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Track(s) taken from CDA67245

There is a flower

composer
1986
author of text

Cecilia Osmond (soprano), Polyphony, Stephen Layton (conductor)
Recording details: January 2001
All Saints, Tooting, United Kingdom
Produced by Mark Brown
Engineered by Julian Millard
Release date: October 2001
Total duration: 4 minutes 12 seconds
 

Other recordings available for download

Quintin Beer (treble), St John's College Choir Cambridge, David Hill (conductor)
The Gesualdo Six, Owain Park (director)
Ruth Holton (soprano), The Cambridge Singers, John Rutter (conductor)
Ruth Holton (soprano), The Cambridge Singers, John Rutter (conductor)
The King's Singers
Tenebrae, Nigel Short (conductor)
The King's Singers

Reviews

‘It’s hard to imagine them better performed than by the award-winning British choir Polyphony’ (The Mail on Sunday)

‘The performances by both choir and orchestra are ideal in tone, style and accomplishment … a Christmas treat’ (Gramophone)

‘A treat for all Rutter fans! … the program is bound to satisfy anyone seeking a balanced program of Christmas choral music done with sensitivity and taste’ (American Record Guide)

‘Superb performances which are beautifully recorded’ (International Record Review)

‘Those of you for whom Rutter is a new name are in for a very special treat. From the jaunty Shepherd's Pipe Carol, with its vivid portrayal of the starry sky above Bethlehem, to the sublime and deeply moving What Sweeter Music, Rutter's music is impeccably crafted, melodically rich and entirely infectious. More than a stocking-filler, this disc is surely one of the highlights of the year’ (Classic FM)

‘The carols of John Rutter are becoming as traditional at Christmas as mince pies, so rich is his output … [An] extraordinary disc. Rutter’s music is impeccably crafted, melodically rich and entirely infectious … this disc is surely one of the highlights of the year’ (Classic FM Magazine)

‘When the chirpy Shepherd’s Pipe Carol, the instantly singable Star Carol, or the literal sound effects of the charming Donkey Carol are wrapped up in such glittering, top-quality packaging as Stephen Layton’s Polyphony and The City of London Sinfonia, its seasonal allure is sealed. Finely Polished performances, served up with a warm and festive mulled-wine sensation’ (The Scotsman)

‘Lovingly rendered by Polyphony under Stephen Layton, this should be a disc of choice not only for this year but as well as for the years to come’ (Fanfare, USA)

‘Polyphony beautifully continue the English tradition with joyful refinement’ (HMV Choice)

‘[Rutter] could not have asked for better performers’ (The Evening Standard)

‘The performances are uniformly excellent; Stephen Layton and his Polyphony vocal ensemble have shown a previous affinity for Rutter’s work and this effort simply reaffirms their commitment to and love for this very special music. Outstanding’ (Classics Today)

«Les arrangements sont ingénieux» (Diapason, France)
The wistful, unaccompanied There is a flower, to words by the fifteenth-century poet John Audelay, was written in the mid-1980s at the request of the legendary organist and choir director of St John’s College, Cambridge, George Guest. It was first sung at an Advent carol service—a form of service which had become (and remains) immensely popular in the heady musical climate of Cambridge University, especially given that undergraduates leave for home several weeks before the season of Christmas truly gets under way. The opening solo recalls the talents of a particularly fine treble in the St John’s Choir at the time in question, whose name nonetheless seems lost to posterity.

from notes by Andrew Green © 2001

Sur des mots de John Audelay, un poète du Xve siècle, le nostalgique There is a flower pour chœur seul vit le jour au milieu des années 80 à la demande de l’organiste et chef de chœur de St John’s College de Cambridge, le légendaire George Guest. Sa première audition eut lieu au cours d’un service de carols de l’Avent—une forme de service qui est devenu (et demeure) immensément populaire dans le climat intensément musical de l’Université de Cambridge, d’autant plus que les étudiants quittent le campus plusieurs semaines avant que la saison de Noël ne débute à proprement parler. Le solo initial rappelle les talents d’un jeune sopraniste de l’époque appartenant au chœur de St John’s don’t le nom n’est toutefois pas passé à la postérité.

extrait des notes rédigées par Andrew Green © 2001

Das wehmütige, unbegleitete There is a flower, dessen Text von John Audelay stammt, einem Dichter des fünfzehnten Jahrhunderts, wurde Mitte der 1980er Jahre auf Bitten von George Guest komponiert, dem legendären Organisten und Chorleiter am St. John’s College Cambridge. Es wurde zum ersten Mal bei einem Carol Service zu Advent gesungen—einer Form des Gottesdienstes, die im berauschenden musikalischen Klima der Universität Cambridge vor allem deshalb ungeheuer populär geworden war (und es heute noch ist), weil die Studenten schon mehrere Wochen vor dem eigentlichen Fest aufbrechen, um nach Hause zu fahren. Das einleitende Solo erinnert an die Talente eines besonders edlen Knabensoprans im St. John’s Choir um die fragliche Zeit, dessen Name aber dennoch für die Nachwelt verloren zu sein scheint.

aus dem Begleittext von Andrew Green © 2001

Other albums featuring this work

Christmas
Studio Master: CDA68299Studio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
Christmas at St John's Cambridge
CDA67576CD temporarily out of stock
Christmas Night
CSCD526Download only
Christmas with the King's Singers
SIGCD502Download only
Joy to the World
Studio Master: SIGCD268Download onlyStudio Master FLAC & ALAC downloads available
Rutter: The John Rutter Christmas Album
CSCD510Download only
What sweeter music
SIGCD182Download only
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