Monday 5 February 2018

The Cross and the Crown

Is the Title of our Spring Concert

In my last blog I talked about the journey taken by Haydn's "7 Last Words" from orchestral to choral.

It is, of course, a very devotional work and, by its nature, rather sombre, dealing, as it does, with Our Lord's final moments suffering a gruesome death by crucifixion.

We then had the task of deciding what would best complement this work. We chose to perform two of Handel's coronation anthems. In their own way, they also have a devotional quality as they exhort the king to be faithful, strong and devout.

Handel wrote four anthems, and they have a specific order in which they were played at the first coronation (that of George II) : "Let thy hand be strengthened" was played first, then "Zadok the Priest", then "The King shall Rejoice", and finally "My Heart is Inditing" at the coronation of the Queen. "Zadok" is usually played first these days (although, as we haven't had a coronation for sixty-five years, who knows what will happen?).

Handel chose the words himself, extrapolating from anthems sung at James II's coronation.

The best known is "Zadok" which we won't be singing. We will be singing "Let thy Hand be Strengthened" and "The King Shall Rejoice". These are wonderful pieces, full of joy and solemnity, fit for a monarch.

And whether your crown is made of thorns or gold and jewels, being King is a serious and solemn matter.

Join us for this musical journey on 21 April 7.30 at St Mary's Church, Glastonbury.

Full details to follow

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