Par PARRY BEN / L'ESTRANGE A.. Music For Special Occasions brings together 10 sacred choral works in on volume, carefully selected to cater for a wide variety of performance contexts - whether joyful, reflective, or commemorative. Practically and flexibly arranged for Soprano and Baritone or Low Alto, this unique collection of best-loved classics and new pieces is a must-have resource for all school, community and church choirs./ Recueil / Voix Mixtes

A Gaelic Blessing is a simple and catchy piece by Craig McLeish. This piece will be particularly useful for school, junior and community choirs, and a tuneful introduction to singing simple contrapuntal lines. The second soprano part repeats the tune at bar 33 and should dominate here - the first sopranos and altos should support appropriately. Ease and beauty of tone should be of paramount importance throughout. 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. Craig McLeish began his musical life as a chorister at St Paul's Cathedral under Barry Rose. He began composing at the age of ten and his preces and responses for four trebles are still in the repertoire. After a degree at York University he returned to London to study at the Guildhall and sang again at St Paul's as a tenor. At the time he also arranged and copied music for West End shows such as Les Miserables and Miss Saigon, and played bass guitar for various groups. This led to a spell in the cult pop band 'Fat and Frantic', who shaved the top 100 twice with the whimsical anthem Last night my wife hoovered my head. He also worked as musical assistant for David Heneker (Half a Sixpence) and David Fanshawe (African Sanctus). In 1992 Craig became director of the Methodist Association of Youth Clubs Orchestra and Singers, performing concerts throughout the UK and becoming involved in a number of recordings and BBC broadcasts. During this time he arranged more than 250 orchestral scores ranging from Queen to Calamity Jane, Stravinsky and Stevie Wonder. Alongside this he began arranging and writing songs for children's collections (Big Blue Planet, Love Shone Down) and producing recordings and string arrangements for various artists (Sheila Walsh, Kim Hill, Matt Redman). He is also well known as a conductor and arranger for Songs of Praise. Recently Craig has collaborated with composer Tolga Kashif writing orchestrations for the RPO's Seo Taiji Symphony, the Classic FM chart-topping CD by saxophonist Tyler Rix, and the Genesis Suite which was premiered at the Barbican. He has been musical director of Young Voices UK for 13 years, bringing large school choirs together to play with a live band and solo artists, and currently conducts the Milton Keynes Community Choir, Hart and Soul Community Choir and the Milton Keynes Youth Choir. / Choeur SSA

Parti Orchestra. Par VIVALDI ANTONIO. The orchestral set contains: 3 copies of Vl I and 3 copies Vl II 2 copies of vla, 2 copies of cello 1 copy of organ, contrabass, trumpet and oboe. Today the Gloria RV 589 (BA 7674) is one of Vivaldi's best-known compositions and one of the most frequently performed sacred vocal works from the Baroque period. Vivaldi wrote the ; Gloria as a self-contained work in the style of a concertante mass. However, it was probably also performed within church services. The scoring of the solo voices (SSA) suggests that the work was written during his period at the Ospedale della Pietà, around 1716. In the twelve movements of the ; Gloria, Vivaldi displays the whole range of his mastery from festive, sublime outer movements to tender, transparently scored solo passages. Thesame mastery has also been applied to the ; Kyrie RV 587 (BA 8950), scored for two choirs and two groups of stringed instruments. The date of its composition remains unclear. It is a purely a choral work without solo passages. Both works can be performed independently but can also be combined as a kind of short mass. Although the authenticity of the autograph manuscript score is beyond doubt, these new editions contain some re-evaluations in phrasing and performance practice which go beyond what other editions have to offer. The Piano reductions are straightforward, clearly presented and preserve the character of the works. - Attractive choral pieces which can be combined to form a short mass./ Répertoire / Matériel D'Orchestre

Ces trois pièces empruntent à trois moments de la liturgie des Heures : les matines de Noël (Quem vidistis), l'office de la vénération de la Croix pour l'après-midi du Vendredi Saint (Popule meus), la prière avant le repos de la nuit ou Complies (Nunc dimittis). Chacune est d'un caractère différent entre curiosité joyeuse, doute et interrogation, calme et sérénité. Il est possible de les chanter indépendamment, la musique se voulant au service de ces prières d'une grande intensité. / Choeur À 4 Voix Mixtes A Cappella