Easter Choral Music
As one of the most important times in the Christian calander there is a rich tradition of music for Easter including for Ash Wednesday and Lent, Passiontide, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter Sunday. We offer here a selection of both recordings and arrangements which celebrate this special period.
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Lamentations Of Jeremiah - Tallis O Nata Lux - Tallis Salvator Mundi - Tallis If Ye Love Me - Tallis Crucifixus - Lotti There Is A Green Hill Far Away - Horsley O Vos Omnes - De Victoria Nolo Mortem Peccatoris - Morley Tristis Est Anima Mea - Lassus Crux Fidelis - John IV Videte Omnes Populi - De Victoria Drop Drop Slow Tears - Gibbons When I Survey The Wondrous Cross - Webbe Dum Transisset Sabbatum - Tavener Jesus Christ Is Risen Today - Easter Hymn The Joyful Eastertide - Dutch Carol Haec Dies - Sheppard Let All The World In Every Corner Sing - Leighton |
Superb ensemble singing from simply one of the finest choirs in the world. Philip Ledger's tenure at King's was relatively short but he produced a sublime sound from the choir. Then are many jewels on this disc from Lotti's 'Crucifixus' to the simply beautiful interpretation of Orlando Gibbon's 'Drop, drop slow tears'. Perfection in delivery and hauntingly beautiful tone quality mark this performance of some glorious holy week music. "The Lamentations of Jeremiah" are usually transmitted as a single piece in most contemporary manuscripts, but they are really two separate compositions in different modes. Tallis and his contemporary John Sheppard were the only 2 English composers of the time to compose hymn settings of any quality. It has been suggested that they had it in mind to compose a cycle of settings for Mary Tudor's chapel. "O Nata lux" may belong to this Marian set. It is almost entirely homophonic, and relies rhetorically upon a flexible declamatory style. " Salvator Mundi" is one of Tallis's best-known motets. The masterly treatment of imitative writing is combined with a fine sense of structure and balance, achieved through repetition, to give a sense of large-scale design, a feature characteristic of Tallis's best large-scale compositions. And the most beautiful anthem on the disc: Tallis's "If Ye Love Me". So much wonderful music, exquisitely sung; a delcious Easter treat!
| 8598 CD $15.95 |
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Ad Missam in Die: Introit, Resurrexi Ad Missam in Die: Gradual, Haec Dies Ad Missam in Die: Alleluia, Pascha Nostrum Ad Missam in Die: Sequence, Victimae Paschali Ad Missam in Die: Offertory,Terra Tremuit Ad Missam in Die: Communion: Pascha Nostrum Feria Secunda: Introit, Introduxit vos Feria Secunda: Alleluia, Angelus Domini Feria Secunda: Offertory, Angelus Domini Feria Secunda: Communion, Surrexit Dominus Feria Tertia: Introit, Aqua Sapientia Feria Tertia: Alleluia, Surrexit Dominus Feria Tertia: Offertory, Intonuit de caelo Feria Tertia: Communion, Si Consurrexistis Feria Quarta: Introit, Venite Benedicti Feria Quarta: Alleluia, Surrexit Dominus Feria Quarta: Offertory, Portas Caeli Feria Quarta: Communion, Christus Resurgens Feria Quinta: Introit, Victricem Manum Tuam Feria Quinta: Alleluia, Surrexit Christus Feria Quinta: Offertory, In die eos Domminus Feria Quinta: Communion, Populus Acquistionis Feria Sexta: Introit, Eduxit Eos Dominus Feria Sexta: Alleluia, Dicite In Gentibus Feria Sexta: Offertory, Erit Vobis Hic Feria Sexta: Communion Sabbato: Introit Sabbato: Alleluia Sabbato: Alleluia Sabbato: Offertory Sabbato:Communion, |
This recording of Gregorian Chant from the Gloriæ Dei Cantores Schola celebrates the Feast of the Resurrection, which is rooted in the earliest centuries of Christian worship. This "celebration of celebrations" is a time for rebirth, and this recording reflects that sense of personal renewal and joy. The Chants of Easter includes the Propers of Easter Day and chants for the octave of Easter---daily services that are part of the week-long celebration of the Easter miracle. These chants are conveyed with careful attention to subtleties in the ancient Gregorian notation, inviting listeners to share the experience of Christ's resurrection in all its richness.
