Andrew Palmer
Group Editor
12:00 AM 28th September 2024
arts
Review
Classical Music: Welcome Joy – A Celebration of Women’s Voices
Welcome Joy – A Celebration of Women’s Voices
Gustav Holst Two Eastern Pictures, Dirge and Hymeneal; Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda: Third Group Elisabeth Poston An English Day-Book Imogen Holst Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow; Hilary Campbell Our Endless Day; Olivia M. Sparkhall Lux Aeterna;Gemma McGregor Love was his meaning; Judith Weir We sekyn here rest;hruthi Rajasekar Ushāa – Goddess of Dawn; Priestess
Corvus Consort
Freddie Crowley
with Louise Thomson harp
Chandos CHSA 5350
chandos.net
The Corvus Consort has turned its attention to a rich tapestry of choral music written specifically for women’s voices and harp.
With a group of 12 upper voices, they excel in their ensemble blend and word clarity. Crowley has curated a programme of exquisite repertoire, encompassing a century's worth of music for upper voice and harp.
The opening work is Imogen Holst’s setting of Keats'
Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow. Her father Gustav, who taught at St Paul's Girls' School, is represented by
Two Eastern Pictures and
Dirge and Hymeneal. As Frankie Perry points out in the excellent note, Holst repurposed ideas from
The Planets, including the oscillating chords, for 'Saturn' and then set aside the
Dirge and
Hymeneal. It was first performed in 1986 at the
Cheltenham Festival.
Holst taught himself Sanskrit, and there is a delightful nod to this with Indian composer Shruthi Rajasekar invited to compose for this programme in response to the Third Group of Gustav Holst’s Choral Hymns. Both
Ushās—the Goddess of Dawn and
Priestess—not only add exciting new repertoire for these unusual forces but also explore directly Holst’s engagement with ancient Hindu texts. The musical writing is captivating, especially the ‘rushing away’ end.
An expansive solo harp interlude, marking the halfway point in Elizabeth Poston's
An English Day-Book cycle, nods to motifs from previous movements, acting as a meditation on the time passed up to this point. This is the substantive work on the album, and there is a collection of shorter pieces by young female composers. Olivia Sparkhall's
Lux Aeterna for double choir is beautiful; the musical writing captures the spirit of eternal light.
Other composers include Hilary Campbell with
Our Endless Day, Gemma McGregor with
Love was his meaning, and Judith Weir, the former Master of the King's Music, with
We Sekyn Here Rest.