Sea Change

Londinium (chamber choir), Andrew Griffiths (conductor)
Inspired by Richard Rodney Bennett's classic 'Sea Change', a virtuoso evocation of the mystery and majesty of the ocean, London chamber choir Londinium voyages through a stunning selection of music connected with the sea. Along the way we encounter shipwreck (in Mäntyjärvi's haunting 'Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae'), myths and legends (Coleridge-Taylor's ghoulish 'Sea Drift 'and Brahms' 'Vineta'), folksongs and shanties, and explore sea journeys as a rich source of metaphor, both religious and secular. The repertoire ranges from sixteenth-century Italy to the present day, and includes music by Wert, Campion, Parry, Grieg, Vaughan Williams, Holst, Gabriel Jackson and Howard Skempton.

Review
"A quite superb rich blend and balance... a collective conviction and real sensitivity to the text, and an engagement with the varied styles of each composer, that is massively compelling." (Nick Barnard, MusicWeb International, reviewing Londinium's recently released album of 20th-century choral music, 'The Gluepot Connection')

Programme
Howard Skempton: The Flight of Song
Giaches de Wert: Ascendente Jesu in naviculam
Edvard Grieg: Ave maris stella
Johannes Brahms: Vineta
Richard Rodney Bennett: Sea Change
Hubert Parry: Crossing the Bar
Jaakko Mäntyjärvi: Canticum Calamitatis Maritimae
Thomas Campion: Never weather-beaten sail
Gabriel Jackson: A ship with unfurled sails
Samuel Coleridge-Taylor: Sea Drift
Ralph Vaughan Williams: The Dark Eyed Sailor
Gustav Holst: I love my love
Gustav Holst: Swansea Town