| 8564 CD $15.95 |
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Come Receive The Light Angels In Heaven Paschal Beginning Paschal Canon Ode 1 Paschal Canon Ode 3 Before Dawn Paschal Canon Ode 6 You Descended We Have Seen Christ's Ressurection Paschal Canon Ode 8 Paschal Ode 9 Exapostilarion Paschal Stichera The Paschal Sermon Of St. John Chrysostom Grace Shining Forth 1st Paschal Antiphon 2nd Paschal Antiphon 3rd Paschal Antiphon Christ Is Risen Hypakoe Of Pascha Kontakiom Of Pascha Prokeimenon Alleluia The Angel Cried Receive The Body Of Christ Let God Arise The Angel Cried Christ Is Risen Great Prokeimenon |
Easter (Pascha) is the “feast of feasts”--the most important celebration of the Eastern Orthodox Christian year. The vibrant and majestic hymns and chants sung during Easter services—Paschal Matins, Divine Liturgy, and Vespers—are presented on this CD in 31 selections, both historical and newly composed, drawn from the Slavic and Byzantine traditions, all adapted into English. From the transparent melodies of Russian znamenny and Byzantine chant, to opulent 8-voice Baroque sacred concertos, this CD offers a glorious musical feast!
| 8618 CD $15.95 |
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I Thank You god For Most This Amazing Day I Hide Myself Sleep I Will Wade Out Go, Lovely Rose When David Heard Hope, Faith, Life, Love Cloudburst With A Lily In Your Hand This Marriage Water Night A Boy And a Girl Her Sacred Spirit Soars Lux Aurumque |
John Tavener's 2000 composition, "Lamentations and Praises," a liturgical drama scored for male voices "singing in the Orthodox Byzantine style," flute, bass trombone, string quartet and a number of eclectic percussion instruments such as tubular bells, a Byzantine monastery bell, and very large Tibetan temple bowl. This is a profoundly religious work on the crucifixion, death and resurrection of Christ, written for the 12 voices of acclaimed Chanticleer, the only full-time classical vocal ensemble in the US. The beautiful and extensive liner notes take us through the 13 sections, or ikons, and explain in English what the singers are saying and what it means. Deeply meditative and beautiful! GRAMMY Winner.
| 6708 CD $15.98 |
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Lectio 1 Responsories from 1st Nocturn: - In Monte Oliveti - Tristis est anima mea - Ecce vidimus eum Lectio 2 Responsories from 2nd Nocturn: - Amicus meus osculi - Judas mercator pessimus - Unus ex discipulis meis Lectio 3 Responsories from 3rd Nocturn: - Eram quasi agnus innocens - Une hora non potuistis - Seniores populi consilium Benedictus Christus factus est |
If you like The King's Singers, you'll love this CD! Gesualdo: Tenebrae Responsories for Maundy Thursday offers a small slice from the liturgy used for Holy Week. All tracks are superbly performed. The voices weave together to form a solid fabric of stunning polyphony. The responsories, here, are divided into three sets beginning with lessons from the Lamentations of Jeremiah. Gesualdo, an eccentric Italian prince and one of the Renaissance's more innovative composers, is best remembered for killing his wife and her lover while they were in bed together. His guilt over this shocking and passionate act is said to be mirrored in his music with its chromatic and often indulgent lines. The music is liturgical in nature, but this recording can be appreciated inside and out of the sanctuary.
