The Choir of King’s College, Cambridge
Directed by Stephen Cleobury
Ben-San Lau Organist
Released 22 October 2012
2CD
Nine Lessons & Carols
£13.00
Out of stock
Out of stock
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 |
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