Tomkins: When David Heard (Sacred Choral Works)

Featuring

Andrew Nethsingha
Freddie James
Choir Of St. John's College, Cambridge
Thomas Tomkins

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Recording & Production

This Chandos recording uses 24-bit / 96 kHz technology, which offers a dynamic range up to 48 dB greater and 256 times the resolution of standard 16-bit recordings.

Composer Biography

Thomas Tomkins (1572-1656) was an Elizabethan composer by birth and temperament, even though he lived into the years of the Protectorate.

Compositional Technique

Tomkins's keyboard music, such as the Voluntary in A minor, combines the tight counterpoint of William Byrd (his assumed former teacher) with the virtuosity of John Bull.

Composition History

After his musical leadership at Worcester Cathedral was terminated by Parliamentarians, Tomkins composed keyboard music like 'A Sad Pavan for these distracted times' to play in private.

Composer's Artistic Vision

Thomas Tomkins is described as a composer who was individually innovative yet generically conservative, maintaining a fascination for the musical practices of his predecessors.

Performer Biography

The Choir of St John's College, Cambridge, a cornerstone of the English choral tradition since the 1670s, is known for its distinctive, rich, and expressive sound.

Composition History

Tomkins's most famous anthem, "When David heard that Absalom was slain," foreshadows the personal tragedy he would suffer with the death of his wife and the removal of the organ from Worcester Cathedral.