Programme Notes

I wrote this setting of the evening canticles on the request of Tansy Castledine, the director of music at Peterborough Cathedral - the challenge set for me was to create a piece which would be interesting and engaging for the choristers, break the monotony of Dyson in C, but not as difficult as other settings in the repertoire.

I named the piece "Nene Valley Service" as I had already used the name "Peterborough Service" in my settings for Lower Voice, and I needed to find an alternative title to reflect the piece's commissioner. The name is only accidentally a reference to the nearby heritage railway of a similar name!

The Magnificat is quite bouncy in character, and I made a particular emphasis on the phrase "He hath shewed strength with his arm, he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts", where the vocal line repeats words ahead of syncopated organ chords. This, I hope, makes it fun to sing (a key aim I had in writing this piece!).

In contrast, the Nunc Dimittis is much more reserved in character, making use of long and flowing melodic lines. Unlike my Peterborough Service for Low Voices, the gloria in the Nunc Dimittis is not shared with the Magnificat, but it stands on its own.