An evening showcasing texts set to music from different contexts and in various styles. Nothing too overstated, but with a performance that couldn’t be under-estimated.
In the opening half, we travelled with the musicians on a brief tour of part of the liturgical year: journeying from the Incarnation at Christmas, to the glory of Easter Day. The modern items were thoughtfully chosen: Wallen’s prayer for ‘Peace on Earth’ anyway having a timeless quality, there was a reminder to us that its message – in each generation, and especially at this time – has ongoing significance and resonance. The poignancy was balanced by the joy of Resurrection – Venable’s ‘Easter Song’ providing a glorious climax (his style oft being compared to that of Gerald Finzi).
The combination of the sensitive piano accompaniment from Sims, together with the glorious rich voice of Madden, blended to pierce the atmosphere: as something of the veil between heaven and earth seemed momentarily lifted.
The recital brought together both the beauty of sheer simplicity, the sanctity and sanctuary of silence, and the heavenly tones of ethereal music; it took us into a different space and place – uncluttered from the cacophony of noise and distraction which nowadays seems the norm.
In the second part of the performance, Sims provided a simple but moving accompaniment on the organ (Sims’ debut organ performance at a recital). The pair worked particularly well during ‘Sainte’ – with gentle interjections from the singer, working together to create beautiful harmonies: almost like a dialogue between tenor and player.
We finished with some of the most modern pieces: ‘My Beloved Spake’ (2022) – to a rich and gorgeous setting; ‘Shine Forth’ – written for Edinburgh in 2010; and ‘The Death of Bede’ (Park) – still a work in progress… and only received in its current form on Friday evening… so about as contemporary as you could get! How delighted we were to hear its premiere and first outing.
The performance finished at 8.35pm.
Time in Music is Much, Monday 11th August 2025, St Vincent’s Chapel