 | Bird, Peter - Cædmon?s Hymn 2 Choral SATB a cappella |
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| Composer : | Bird, Peter (1951 - ) | ||||
| Instrumentation : | Choral SATB a cappella | ||||
| Style : | Hymn - Sacred | ||||
| Arranger : | |||||
| Lyricist : | Cædmon | ||||
| Langage : | English | ||||
| Date : | 2005 | ||||
| Copyright : | Creative Commons-Attribution-ShareAlike | ||||
| Added by peter-bird, 12 Jun 2007 The text of this hymn was recorded by the Venerable Bede. The melody of Cædmon?s famous hymn has been lost; however, the rhythms (triple time) are recorded in three 8th- and 9th-century manuscripts of Bede's Historia. This hymn is a perfect gem of hymnody and follows the rules exactly: verse, verse, refrain, verse, close. There is no evidence that this Hymn was ever previously sung in Latin. In this setting, the message and the musical theme are preserved through many changes of form as the language and the musical style gradually progress from those of the early Middle Ages to those of the English Baroque. May be doubled by organ or strings. Source / Web : | Fresh Choral Music Online | | |||
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Peter Bird stirs his soul profoundly and up to its unknown roots, to search and find his musical language. Caedmon's hymn is a puzzling piece, full of voices, echos of the past, reborn in the present for the modern ear. Ockeghem and even Walther von der Vogelweide, the medieval troubadour, can be heard. But there are also
connections to soundbirds like Arvo Pärt or John Tavener.
The funny thing is, that allthough the text is a religious praise and calling for serenity, the music is a real living melting pot, energy driven and boiling: Creation as a force works in it, like once the ancient earth was filled with fire, cooling down in countless shapes, generating life as it extinguished its own. This is an element of the music that makes it difficult for a choir to sing, because incorporating this stream of energy is like eating fire, and that is something choir singers don't do every day. But when they master the music, it will certainly be an uplifting experience. Because the earth is being reborn in this piece. A big achievememt I would say, that also demonstrates Peter Bird's knowledge of, connection with, and admiration for the beautiful planet we live on.