John McCabe

This work was written in 1971. The text is derived from the Latin Requiem Mass treated as a kind of sacred poem rather than a liturgical text and the order of sections is much altered. The work derives principally from the opening piano harmonies and the soprano's initial melodic lines - the latter which have an affinity (not least in rhythmic accentuation) with certain aspects of plainchant combine with the piano chords and embellishments to produce a serial reservoir of material is used fairly strictly even in seemingly freer sections. The form is arch-like the opening material returning substantially altered at the end with as the work's centre a scherzo-likeSanctus introduced and punctuated by chords derived in lay-out from bell sounds. The work was written in memory of Alan Rawsthorne and Sir John Barbirolli and was first performed at the Wigmore Hall in 1979 by Jane Manning and Richard Rodney Bennett.

John McCabe's Sonata for Clarinet Cello and Piano. Score and parts. This work was commissioned by Brocklehurst-Whiston Amalgamated for the 1969 Macclesfield Festival.

Reduction For Satb/Organ-John McCabe's Psalm-Cantata arranged for Soprano Baritone SATB choir and Organ by Iain Farrington.This work was commissioned by the English Baroque Choir and their music director Jeremy Jackman who gave the first performance on 16th March 2013 at St. John’s SmithSquare London.'I’ve wanted to write a choral/instrumental piece based on texts from the Psalms for a very long time so this commission from the English Baroque Choir and their music director Jeremy Jackman (to whom the work is dedicated) was a wonderful opportunity to put this idea into practice. I decided to write a kind of latter-day equivalent to the Bachcantatas with two soloists (soprano and baritone). The texts are derived from a variety of Psalm sources: some in Latin some in English a meditation by Savonarola and a Henry Vaughan poem.' - John McCabe

First performance 12 October 2011 at St George's Hall Liverpool by David Pyatt (horn) and the Sacconi String Quartet as part of the Centenary Concert of the Rodewald Concert Series.Composer's NoteThroughout my musical life I have found the horn one of the most evocative and beautiful of all instruments and it is no surprise that I have written a number of works for it including a concerto a trio with violin and piano and a triptych of concert works for horn and piano. Writing a work for horn and string quartet has long been an ambition therefore fuelled not only by my love of the instrument but also by theastonishingly small repertoire of horn quintets.This work was commissioned to celebrate their centenary by the Rodewald Concert Society Liverpool who gave me an invaluable education in the masterpieces of the chamber music repertoire at their concerts which I attended regularly during my schooldays. The quintet is dedicated to Nancy and Douglas Brady two of my oldest and closest friends from Liverpool. It was written in 2010/11 and is continuous. There are however three main ?movements?: an opening quick one which is interrupted twice by brief slow interludes referring to the motto heard at the start a substantial slow movement which also contains two short scherzando sections (much as Brahms?s A major Violin Sonata has two quick trio sections in its slow movement) and a fast finale a descendant of the Beethoven one-in-a-bar scherzo.The scherzando interludes interwoven with the slow movement are frequently muted and have something of an other-worldly atmosphere perhaps Queen Mab came to deliver me of some dreams while I was writing it. At the end of the finale the furious activity gives way to an elegiac conclusion which I feel was greatly influenced by events in the world outside at the time of composition the music descending to a quiet sustained C on horn and cello. The work lasts just over 20 minutes and was first

Bagatelles is a work for two Bb Clarinets composed in 1965 by John McCabe. There are eight in total each lasting around a minute: Con fuoco ma non troppo allegro - Andante - Allegro giocoso - Fugatississimo - Adagio - Bossa Nova - Crescendo - Fantasy.John McCabe (1939-2015) was a British composer pianist and music administrator. He studied at the Royal Manchester College of Music (now the RNCM) and built a career as a virtuoso pianist. However he also wrote several hundred musical compositions ranging from large-scale orchestral works to chamber music and solo instrumental pieces - it is said the only classical genrehe did not write for was opera. He also held positions at numerous educational institutions across the UK Australia and the United States.