1830 in the Vatican. Helen Waddell, in the accompanying notes to her translation of the text, suggests that in this searing meditation on one of the most controversial and multi-faceted Biblical passages (II Samuel 1:17-27), 'Abelard's passion, that never escaped in his strange, remote letters to Heloise, for once awakes and cries'. Although written with particular reference to David, slayer of Goliath, and Jonathan, son of King Saul, it is the ecumenical sentiment of loss felt by persons of any faith or none that pervades Abelard's beautiful Latin text and, indeed, my rendering of his words.

Songlist: Lamentation

Thomas Tallis : A Tallis Anthology

Review: This anthology comprises 17 of Tallis's shorter choral pieces, and is designed to provide choirs and students with a pratical and interesting cross-section of the composer's smaller-scale ourput. These are pratical perfoming editions, transposed where necessary, supplemented by a full critical apparatus for each peice and a general introduction to the anthology.

Songlist: Audivi vocem de caelo, Derelinquit impius, Hear the voice and prayer, If Ye Love Me, In ieiunio et fletu, In manus tuas, Laudate Dominum, Mihi autem nimis, O Lord, give thy Holy Spirit, O Lord, in thee is all my trust, O nata lux, O Sacrum Convivium, O salutaris hostia, Purge me, O Lord, Salvator mundi, Te lucis ante terminum, Verily, verily, I say unto you

Thomas Tallis : English Sacred Music

Review: The sixteenth century was a time of religious upheaval in England. From Henry VIII's protestant reformation through Queen Mary's staunch but short-lived Catholic revival to the return of Anglicanism in Elizabethan times, it would have required careful diplomacy for a Roman Catholic like Thomas Tallis simply to stay alive. In fact he became the most respected composer of his generation and is now recognised as one of the country's greatest composers. 2005 was the five hundredth anniversary of Thomas Tallis' birth and his genius is celebrated in this collection of English-texted sacred music, selected and edited by Jeremy Summerly to provide an invaluable source of introits and anthems for choirs

Songlist: If You Love Me, Hear the Voice and Prayer, A New Commandment, O Lord, Give They Holy Spirit, I Call and Cry to Thee, O Lord, With All Our Heart, Discomfit Them, O Lord, Why Fumeth in Sight

Thomas Tomkins : English Anthems 2

Review: A selection of nine works by Tomkins, including his seven Penitential Psalms, which comprise a fine and coherent set. Edited by Ivan Moody, this is part of a series of short volumes, each devoted to a single composer or appropriate group of composers, thoroughly exploring the unlimited resources of Renaissance sacred polyphony.

Songlist: O Lord, Rebuke Me Not, Blessed Is He, Put Me Not To Rebuke, Have Mercy Upon Me, O Lord, Hear My Prayer, O Lord, And Let My Crying Come, Out Of The Deep, Hear My Prayer, O Lord, And Consider My Desire, Arise, O Lord, And Have Mercy, O Lord, Open Thou Our Lips

Various : English Choral Tradition Vol 3 - Taverner To Purcell

Review: Ten assorted Madrigals and Anthems from the Renaissance and Early Baroque era.

Songlist: The Silver Swan, When David Heard, I am Christus Astra, Fine Knack for Ladies, Lo She Flies, Come Shepherd Swains, Weep, O Mine Eyes, O God the King of Glory, Lord in Thy Rage, Young Cupid

Various : Music for Royal Occasions

Review: Contains 13 pieces of celebratory music from more than 500 years of royal ceremonies including works by Howells, Bliss, Parry, Dyson, Attwood, Purcell, Elgar, Handel, and more. Many of the pieces are among the most popular of Anglican warhorses, although a few resurrect forgotten gems. Notable among the latter category is a ravishing piece by Arthur Bliss with words by C. Day Lewis. Useful either as a playlist for a themed concert or as a source from which to draw individual pieces, this volume presents some of England's finest occasional and widely popular choral music.

Songlist: Behold, O God Our Defender, Ubi Caritas, Let My Prayer, Birthday Song For A Royal Child, Rejoice In The Lord Alway, O Lord, Grant The King, I Was Glad, I Was Glad, I Was Glad, Blest Pair Of Sirens, Confortare, O Hearken Thou, Zadok The Priest

Various : The Anglican Chant

Review: The purpose of this book has been to gather into a single volume those Anglican chants - until now dispersed among many different collections - that are considered by expert opinion to be both worthy compositions in themselves and suitable for general use in parish churches. Almost every chant book in existence has been examined, and many hundreds of different chants have been considered, the inclusion or rejection of each one depending upon the opinion of the majority of a board containing a large number of Church musicians, both professional and amateur.

