/ 4 Flûtes A Bec (SATB)
SKU: HL.4008005
How often has something been justified by, declared to be, or blessed as “in the name of” some cause or other? How can it be that opposing armies and the use of weapons are ever “in the name of”...? This is a common thread in the history of different faiths. Good was created but evil was committed and all “in the name of...” This thread is also found in the history of the Premonstratensian Abbey at Wadgassen. The abbey was built in the 12th century on unfertile, desolate moorland, which later evolved into the most powerful religious community in the Saarland. The history of the abbey records quite astounding achievements under the motto desertum florebit quasi lilium (“the desert will bloom like a lily”); but also the harsh treatment of delinquents. The order had its own school, in which children were taught the seven liberal arts (which included music as well as geography and astronomy), but the poor were left to starve outside the abbey walls and were only allowed to eat from the members' on feast days. The medieval witch trials demanded their pound of flesh, and one group that fell victim were ecstatic dancers who moved wildly to music--which was interpreted as the devil's work. The result: a show trial that sentenced the dancers to death by fire. All in the name of... The year is 1789: Abbot Bordier is in the tenth year of his command. He does not yet know that he is to be the last abbot of an almost 700-year-tradition. Not far from the abbey is the French border, which has long been making itself felt with the sound of gunfire, and the brothers continue to keep a nervous eye on it. The first portents of the French Revolution loom, but no one wants to believe it--that is, until the French pound the door down, storm the abbey and come right into the brothers' chambers. In a blind fury, all the pipes of the abbey organ are torn out, icons beheaded with swords and brothers beaten death while numerous buildings are set on fire. The abbey church is in flames. A frantic and desperate escape begins. Abbot Bordier and a handful of brothers make their getaway via the River Saar, adjacent to the abbey, to the neighbouring village of Bous. They survive, but their life--the Premonstratensian abbey--is destroyed. While they flee towards Prague and the sanctuary of the Strahov Monastery, the abbey at Wadgassen is razed to the ground and becomes a stone quarry. The desert blooms once more, however. A few short decades later, a glasswork arises from the foundations of the abbey. As peace returns to the region, it brings jobs and a new vision for its people.
SKU: ST.B362
ISBN 9790220202872.
Though Byrd's In nomine settings for consort were probably the first of his works to circulate widely, the dating of his consort music in general is problematical. The famous 'Browning' variations are probably an early display of the composer's mastery of the form. The only complete Fantasia a 4 is found in the Psalmes, Songs & Sonnets of 1611. Two other examples are reconstructed from fragmentary sources, and appear in this volume with hymn-settings and Misereres, two pavans and a galliard.
SKU: AU.9781506496078
ISBN 9781506496078. 9 x 12 inches.
From a time of isolation comes this beautiful collection by Karl Osterland of hymns that provide comfort. With a variety of tunes represented, these settings will be useful throughout the church year, as well as for healing services, funerals, and memorial services. Tunes include EVENTIDE, BALM IN GILEAD, SINE NOMINE, and VICTORY.
SKU: HL.4008004
SKU: HL.49044834
ISBN 9790220136719. UPC: 841886027268. 9.0x12.0x0.097 inches.
This beautiful and tentative work for viol consort is based on a Purcell Fantasia of the same name. Occasionally, and to great effect, Bryars enhances the rich, romantic sound of bowed viols with the use of pizzicato and harmonics, highlighting the distance between this mesmerising piece and its origin.
SKU: HL.44011865
8.25x11.75x0.95 inches.
SKU: CA.3550109
ISBN 9790007248987. Key: D minor. Language: Latin.
Score and parts available separately - see item CA.3550100.