| 7104 CD $16.98 |
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Chichester Mass De profundis Long Since in Egypt's pleneous land Drop. drop slow tears Crux fidelis Fac me tecum 67 Psalm Veni, cretor spiritus And I saw a new heaven Coelos ascendit bodie God is gone up Hark, I hear the harps eternal |
The disc, with selections drawn from texts for the Lenten and Easter seasons, describes the human experience as it moves from darkness to light, from enslavement to liberation, and from suffering to joy.Ê Included are works by Parry, Ives, Stanford, and Opus 7's composer-in-residence, John Muehleisen.
| 6821 CD $15.98 |
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Motet: Laetatus sum a 12 Miss Laetatus sum a 12: - Kyrie - Gloria - Credo - Sactus - Benedictus - Agnus Dei Hymn: veni creator spiritus a 4 Motet: Vadam et circuibo civitatem a 6 Motet: Vidi speciosam a 6 Hymn: Ad caenam Agni providi a 4 Magnificat Sexti toni a 12 |
The great Spanish composer and priest, Victoria, devoted his life to writing supremely uplifting and intense music throughout the church calendar. The Call of the Beloved includes some of the earliest triple-choir music ever to be published and is a reminder of Victoria's joyous and passionate music, complementing his more austere Requiem and music for Holy Week. "If one can ever achieve complete emotional expression through the power of music, then here it is." - Harry Christophers. "This is a beautifully prepared and rewarding recording that deepens our appreciation of one of the greatest masters of the renaissance." - Gramophone
| 7006 CD $15.98 |
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Ferrabosco The Elder - Lamentations I Thomas Tallis - Lamentations I Thomas Tallis - Lamentations II Antoine Brumel - Lamentations Robert White - Lamentations (5vv) Palestrina - Lamentations For Holy Saturday (Lesson 3, 6vv) |
Haunting performances by the Tallis Scholars of music reflecting the dark and anguished emotions of Holy Week. As Easter music, this CD is a perfect addition to the St Matthew and St John Passions. - "Turning to the Tallis Scholars is a reminder of how supremely good Peter Phillips and his singers really are. It is like the move from an ordinary family car to a high-octane Ferrari, a magnificently honed machine in which every component functions superbly." (Gramophone)
| 6543 CD $16.98 |
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Alleluia Behold The Bridegroom - Anon. Gentle Light - Kalinnikov Of Thy Mystical Supper - Grechaninov The Wise Thief - Chesnokov Let All Moral Flesh Keep Silent In The Flesh Thou Didst Fall Asleep - Jonathon The Paschal Hours - Chesnokov Paschal Hymn To The Virgin To Day All Creation - Dekhteryov Come O People - Bortnyansky Give Ear To My Prayer - Grechaninov |
St. Petersburg Chamber Choir and their director, Nikolai Korniev, show off subbasement basses, soaring sopranos and a rich, well-blended sound in "Russian Easter," a group of eleven settings for Easter worship by Alexander Grechaninov, Dmitri Bortnyansky and other masters of Russian church music. The compositions were written variously from the 18th century through the present, but all stay true to the spirit and aesthetic of the Orthodox tradition. Those who find plainchant a little on the monotonous side but are still looking for a spiritual element in music will find much to admire and enjoy in these beautifully sung presentations.
| 8443 CD $15.98 |
This collection aims to provide a comprehensive survey of a highly significant part of the Christian Year: Ash Wednesday and Lent, Passiontide, Palm Sunday, Maundy Thursday, Good Friday, and Easter. Its contents span all musical periods of what is a marvellously rich area of church music and it contains much that is not widely available elsewhere under one cover. Ash Wednesday to Easter for Choirs includes a number of less familiar works together with new or recent arrangements of well-known tunes, such as Philip Ledger's 'This joyful Eastertide', Simon Lindley's 'Now the green blade riseth', and Bob Chilcott's setting of 'Were you there?'. Some of the anthems, for example Richard Shephard's 'Sing, my tongue' and Grayston Ives' 'Ride on', have been newly commissioned specifically for this collection, thus filling certain gaps. Wherever possible new practical performing editions of 16th-century repertoire have been prepared, reflecting current scholarship and including an English singing translation and, where, the original had none, a dynamic scheme. Such dynamics are the editors' suggestions only and may be freely ignored or adapted. Note values have in some instances been halved. Unaccompanied items include keyboard reductions for rehearsal.
