Finzi: Lo, the Full, Final Sacrifice & Other Choral Works

Featuring

Alexander Hamilton
Stephen Layton
Asher Oliver
Tudor Thomas
The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge
Trinity Brass

Gerald Finzi
David Bednall

Did you know?

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Composer Biography

Gerald Finzi, the composer, was descended from a Jewish Italian family, a part of which had moved to London in the 1760s.

Compositional Technique

Finzi's word-setting generally follows a 'one-note-per-syllable' principle, similar to the French mélodie tradition, reserving melismas for moments of heightened intensity.

Performer Biography

The Choir of Trinity College Cambridge, which performs on this album, was voted the fifth-best choir in the world by Gramophone magazine.

Composition History

Finzi's Magnificat was commissioned for Christmas Vespers at a college in Massachusetts, USA, not for Anglican Evensong, explaining its lack of a Gloria and companion Nunc dimittis.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Finzi's passionate belief in an earthly purpose of commitment to honest artistic toil aligns him with Bach, who saw himself as a Christian artisan, and Carl Nielsen, who believed music is life.

Compositional Technique

Finzi's Magnificat uses a technique where melodic contours emerge as musical 'anagrams' or emphasize certain intervals, similar to his friend Edmund Rubbra's 'corymbus' idea.

Performer Biography

Stephen Layton, the conductor, is considered one of the most sought-after conductors of his generation and has profoundly influenced choral music over the last thirty years.