Gramophone Editor's Choice
We’re delighted to share the news that our new album Traces is Gramophone Magazine’s Editor’s Choice for their latest edition.
In every issue of Gramophone, Editor Martin Cullingford chooses 12 albums as his Editor's Choice. In April’s issue, that list includes SANSARA and our latest release, Traces.
“A powerful programme of thought-provoking works, both timely and timeless, the impeccable performances by SANSARA drawing us in and holding us throughout the deeply reflective journey.”
In her wonderfully thoughtful review, Alexandra Coghlan describes how “What sets [Traces] apart are not only some unusual repertoire choices but also the dialogues, musical, textual and thematic, that run through it.”
Our new album Traces is out now
traces is out now
Our fourth album Traces is out now on all streaming platforms and available to purchase via the iTunes Store.
Use the link below to listen via your preferred listening service.
Mauersberger - Herr, lehre doch mich
Herr, lehre doch mich
The second single from our new album Traces is a beautiful prayer for lower voices by Rudolf Mauersberger.
Rudolf Mauersberger (1889-1971) was a German conductor and composer best known for his work as the conductor of the Dresdner Kreuzchor from 1930 until his death. Following our recording of his powerful motet Wie liegt die Stadt so wüst, we were pleased to discover Herr, lehre doch mich, a simple yet deeply moving prayer for lower voices with text from Psalm 39, best known in English as ‘Lord, let me know mine end’.
Tenors and basses during the sessions at St Jude’s, Hampstead
Photo © Nick Rutter
Smyth - Komm, süsser Tod
komm, süsser tod
The first single from our new album Traces is Ethel Smyth’s stunning Komm, süsser Tod.
This short but powerful piece is one of ‘Five Sacred Partsongs Based on Chorale Tunes’ written between 1882-1884 during Smyth’s time in Leipzig when she met both Johannes Brahms and Clara Schumann.
Alto Amy Blythe during our recording sessions at St Jude-on-the-Hill in Hampstead.
Photo © Nick Rutter
In contrast to a chordal texture of a chorale, Smyth uses the melody line to build a haunting four part polyphony with the choral tune in the sopranos and surprising twists and turns throughout. This approach creates a sense of parity to the music, giving expressive profile to each of the lower three voice parts in equal measure and allowing the text to be repeated throughout each phrase, in turn increasing the poignancy of this plea for a peaceful final rest.
Our recording is the first to be made of the piece and will be available on all streaming platforms from Friday 3 February.
MULTITUDE OF VOYCES
We’re hugely grateful to the work of Louise Stewart for bringing this music to life. We spoke to Louise about the piece:
In the planning of the first, groundbreaking volume of our anthology series it was important to ‘set out our stall’ as a charitable organisation with a clearly-defined purpose; to draw attention not just to high-quality music by women composers, of which many parish, cathedral, school and community choirs may not previously have been aware, but also advertently to raise up women both historical and living, who had and have, whether deliberately or co-incidentally, furthered the cause of gender equality for their peers and successors through their example and leadership. The inclusion of Ethel Smyth was a must.
Her long life (1858-1944) spanned an extraordinary period in British and world history, and, whilst her childhood was rooted in the upper-middle-class mid-Victorian conventions which expected women to contribute little to society beyond wifely obedience and motherhood, and which could be suspicious of overt displays of female talent, Ethel Smyth was able to use the significant advantage of the financial and social benefits afforded to her by not having to earn her own living, and her own considerable strength of character, to invest her time not only in determinedly developing her own creative gifts but also, through her involvement in the Women’s Social and Political Union (WSPU), in helping to create the social and political freedoms on which the lives of (some) women of our generation are founded.
Maks Adach, a widely-experienced church-musician, had already blazed a trail for Ethel Smyth’s music and for the better-representation of women composers within the liturgical repertoire, by preparing an edition of her Five Sacred Partsongs* based on Chorale Tunes (composed c. 1877-1885). The set was performed by the Girl Choristers and Lay Vicars Choral of Lichfield Cathedral in 2018, under their director Martyn Rawles, in a service which marked the centenary of the Representation of the People Act 1918, a crucial Act which gave [some British] women over 30 the right to vote.
*The full set of Chorales is available from multitudeofvoyces.co.uk
Louise Stewart
Multitude of Voyces
(registered charity no 1201139)
Our new album: Traces
traces
We’re excited to share details about the release of our latest album - Traces.
Available on all streaming platforms from Friday 17 February, Traces features a wide range of powerful choral music by German, British and Ukrainian composers. The programme originates in our White Rose project and grapples with the challenge of finding inner peace during fractured times.
In advance of the full album release, we have two singles coming out on 3 and 10 February - Ethel Smyth’s stunning Komm, süsser Tod and a short prayer by Rudolf Mauersberger called Herr, lehre doch mich. You can see the full programme and album artwork below and we’ll be sharing more about the album in the coming weeks on our social media channels.
Session photo by Nick Rutter
Traces track listing
The album is punctuated by Philip Moore's Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer and features first recordings of pieces by Ethel Smyth, Paul Ben-Haim and our regular low bass Piers Connor Kennedy.
Philip Moore Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Morning Prayers
Max Reger Nachtlied, Op. 138, No. 3
Johannes Brahms Warum ist das Licht gegeben?, Op. 74, No. 1
Ethel Smyth Komm, süsser Tod
Clara Schumann Abendfeier in Venedig
Peter Cornelius Requiem
Philip Moore Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Prayers in Time of Distress
Natalia Tsupryk A Quiet Night - Tyhoyi Nochi
Cecilia McDowall Standing as I do before God
Heinrich Schütz Selig sind die Toten
Rudolf Mauersberger Herr, lehre doch mich
Paul Ben-Haim Psalm 126
Piers Connor Kennedy Blessed are the Peacemakers
Philip Moore Three Prayers of Dietrich Bonhoeffer: Evening Prayers
Session photo by Nick Rutter
Album artwork
Following our collaboration on the artwork for our latest single A Quiet Night - Tyhoyi Nochi, we’re delighted to have this stunning painting by Ukrainian artist Maria Krivopishina as the album cover for Traces.
