John Rutter – Magnificat
The Mayfield Festival Choir and London Primavera Orchestra, directed by Jeremy Summerly
It is difficult to acknowledge that John Rutter is in his mid-70s and that his Magnificat is over 30 years old. Rutter’s music sounds as fresh as ever, and the composer himself shows no sign of slowing down. Rutter happened upon his accessible style when he was still a schoolboy, when he hit upon the idea of combining 20th-century choral styles from England and France with American and British jazz and pop. Rutter’s music is nothing if not eclectic, and it has helped to bring modern choral music back from the edge of over-complicated extinction and into the hearts of performers and listeners in the English-speaking world. Rutter’s Magnificat is especially catchy, with its quirky rhythms and singable melodies; indeed, it has influenced many young British composers.
One of those is Philip Stopford, who – like Rutter – is a full-time composer. Stopford’s music is more self-consciously a product of the English church than Rutter’s, but much of it is also aimed at the American market, not least because Stopford has an American publisher and worked for a time as a conductor in New York. Stopford’s Missa Deus Nobiscum (Mass ‘God with us’) was written four years ago and gives John Rutter a run for his money in terms of memorable tunes and colourful orchestration. Crucially, what Stopford and Rutter have in common is that their music is dynamically amenable – it sounds familiar even on first listening. This combination of Rutter and Stopford will create a wholly uplifting listener experience.
The Mayfield Festival Choir and the London Primavera Orchestra, with Eloise Irving (Soprano) and Andrew Benians (organ), directed by Jeremy Summerly.
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