Cecilia "75"

SKU: CA.1025000

ISBN 9790007251826. Key: D major. English.

�??Hail! bright Cecilia, hail to thee. Great patroness of us and harmony!�?� �?? this exclamation opens the final chorus of Henry Purcell�??s eponymous Ode to St. Cecilia from 1692. A paean to the power of music, the work is one of the undoubted masterpieces of English choral odes of that time. A resolution of the Musical Society of London in 1683 launched the great tradition of annual celebrations for St. Cecilia�??s Day (November 22), featuring a church service followed by performances of specially composed music. Over the years, Purcell wrote several odes for the occasion, of which this example from 1692 is one of the most popular. Four decades later, Handel would also contribute to the celebrations with his Alexander�??s Feast, HWV 75 (Carus 55.075), and his Ode for St. Cecilia�??s Day, HWV 76 (Carus 55.076).Purcell�??s magnificent music, which features a huge range of tonal color and form, offers delightful parts for a variety of solo, ensemble, and choral settings. With its richly expressive palette, the Ode to St. Cecilia is an extremely rewarding work by the �??Orpheus Britannicus�?�, as Purcell was admiringly called by contemporaries.- Festive, rousing ode to music- Highlight of the choral ode genre in the 17th century

SKU: OU.9780193413757

ISBN 9780193413757. 12 x 8 inches.

For soprano solo and SSATB unaccompanied Cecilia, Busy Like a Bee is a reflective setting of a text adapted from the Divine Office for St Cecilia's Day. The influence of plainchant is particularly apparent in the soprano solo, and McDowall intersperses effective imitative passages amidst homophonic writing with rich harmonies.

SKU: HL.49017724

ISBN 9783795771775. UPC: 841886013797. 7.5x10.75x0.332 inches.

An annual London celebration of the patron saint of music, in the form of a banquet plus the performance of an ode, was instituted on St. Cecilia's Day, 22 November 1683. The occasion proved so popular that it continued for some 30 years after. A newspaper account of the first performance of the 1692 Ode informs us that 'the Ode was admirably set to music by Mr. Henry Purcell, and perform'd twice with universal applause'. The popularity of Purcell's setting is apparent from the many sources that survived from the period and from printed extracts which appeared almost immediately after its first performance. The editor, Christopher Hogwood, is the founder-director of the Academy of Ancient Music with whom he has made over 200 recordings. He is Honorary Professor of Music at the University of Cambridge and Visiting Professor at the Royal Academy of Music, London.

SKU: ND.MRCH53-SET