The stark, cold severity of the opening section (stanzas 1 and 2) of Good Friday captures perfectly the paradox that is Mankind. On the one hand a compassionate being full of remorse for its own imperfections, on the other a mindless, vindictive organism capable of destroying its very own salvation. Throughout, Holst employs the heavy tread of a dominant-tonic ostinato, above which the vocal incantations are delivered with a beautifully crafted angularity. It is, however, with the arrival of the more optimistic mood of the fourth stanza that Holst plays his master stroke: he introduces into the vocal parts the emotionally potent orchestral prelude to stanzas one and three, thereby throwing the relentlessness of the rest of the setting into even bolder relief. When viewed in this context, the assertive final chords have a very hollow ring to them. The original Latin text is by Peter Abelard and the work is scored for TTBB. The score carries the instruction that the original string accompaniment recorded here may be undertaken by an organ or piano. It is dedicated to Dr Ernest Bullock and the Westminster Abbey Choir.

from notes by Julian Haylock © 1989

Intercession is, if anything, even more severe in tone than Good Friday. There is a similar processional feel to this music with its regular ostinato tread of a rising scale figure. Holst was always fond of unusual rhythmic metres and the 5/4 chosen here was one of his favourites (for example, ‘Mars’). In an explanatory note Holst points out that ‘the normal rhythm is a bar of 2+3 alternating with one of 3+2’, thereby shifting the subsidiary beat of the bar from the third to the fourth crotchet and back again. Bars of 4/4 and 7/4 also appear, but Holst consistently uses these changes of metre to draw attention to the natural emphasis of the words, rather than straightjacketing the assymetrical text into a rigid rhythmical framework. The setting divides into two balanced halves of three stanzas each, stanzas three and six being set at a faster più mosso tempo to lend urgency of expression to these crucial parts of the text. The morendo ending chillingly conveys the pervading sense of helplessness. The original Latin text is by Sedulius Scottus. Once again Holst provides organ and piano alternatives to the string orchestra accompaniment of the TTBB voices. ‘Intercession’ is dedicated to Irving Silverwood and the Holme Valley Choir.

from notes by Julian Haylock © 1989

The original Latin text for How mighty are the Sabbaths is by Peter Abelard and Holst dedicated the work to Archibald T Davison and the Harvard Glee Club. This setting, again for TTBB, is described in the score as a ‘Chorus for male voices and an ad lib chorus for treble voices in unison, with accompaniment for full orchestra or strings or organ’. The accompaniment recorded here is for strings only, with treble voices used as indicated from the twelfth stanza onward. Holst further suggests that in the event of a treble choir not being available, a solo trumpet may be used instead!

Once again, Holst’s concentration on the natural rhythm of the words leads to a sequence of changes of metre based this time on 7/4, but moving on occasion through 6/4, 3/2, and 5/4. This poem, the longest of the set, also embraces the greatest variety of emotional mood and expression. Once again, the setting opens with a scalic ostinato in the bass, this time in the form of a melodic descent (the opposite of the climbing figure that opened ‘Intercession’). The opening two stanzas are characterized by a forward-marching confidence and stoicism, in total contrast to the contemplative inwardness of expression at the mention of the Holy City. This sense of self-communion is further enhanced at the words ‘There all vexation ended’, marked parlante in the score, directing the singers to adjust their vocal production to resemble normal speech characteristics. The celebratory final section (più mosso ma non troppo) begins at the twelfth stanza where the treble choir sings the words of the opening two stanzas as a rousing counterpoint to the joyous celebration expressed by the faster-moving men’s voices underneath.

from notes by Julian Haylock © 1989

Described by Holst as a canon for male voices (TB), A Love Song is dedicated to Archibald T Davison and the Harvard Glee Club. The short setting carries Holst’s emotionally detached style to extremes, with relentless pizzicati underpinning the intellectual conceit of a two-part canon. Even the more expressive 3/4 setting of the words ‘Love the deceiver’ seems strangely remote. It is as though Holst succeeds in making all the right gestures, but fails to imbue the musical tissue with the necessary vitality for it to rise above mere enervation. Holst himself was painfully aware of this tendency in some of his music, often citing the slow movement of Schubert’s String Quintet as the emotionally expressive ideal. The original Latin text comes from the manuscript of Benedictbeuren.

from notes by Julian Haylock © 1989

Taking another text from the Benedictbeuren manuscript, the hilarious Drinking Song shows Holst to have possessed a rare ability to handle a humorous subject in a musical context. The unbuttoned vulgarity and earthiness of mood are perfectly reflected in the mock-guitar accompaniment at the opening, and the dismissive, throw-away gesture at the words ‘Sobriety’ and ‘Emasculate’ which makes its effect most pointedly. This lively setting for TTBB is dedicated to Bernard Naylor and the Winnipeg Male Voice Choir.

from notes by Julian Haylock © 1989

The final setting, Before Sleep, is also the most beautiful, much of the music being held in suspension over pedal points in the bass. The rising and falling scale figurations that have been such a strong feature of the cycle as a whole are here resolved into legato phrases of gossamer simplicity and purity. By setting the two vocal lines in two different keys (although these are hardly adhered to), Holst is able with infinite subtlety to demonstrate his masterly control of harmonic tension and dissonance. Holst’s musical sensitivity here is never in doubt, being supported throughout by a technique of rare scope and imagination. This, the second of the canons for two-part male chorus (TB), is dedicated to Archibald T Davison and the Harvard Glee Club. The text is from the Latin of Prudentius.

from notes by Julian Haylock © 1989