Job (Vocal Score)-A substantial work for four soli SATB chorus and orchestra using text from the translation of Stephen Mitchell's The Book Of Job. Like Vaughan Williams in his Job: A Masque for Dancing Davies was inspired inpart by William Blake's 21 engravings for the Book of Job. His oratorio however is less dependent on find parallels for Blake's visual details given the direct poetry in David Lemon's adaptation of the Stephen Mitchelltranslation from the biblical original it is hardly surprising that the spotlight should be so much on Job's suffering litany. The baritone has the lion's share of the setting though the other soloists occasionally reinforce hisplea and chorale-like episodes universalize his predicament. Davies frames with work with two seminal plainsong-like passages; there is also plenty of dramatic contrast both within Job's monologues and in the vivid orchestralwriting for the smarmy Comforters the initially shrill God who finally appears out of a dazzling orchestral whirlwind and the animal life he uses to illustrate the wonders of creation to a humbled Job.Commissioned by theUniversity of British Colombia it was first performed in May 1997 by Valdine Anderson (soprano) Linda Maguire (mezzo soprano) Paul Moore (tenor) and Kevin McMillan (baritone) with the Vancouver Bach Choir and the CBC VancouverOrchestra conducted by the composer.Vocal score with piano reduction of the orchestral score. Duration c. 70mins.

For unaccompanied SATB chorus to words by George Mackay Brown.Composer Note:In setting George Mackay Brown’s acrostic lines for the birth of Lucy Randall (the first child borne in Rackwick Hoy for 32 years) I set myself the uncharacteristic problem of banishing all ‘black’ notes – that is the work used only the ‘white’ notes on the piano – a symbolic ‘conceit’ I had not tried before. The music has the gentle rocking rhythm suitable for its purpose and I enjoyed writing the tune so much I repeated all of the text in order to hear it twice. -Peter Maxwell Davies

Chamber opera in a prologue and one act. A ghost story telling of the mysterious disappearance of three lighthouse keepers in the Hebrides. This is a mystery story in the form of a chamber opera. The prologue is set as acourt of enquiry into the unexplained disappearance of the three keepers from a lighthouse. Questions are posed by a solo horn which may sound from among the audience and three officers give answer. Gradually they move fromstraight testimony into fantastical imaginings of evil during a 'flashback' to the lighthouse; but then we snap back to the courtroom. In the main act the three singers become the vanished keepers. They have been together formonths long enough to be fully aware of each other's weaknesses; petty bickerings suggest a relationship which is stable but liable to become highly unstable at any moment. They sing songs to reduce the tension Blazes beginningwith a rough ballad of street violence accompanied by violin and banjo. Sandy's song with cello and out-of-tune upright piano is a thinly disguised description of sexual bliss and Arthur's with brass and clarinet is atub-thumping hymn. But the songs serve only to resurrect in their minds ghosts from the past and as the fog descends each of the keepers becomes convinced that he is being claimed by the Beast. They prepare to meet its dazzlingeyes which become the lights of the relief vessel and the three men reappear as officers met at the lighthouse only by an infestation of rats. They leave and at the end the last hours of Blazes Sandy and Arthur begin to playover again.Study Score. Duration c. 1h 25mins.

A selection of five wonderful carols which have been composed and arranged for SSA Choir a cappella by Peter Maxwell Davies.

Words from The Roman Missal-This accessible motet is a companion piece for Lullabye for Lucy which was composed for the birth of Lucy Rendall the first child born in Rackwick Hoy for 32 years.Suscipe Quæsumus was first sung by the Mayfield Singers conducted by Neil Price on the occasion of the marriage of Lucy Rendall in St Magnus Cathedral Orkney on 18 July 2005.

The story of how the spiders teach two children who have been tormenting the insects in the garden a salutary lesson during which they learn a great deal about these creatures and recognise the wonder of the insect world. Thesongs include simple recorder and percussion parts and guitar chords.

A setting of the Liber Usualis plainsong for unaccompanied SATB chorus written for the Feast Of he Archangel St. Michael. The piece was first performed by the Chior Of Westminster Abbey in July 2004 at Tewkesbury Abbey. Afull Organ or Piano accompaniment is provided for rehearsal purposes only.

This motet for unaccompanied SATB choir was commissioned for the 500th anniversary of King's College Cambridge. This is a setting in Greek of an Orthodox prayer to Christ as Son and Word God and Man risen and saving. The prayeris led by a solo tenor and sung mostly by the men with the upper voices entering only for an appeal to Wisdom (sofia) and the final alleluia.It was first performed in 1991 in King's College Chapel by the choir of King's Collegeconducted by Stephen Cleobury.

A Selkie Tale is a short music-theatre work (duration about 25 minutes) designed for performance by seven- to eleven-year-olds year olds. Four solo roles and several separate chorus groups give scope for the participation of alarge number of children of all ability levels.The story is a humorous version of the Orkney folk-tale of an islander kidnapping a Selkie wife - a creature who is a seal in the sea and a woman on the land. Things gohilariously wrong with the Selkie wife escaping to rejoin her companions in the sea and Mansie the islander facing a most uncongenial alliance with his cousin and housekeeper Miss Trowie-Tattibogle.Vocal score.This isa special item which is made to order. Please e-mail our Mail Order Department for further information.

This short opera (duration of 50 minutes) aptly designed for children to perform with modest resources is a version of the familiar tale though with certain adaptations. Cinderella is an au pair girl who arrives on the scene bytrain and there are three ugly sisters who get their just deserts in marriage to the appalling leaders of the armed forces. Writing for children in the Orkney Islands Davies has also included some local references: these can bechanged to suit other times and places. Musically the piece is a bright sequence of little songs choruses dialogue scenes and dances probably best suited to children between the ages of eight and twelve though the parts of theugly sisters can usefully be taken by boys with broken voices.Text only.Duration c. 50mins.

There are seven songs and an instrumental interlude making all together an entertainment that provides opportunity for very simple stage action and dancing: nothing at all elaborate is needed in the way of scenery and costumes.The voices are in unison throughout and their part is always doubled by instruments which should make it relatively easy for quite young children to learn their way into Davies's delightful tunes. The references to Hoy areincidental and could possibly be adapted to suit the locality of a particular performance. In any event most of these tall stories and rhymes will appeal to children everywhere.Full score for this set of songs for children'svoices recorders piano guitars and percussion.Sets of parts also available.