Composed in 2003 The Kestrel Road was jointly commissioned by forty-seven choirs all of which are members of Music Making a national society that links several thousand amateur choirs and orchestras. This work wascommissioned as a tribute to mark the seventieth birthday of Sir Peter Maxwell Davies and was performed nationwide throughout the 2004/5 season.The Kestrel Road is a song-cycle for SATB Choir and Piano settings ofpoems by the ‘Bard of Orkney’ George Mackay Brown (1917-96). The poems are highly evocative of Orkney life history and folklore with shepherds crofters fisher folk a laird a scarecrow King Barleycorn and the timeless figureof Ikey the Tinker who passes through many of Brown’s poems seemingly linking past and present. According to Maxwell Davies the music is suggestive of the ‘elusive land and seascapes’ of the islands and is much influenced bythe local folk music.

text from Christmas Poem by George Mackay Brown. Par DAVIES PETER MAXWELL. As Master of the Queens Music, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies has written a new carol for Her Majesty the Queen each Christmas since his appointment began in 2004. Kings and Shepherds is the fourth and like An Heavenly Song, Wonder Tidings and The Yule-tide Bell, will be published as part of the Schott Royal Collection. Written for the 2008 Christmas service and performed in the Ballroom of Buckingham Palace, Kings and Shepherds is a short traditional setting of Christmas Poem by George Mackey Brown, a poet who lived near to Maxwell Davies on the Orkney Islands. A wonderful addition to the carol repertoire and ideal for amateur choirs looking to programme new pieces./ Recueil / Choeur Mixte SATB

For unaccompanied SATB chorus to words by George Mackay Brown.Composer Note:In setting George Mackay Brown’s acrostic lines for the birth of Lucy Randall (the first child borne in Rackwick Hoy for 32 years) I set myself the uncharacteristic problem of banishing all ‘black’ notes – that is the work used only the ‘white’ notes on the piano – a symbolic ‘conceit’ I had not tried before. The music has the gentle rocking rhythm suitable for its purpose and I enjoyed writing the tune so much I repeated all of the text in order to hear it twice. -Peter Maxwell Davies

A haunting setting of four elegies from the writing of George Mackay Brown composed by Peter Maxwell Davies. Completed in 1998 this powerful and unsettling work is based upon four short verses that explore the more sinister tragic and even supernatural qualities of the oceans and tides. Composed for soloists mixed chorus and Orchestra the work was commissioned by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra to celebrate its 25th anniversary. The work wasfirst performed in December 1998 at Queen's Hall Edinburgh conducted by the composer. The vocal score is available using product code CH61504.

Nommé maître de musique de la Reine en 2004, Max, comme il l'appelle affectueusement, a maintenant écrit quatre chants de Noël pour sa Majesté la Reine et son Altesse royale le duc d'Edimbourg. À un peu moins de quatre minutes de longueur cette carol de style traditionnel utilise les mots du poème de longue date ami George Mackay Brown ' Hamnavoe femmes et la cloche Warbeth '. Il and rsquo - s pas la première fois d' que Max a choisi utilisent des textes du poète qui, comme Max, vivent sur les îles Orcades. / Choeur Mixte (SATB) Et Orgue

This work was commissioned by the Scottish Chamber Orchestra to celebrate its 25th anniversary. The first performance was given on 3rd December 1998 at Queen's Hall Edinburgh by Lisa Tyrrell (Soprano) Margaret McDonald (Mezzo) Neil Mackie (Tenor) and David Wilson-Johnson (Baritone) the Scottish Chamber Orchestra Chorus and Orchestra. Text: George Mackay Brown.

Novello New Choral Series-These words of this carol full of colours and rich in symbolism are from the Cherry Tree Carol a popular folk carol telling a legend which goes back at least as far as the Coventry Mystery Plays. The piece received its first two performances on the same day by Robinson College Choir and Clare College Choir in Cambridge and was later recorded by Robinson College Choir conducted by Timothy Brown. The main tune should have an easy-going lilt which turns into light sprightly dancing for the refrain.An inspiring selection of new works from a range of contemporary composers the Novello New Choral Series offers pieces for all types of choirs including sacred and secular works from simple four-part settings to more expansive yet accessible repertoire in an exciting variety of styles.Jeremy Thurlow is a composer writer and pianist. His music has been described as ?seductive innovative full of freshness? by Henri Dutilleux. It has been performed by the BBC Philharmonic the Fitzwilliam String Quartet Rolf Hind the BBC Singers Endymion Carmen Elektra Peter Sheppard Skaerved Matthew Schellhorn and Sequitur (New York) among others. In 2007 he won the George Butterworth Award for new composition. As a musicologist he writes on French music in the twentieth century. His book on composer Henri Dutilleux is published in French by Millénaire III and he has written and broadcast on the music of Messiaen and many other 20th-century composers frequently appearing on Radio 3?s CD Review.

Quelques-uns des morceaux les plus originaux de compositeurs contemporains de musique sacrée sont rassemblés ici, dans cette superbe collection. Ils sont plus particulièrement dirigés vers les directeurs de chorales qui cherchent à interpréter des morceaux spéciaux pour Noël. Dix-sept chants - dans des versions "a capella" et accompagné. Inclus entre autres "The Lamb" (Tavener), "I Sing Of A Maiden" (Berkeley), "The Holly And The Ivy" (Lutoslawski), "Jesus Christ The Apple Tree" (Poston) et "One Star At Last" (Maxwell Davies). / [Chester Book Of Carols] / Classique / Partition /