English cathedral music has long held a unique power to transform an ordinary evening into something transcendent — and nowhere is that more apparent than in the Choral Evensong tradition. Heard by candlelight, that power is felt all the more keenly.
The Emmanuel Choir sings Herbert Howells' Gloucester Service, a cornerstone of twentieth-century Anglican music whose rich harmonic language seems to carry the very weight of an English cathedral, alongside William Walton's rarely heard anthem The Twelve — a setting of W. H. Auden's meditation on the apostles that brings a striking literary and musical intelligence to the evening, reminding us that Evensong has always been a place where poetry and prayer find common ground. A short organ recital opens the program.
Abbie Wood, organ recitalist
Karl Robson, organ accompaniment
Christian Lane, direction