Various Arrangers : Cantica Nova

Review: Cantica Nova is an outstanding collection of new motets by contemporary British composers. Scored for mixed voices - a cappella and with organ the pieces present a kaleidoscope of different styles and sonorities, united in their ability to communicate fresh ideas and the skill of their vocal writing. Here are dancing, energetic rhythms and rich, ecstatic chords; simple, plainchant lines and overlapping, mesmeric phrases; pieces direct and strong and pieces radiant and spacious; motet telling in their simplicity and motets dramatic and theatrical. Encompassing a wide range of texts, with settings of some of the great hymns of the Church alongside little-known, rarely set texts, the collection will be welcomed by concert and church choirs seeking innovative and exciting contemporary repertoire.

Songlist: O Lux Beata Trinitas, Pasce Agnos Meos, Ave Maria Stella, Pange Lingua, Ave Regina Coelorum, Ave Verum Corpus, A Prayer Of King Henry, In Medio Ecclesiae, Surrexit Christus, Ave Verum Corpus, Cantate Domino, Jesu Dulcis Memoria, Veni Sancte Spiritus, Surge Illuminare, Ostende Nobis Domine, Christus Est Stella, O Adonai, Et Dux Domus Israel

Various Arrangers : Christmas Voices

Review: Fourteen traditional and modern Christmas texts, all set by contemporary composers for various choral combinations and levels of accomplishment. Includes works for Unison, SSA and SATB choirs. But for one or two more adventurous pieces, these carols are sufficiently melodic and straighforward to be tackled by choirs of any size or with limited rehearsal time, while still being fresh and challenging works of today.

Songlist: A Lullaby Of The Nativity, Balulalow, Dormi Jesu, Coventry Carol, When All The Angels, The Two Nowells, A Lullaby Of The Nativity, A Babe Is Born, Journey From Nazareth, Coventry Carol, Balulalow, Balulalow, The Holly And The Ivy, Heaven Knows Why, When All The Angels, Dormi Jesu

Various Arrangers : English Church Music Vol 1 - Anthems & Motets

Review: Oxford Choral Classics: English Church Music assembles in two volumes around 100 of the finest examples of English sacred choral music of the past five centuries. The first volume, dedicated to anthems and motets, presents both favourite and lesser-known works, from the exceptional Renaissance polyphony of Taverner, Tallis, and Byrd, through the Restoration led by Purcell, to the glorious works of the great nineteenth- and twentieth-century composers, including Wesley, Elgar, Stanford, Vaughan Williams, and Howells. The volume contains a number of more substantial works, including Mendelssohn's Hear my prayer, Stainer's I saw the Lord, and Naylor's Vox dicentis: Clama, as well as a wonderful selection of shorter pieces, from Gibbons's O Lord, in thy wrath to Walton's Set me as a seal upon thine heart. With the second companion volume of canticles and responses, this bipartite collection presents a comprehensive survey of English sacred music at its best.

Songlist: Rejoice in the Lord alway, Jesu, the very thought of thee, Salvator mundi, O where shall wisdom be found?, Ave verum Corpus, Haec dies, Justorum animae, Sing joyfully, They are at rest, Lord, for thy tender mercy's sake, O clap your hands, O Lord, in thy wrath, These are they which follow the Lamb, Lord, let me know mine end, My song is love unknown, Faire is the heaven, O how glorious is the kingdom, Like as the hart desireth the waterbrooks, Greater love hath no man, The souls of the righteous, Hear my prayer, Nolo mortem peccatoris, Vox dicentis: Clama, Ave Maria, Ascendit Deus, Hear my prayer, O Lord, I was glad when they said unto me, Let mine eyes run down with tears, Lord, how long wilt thou be angry?, Remember not, Lord, our offences, and more

Various Arrangers : English Music Hall Favourites

Review: This reviewer is the owner of Primarily A Cappella and an ExPat Englishman living in the US and each of these songs are ones I remember fondly from my youth growing up in England. These are all very popular traditional songs that most every Englishman knows and are classics of their kind. They are highly enjoyable songs that will add lots of fun to your repertoire and certainly will be thoroughly enjoyed by not only any British folks in the audience.

