Nine Lessons & Carols

£13.00

Out of stock

The Choir of King’s College, Cambridge
Directed by Stephen Cleobury
Ben-San Lau Organist

Released 22 October 2012

2CD

Out of stock

SKU: KGS0001
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With a TV and radio audience of millions, the annual broadcast of A Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols from King’s College, Cambridge is an essential Christmas tradition for families all over the world.

This double album faithfully recreates the magic of the service, opening with a lone treble singing ‘Once in royal David’s city’ and closing with a rousing chorus of ‘Hark! the herald angels sing’.

Each year the Director of Music at King’s, Stephen Cleobury, commissions a new carol. Several of these are included on the album, including carols by Einojuhani Rautavaara, Gabriel Jackson, Brett Dean, Mark-Anthony Turnage, Dominic Muldowney and Tansy Davies. In addition, John Rutter has written the new carol ‘All Bells in Paradise’ especially for this album.

The album reached #2 on the UK’s specialist classical chart in December 2012.

“Glorious” – Gramophone Magazine

**** – BBC Music Magazine

Disc 1 Playing time (Disc 1) – 52:29
1 Hymn: Once in royal David’s city 04:40 Gauntlett, Henry arr. Stephen Cleobury
2 Bidding Prayer, Lord’s Prayer and Blessing 03:26
3 Herefordshire Carol 02:35 English Trad arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams
4 First Lesson 03:04 Genesis 3: 8-19
5 Adam lay ybounden 01:04 Ord, Boris
6 A Virgin most pure 02:54 English Trad arr. Stephen Cleobury
7 Second Lesson 01:04 Genesis 22: 15-18
8 In dulci jubilo 03:04 German Trad arr. Robert Lucas de Pearsall
9 If ye would hear the angels sing 02:25 Tranchell, Peter
10 Third Lesson 01:09 Isaiah 9:2, 6-7
11 Sussex Carol 01:58 English Trad arr. Philip Ledger
12 Hymn: God rest you merry, gentlemen 03:33 English Trad arr. David Willcocks
13 Fourth Lesson 01:41 Isaiah 11: 1-9
14 A tender shoot 01:41 Goldschmidt, Otto
15 Det är en ros utsprungen 04:00 Praetorius, Michael arr. Jan Sandström
16 Fifth Lesson 02:45 Luke 1: 26-35, 38
17 Hymne à la Vierge 03:20 Villette, Pierre
18 Sunny bank 01:42 Hurford, Peter
19 Sixth Lesson 01:16 Luke 2: 1-7
20 Mariä Wiegenled 01:59 Reger, Max
21 The holly and the ivy 03:09 French Trad arr. June Nixon
Disc 2 Playing time (Disc 2) – 58:22
1 Seventh Lesson 01:45 Luke 2: 8-16
2 Hymn: While shepherds watched 02:59 Este’s Psalter desc. Stephen Cleobury
3 Illuminare, Jerusalem 02:20 Weir, Judith
4 Eighth Lesson 03:04 Matthew 2: 1-12
5 Christmas Carol 04:54 Rautavaara, Einojuhani
6 Ding! Dong! merrily on high 02:45 XVI Century French arr. Mack Wilberg
7 Ninth Lesson 02:28 John 1: 1-14
8 Hymn: O come, all ye faithful 04:27 Wade, John Francis arr. Stephen Cleobury
9 Collect and Blessing 01:16
10 Hymn: Hark! the herald angels sing 03:20 Mendolssohn-Bartholdy, Felix desc. David Willcocks
11 Organ Voluntary: In dulci jubilo (BWV 729) 02:51 Bach, Johann Sebastian
Commissioned Carols
12 The Christ Child (2009) 04:40 Jackson, Gabriel
13 Now comes the dawn (2007) 03:35 Dean, Brett
14 Misere’ nobis (2006) 02:45 Turnage, Mark-Anthony
15 Mary (2008) 04:28 Muldowney, Dominic
16 Christmas Eve (2011) 06:00 Davies, Tansy
Bonus Track (commissioned for this recording)
17 All bells in paradise 04:45 Rutter, John
Total playing time – 110:51

kgs0001-digital-booklet-cover

Recorded in the Chapel of King’s College, Cambridge, by kind permission of the Provost and Fellows 24 December 2010, January 2011, and June 2012. Recorded at 48kHz 24 bit PCM.

Producer & Editor  Simon Kiln
Engineer  Arne Akselberg
Engineering Assistant  Paul Thomason
Technical Engineer  Richard Hale

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