O magnum mysterium was written for the tenth anniversary of the Slovenian Ipavska Chamber Choir in 2008. The sense of awe and wonder radiates, almost symmetrically, from the central point of an E to colour the word ‘mysterium’. The harmonies are always colourful but never predictable. At the words ‘Beata virgo’ a reverential and hypnotic chant is established and a solo quartet is introduced into the texture. The concluding ‘Alleluia’ begins as a celebratory refrain before being transformed into a much more subdued affair, coming to rest, inconclusively, on a second-inversion chord.
from notes by Rupert Gough © 2010