Songlist: Teddy Bear's Picnic, I Do Like to be Beside the Seaside, The British Grenadiers, Dashing Away With The Smoothing Iron

Various Arrangers : One Direction for Mixed Voices

Review: The British boy band One Direction has captured the hearts and attention of young fans all over the world! The catchy single "What Makes You Beautiful", from their Up All Night album, is fun and upbeat and ideal for young choirs and audiences in this accessible setting. The up-tempo chart-topping "Live While We're Young" has a fantastic dance groove, fun triadic vocal harmonies and a built in audience of teen fans! Charting in over 20 countries, the Billboard Hot 100 hit "Best Song Ever" was declared the "Best Song of the Summer" by MTV. "Dance all night to the best song ever!" 

Songlist: What Makes You Beautiful, One Direction (Choral Highlights), Live While We're Young, Best Song Ever

Various Arrangers : The Ivy and the Holly

Review: The Ivy and the Holly is a superb collection of carols and motets for Advent, Christmas, and Epiphany by contemporary composers. Scored for mixed voices - a cappella and with organ - the pieces present a wide range of styles and sonorities. A great collection for church and concert choirs alike. The New Horizons series showcases the wealth of exciting, innovative, and occasionally challenging choral music being written today. It encompasses the whole gamut of small-scale choral genres, both secular and sacred, and includes pieces for upper-voice and mixed choirs. With titles by some of the most accomplished choral composers active in Great Britain and abroad, the series introduces new repertoire and fresh talent to a broad spectrum of choirs. New Horizons features composers with growing reputations for quality composition reflecting a strong individual voice. The series is continually expanding and should be the first place to look for attractive and performable contemporary choral music.

Songlist: The Contest of the Ivy and the Holly, Antiphon to Mary, And all the stars looked down, Cradle Song, The Shepherds Carol, Telling, The Magi, Now we may singen, Gabriel fram Hevene-King, St. Margaret's Carol, Mary's Carol, Dormi, Jesu, Rejoice, rejoice, Veni, redemptor gentium

Various Composers : A Garland For Linda

Review: A Garland For Linda is an evocative and moving anthology of works for a cappella chorus to commemorate the life of Linda McCartney. Modelled on the precedent of A Garland For The Queen (1953), nine British composers, including Paul McCartney, Richard Rodney Bennett, John Rutter and John Tavener, have been inspired to compose music of considerable expressiveness and beauty. The anthology shows the power of music to provide hope to those who are suffering from ill health.

Songlist: Silence & Music, Prayer For the Healing Of the Sick, Water lilies, Musica Dei Donum, The Doorway of the Dawn, Nova, I Dream'd, Farewell, The Filght Of the Swan, A Good-Night

Various Composers : Eight Elizabethan Madrigals

Review: Eight Madrigals arranged for SSA or SSAA Choir.

Songlist: The Nightingale, Seek sweet content, Now Is The Month Of Maying, Come again, sweet love, What saith my dainty darling, All creatures now are merry minded, The Silver Swan, My bonnie lass, she smileth

Voces8 : A Cappella Songbook

Review: Eight songs for eight-part vocal groups. The VOCES8 A Cappella Songbook includes many of the group's favorite songs - ranging from folk and classical through spiritual and pop.

Songlist: Feeling Good, Nobody Does It Better, Folksong Medley, Erlkoenig, Shenandoah, Opera Medley, Wade in the Water, The Luckiest

Voces8 : A Cappella Songbook 2

Review: "The singing of VOCES8 is impeccable in its quality of tone and balance. They bring a new dimension to the word 'ensemble' with meticulous timing and tuning" - Gramophone Magazine

The internationally-renowned British vocal ensemble VOCES8 is proud to inspire people through music and share the joy of singing. The celebration of diverse musical expression is central to the ensemble's ethos, and this is shown in their versatile concert programmes and innovative educational work. This collection features eight of the ensemble's favourite and most requested arrangements for SATB choir, written by members of the group and its resident arranger, Jim Clements.

Songlist: Danny Boy, Edo Lullaby, Gladiator, O My Love Is Like A Red, Red Rose, Pie Jesu, Price Tag, Strong, Twist and Shout

Voces8 : A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square

Review: A gorgeous unaccompanied SSAATTBB arrangement of Manning Sherwin's classic song, surely one of the most famous melodies from the 1930s. Written to be performed at leisurely pace with indulgent harmonies, and 3.5 minutes in length.

Voces8 : Pyramid Song

Review: A sublime and otherworldly 4.5-minute arrangement by Geoff Lawson of the iconic 2001 song by the British rock band Radiohead. Arranged for SATB (with divisi) and piano (with an option for strings and harp replacing piano). Flowing and mysterious, tranquil yet pensive, Pyramid Song is both simple and complex and endlessly fascinating.Geoff Lawson is an arranger and orchestrator who frequently works with VOCES8 on arrangements for their albums.