| 9135 BOOK $15.98 |
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This joyful Eastertide |
Taken from the first arrangements on which Robert Shaw and Alice Parker collaborated, these titles were selected from hundreds of familiar and forgotten works for their musical and poetic excellence. The arrangements were made as simple as possible in order to let the words shine through the choral tone and texture while achieving variety from changes in voicing in a constant effort to reflect the most subtle articulations of the text. The earliest song in this collection is the ancient chant "Christ the Lord Hath Risen." Other familiar hymns come from the sacred tradition: "The Strife is O'er," and "O Sons and Daughters." The re-telling of the Easter story, and the joy of the Easter season, should shine forth through the singing of these songs. Listen, re-enact and give voice to the central mystery, in order that all who hear may join the celebration.
| 9128 SONGBOOK $3.50 |
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A Lenten Prayer |
Volume IV of Seasonal Carols Old & New is an exciting new venture into previously unexplored territory. Apart from a small number of Easter carols, there has been little music available for festivals other than Christmas. In Seasonal Carols Volume IV all the main seasons are represented, and in addition festivals such as Corpus Christi, Candlemas, The Transfiguration of Saints' Days receive timely attention. As a complete contrast and in a secular vein, a new rustic mixedvoice arrangement of King Henry VIII's "Pastime With Good Company" has been added. This volume is intended to give churches, schools and colleges a wide selection of material that will help to add a richer feeling to a liturgically - based Christian year.
| 9129 BOOK $19.95 |
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Choral Sentences for Holy Week and Easter |
'Choral Sentences for Holy Week and Easter' includes four “choral pictures” suitable as introits or short anthems. Palm Sunday— patient, plodding donkey carrying Jesus into Jerusalem; Maundy Thursday—prayerful petition; Good— plaintive melody with mournful accompaniment; Easter— women trudging to the tomb only to discover that Christ has risen! Based on PETERSFIELD (Harmonia Sacra, 1832), 'Savior, Prince of Israel's Race' has open harmonies with Sopranos and Tenors singing melody, reflectin early American compositional/singing style. The premise of 'Mary Wept' shows the strength of Mary in the adversity she suffered on Good Friday. Smith's 'Easter,' an arrangement of Ralph Vaughan Wiliam's composition, is a quiet and sensitive Easter anthem. Crisafulli's 'Come Away to the Skies' is a beautiful piece. Each stanza has a different setting. Useful throughout Easter season! "A" sections of 'I Am the Resurrection' feature rhythmic repetition of title. Reflective "B" section includes homophonic and polyphonic writing of Christ's promise: "Whoever lives and believes in me will never die."
| 9582 SHEET MUSIC $7.95 |
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Jesus Died on Calvary's Mountain |
'Jesus Died On Calvary's Mountain' is a plaintive American folk-tune. It has a poignant 3-stanza setting with different vocal texture for each stanza. 'A Nobler Life' is a straight-forward chorale style setting combining two Thomas Kingo texts. 'Lord, Who Throughout These Forty Days' is an easily remembered new “American” tune. The melody is shared by men and women's voices in alternating stanzas of this Lenten anthem. Comfortably performable by a small or larger choir with optional solo. Written for the National Lutheran Choir, 'A Lenton Meditation' is a simple, yet lovely treatment of the familiar Johann Heermann hymn. The piece begins with the fourth stanza (For me, kind Jesus?) which quickly brings the listener to the heart of this beautiful text. The change in stanza sequence has a powerful affect in giving a meaningful new interpretation of this hymn.
| 9583 SHEET MUSIC $4.95 |
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