Choir of King's College, Cambridge, Daniel Hyde - In the Bleak Midwinter: Christmas Carols from King's (2021) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Once in royal David's city (Arr. David Willcocks, Desc. Stephen Cleobury)
02. A tender shoot
03. How shall I fitly meet thee?
04. In the Bleak Midwinter
05. Of the Father's heart begotten (Arr. David Willcocks)
06. Angels, from the realms of glory (Arr. Reginald Jacques)
07. An Old Carol (I sing of a maiden)
08. In dulci jubilo (Arr. Robert Lucas de Pearsall & Daniel Hyde)
09. The angel Gabriel
10. O come, all ye faithful (Arr. David Willcocks, Desc. Christopher Robinson & David Hill)
11. Sussex Carol (On Christmas night) [Arr. Ralph Vaughan Williams]
12. While shepherds watched their flocks by night (Desc. Nicholas Marston & Daniel Hyde)
13. Thou who wast rich beyond all splendour (Arr. Charles Herbert Kitson & Daniel Hyde)
14. The Shepherd's Cradle Song (Wiegenlied) [Arr. Charles Macpherson]
15. In the bleak midwinter (Arr. Mack Wilberg)
16. As I sat on a sunny bank (I saw three ships) [Arr. Elizabeth Poston & Daniel Hyde]
17. Still, still, still (Arr. Bob Chilcott)
18. Prelude to "Hark! the herald-angels sing"
19. Hark! the herald-angels sing (Desc. Philip Ledger)
20. Improvisation on "Adeste, fideles"



In the Bleak Midwinter reflects a Christmas that was unlike any other in recent history. Much of the music on this album was heard around the world as part of the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols, a service that has been broadcast live from King’s on Christmas Eve every year since 1930.

But for Christmas Eve 2020 in the face of a global pandemic, the continuation of this uniquely long-running tradition was not possible – not sung live or with a congregation in the Chapel as well as the global audience who have long listened from around the world. Instead, a full service, with lessons, carols, organ voluntaries and prayers, was recorded in an empty Chapel with the Choir of King’s College spread out around the stalls. For its millions of listeners, the broadcast meant the continuation of a Christmas tradition in a year when so many were without their friends and family, and without so much of what makes Christmas special.

This album contains music from the Festival of Nine Lessons and Carols together with a selection of specially recorded tracks. It marks the beginning of a new era for the Choir of King’s College under the direction of Daniel Hyde, with this his first full album at King’s since his appointment in 2019.

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