An English Coronation, 1902-1953

The four coronations of the Twentieth Century were enormous and extravagant. Replete with festive pageantry, these ceremonies were joyful celebrations of British music, employing tremendous forces. Choirs from across London and beyond were marshalled to provide a chorus of over 400 voices; a full-size symphony orchestra was squeezed into Westminster Abbey, whilst bands of fanfare trumpeters led the pomp and celebration. In the imposing surroundings of Ely Cathedral, Paul McCreesh and Gabrieli bring the history, ceremony and liturgy of these extraordinary events to life. With his renowned creative flair, McCreesh's painstaking research will provide the springboard for their latest ground-breaking recreation project. The result is a joyful celebration of five centuries of choral music, performed with the same vast forces as were heard at the coronation services. Alongside an orchestra of rare early-Twentieth Century instruments, an extended Gabrieli Consort is amplified by the energetic sound and fresh faces of several hundred young singers from Gabrieli's choral training programme Gabrieli Roar. The music is interspersed by the coronation liturgy, with Simon Russell Beale speaking the part of the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Disc 1
1: Coronation March, Op. 65
2: The King's Herald
3: Rejoice Today With One Accord
4: O Most Merciful
5: Litany
6: O God, Our Help in Ages Past
7: Chorale Fantasia On 'O God, Our Help'
8: Pomp and Circumstance March No. 1
9: Entrance Fanfare
10: I Was Glad
11: The Presentation, Fanfares and Acclamations
12: The Administration and Signing of the Oath
13: O Hearken Thou
14: The Collect
15: Peter 2:13-17
16: Hear My Prayer
17: Matthew 22:15
18: Creed
19: Come, Holy Ghost
20: The Prayer Over the Ampulla
21: Zadok the Priest
22: The Anointing and Blessing

Disc 2
1: Prayers, Acclamations and Crowning Fanfare
2: Be Strong and Play the Man
3: The King Receives the Holy Bible
4: The Blessing of the King and People
5: The Exhortation
6: Rejoice in the Lord Alway
7: I Will Not Leave You Comfortless
8: O Clap Your Hands Together
9: Thou Wilt Keep Him in Perfect Peace
10: Homage Fanfare and Acclamations
11: The Old Hundredth Psalm Tune
12: The Offertory Prayer and Prayer for the Church Militant
13: The Exhortation, General Confession and Absolution
14: The Preface
15: Sanctus
16: The Prayer of Humble Access and Prayer of Consecration
17: O Taste and See
18: The Lord's Prayer
19: The Post-communion Prayer
20: Coronation Gloria in B-flat
21: The Blessing
22: Threefold Amen
23: Coronation Te Deum
24: Recessional and National Anthem
25: Coronation March: Crown Imperial

Composer: David Matthews, Samuel Sebastian Wesley, Thomas Tallis, Johann Sebastian Bach, John Redford, William Walton, Hubert Parry, Edward Elgar, Ralph Vaughan Williams, Henry Purcell, William Byrd, George Frideric Handel, Charles Villiers Stanford, Herbert Howells, John Merbecke, Orlando Gibbons, Walter Parratt, Charles Wood, Ernest Bullock, William Croft

Conductor: Paul McCreesh

Number of Discs: 2

Orchestra: Gabrieli Players

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