Voces8 : Sway

Review: A fantastic arrangement by Alexander L'Estrange of Luis Demetrio and Pablo Beltran Ruiz's classic piece that makes for an entertaining stage performance piece. Arranged for unaccompanied SSAATTBB, this 4-minute sultry Latin groove is perfect for dance-themed or jazz programming.Alexander L'Estrange is a multi-faceted composer, arranger, jazz musician and choral animateur who has been dubbed 'the added 9th of choral music'.

Will Todd : Jazz Missa Brevis

Review: Will Todd's Jazz Missa Brevis gives new life to the sung Latin Mass texts in an accessible, short setting which embraces a variety of jazz styles, from the swinging jazz waltz Kyrie to the up-beat Latin-groove Gloria. The smooth jazz ballad Sanctus, 7/8 Benedictus and soulful Agnus Dei complete this inspiring Mass setting. Underpinned by Todd's characteristic jazz harmonies and melodic craftsmanship, it is suitable for performance both liturgically and as part of a concert by mixed choirs of all abilities. The work can be accompanied by piano alone (as written or extemporised), jazz trio (piano, bass and drums) or jazz ensemble (alto saxophone, 2 trumpets and jazz trio - parts available separately).

William Belan : A Handbook for the Performance of English Madrigals

Review: Madrigals are a valued body of literature and when an English madrigal is being prepared for a performance, one strives to inform the experience with the best information available - thinking through important performance issues of a madrigal builds perspective. This handbook will be useful immediately for teachers and students or anyone who studies and performs the madrigal. It is supported by primary and secondary historical sources for the purpose of providing information that will assist readers to sort valid information from personal opinion. Readers will receive a unique perspective on the madrigal, the marriage of music and text, and its unique place in the stylistic timeline.

Songlist: Acknowledgments, Preface, Introduction, What is a Madrigal?, History of the Madrigal, Tactus and Rhythm: Guides for Conducting, Stylistic Expression, Reading Texts and Hearing the Poet's Music, Samples of English Prosody, Selecting an Edition, Selected Example #1: Fair Phyllis (John Farmer), Overview of the Poem, Voicing, Tempo, Phrasing and Stress, Articulation, Tone Quality, Dynamics, Selected Example #2: The Silver Swan (Orlando Gibbons), Overview of the Poem, Voicing, Tempo, Phrasing and Stress, Articulation, Tone Quality, Dynamics, Conclusion, Glossary of Terms, Bibliography

William Byrd : Collection Vol 1

Review: The greatest English composer of his generation, comparable in stature to his most distinguished continental contemporaries, William Byrd was a versatile composer. Byrd's compositions for the church may be separated into those for the Catholic liturgy and those designed for the officially recognised Church of England. The first category includes settings of the Mass for three, four and five voices, and a large quantity of other works for the various seasons of the church year. Well-known for his keyboard works here are a collection of his a cappella arrangements that have has been sung in English cathedrals uninterrupted for the past four centuries.

Songlist: Non Nobis Domine, Haec Dies, Justorum Animae, Laetentur Caeli

William Byrd : Collection Vol 2

Review: The greatest English composer of his generation, comparable in stature to his most distinguished continental contemporaries, William Byrd was a versatile composer. Byrd's compositions for the church may be separated into those for the Catholic liturgy and those designed for the officially recognised Church of England. The first category includes settings of the Mass for three, four and five voices, and a large quantity of other works for the various seasons of the church year. Well-known for his keyboard works here are a collection of his a cappella arrangements that have has been sung in English cathedrals uninterrupted for the past four centuries. For SATB choir.

Songlist: O Magnum Mysterium, Prevent Us, O Lord, Rorate Caeli Desuper, Ave Verum Corpus, Exsurge Domine

William Byrd : Five Sacred Choral Works

Review: William Byrd (c.1540-1623) is one of the giants of the English Renaissance, composing sacred polyphony for both Anglican and Catholic rites. This collection provides well-edited, clean editions at an excellent value, and includes: Exsurge, Domine; Haec Dies; Laudibus in sanctis; Praise Our Lord, All Ye Gentiles; Sing Joyfully.

Songlist: Sing Joyfully, Exsurge, Domine, Haec, Dies, Laudibus In Sanctis, Praise Our Lord, All Ye Gentiles

William Byrd : Four Motets for All Saints

Review: William Byrd's Mass Proper for the feast of All Saints is beautifully arranged for unaccompanied mixed voices by Sally Dunkly.

Songlist: Mass Of Propers For The Feast Of Old Saints, Introit, Gradual & Alleluia, Offertory, Communion