Corvus Consort, Louise Thomson, Freddie Crowley - Welcome Joy - A Celebration of Women’s Voices (2024) [Hi-Res]

Tracklist

01. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow: I. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow
02. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow: II. Teignmouth
03. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow: III. Over the Hill and over the Dale
04. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow: IV. O Sorrow
05. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow: V. Lullaby
06. Welcome Joy and Welcome Sorrow: VI. Shed No Tear
07. Two Eastern Pictures, H. 112: I. Spring
08. Two Eastern Pictures, H. 112: II. Summer
09. We sekyn here rest
10. Our Endless Day
11. An English Day-Book: I. A Bellman’s Song
12. An English Day-Book: II. Te lucis ante terminum
13. An English Day-Book: III. A Night Curse
14. An English Day-Book: IV. Lemady: Maying Song
15. An English Day-Book: V. A Charm Against the Bumblebee
16. An English Day-Book: VI. Interlude for Harp
17. An English Day-Book: VII. The Noonday Heat
18. An English Day-Book: VIII. Running Set: Spring
19. An English Day-Book: IX. Evening Song (The Priest’s Chant)
20. An English Day-Book: X. Sweet Suffolk Owl
21. An English Day-Book: XI. A Bellman’s Song (Mvt 1 Abridged)
22. Lux Aeterna
23. Love Was His Meaning
24. Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda, Op. 26, H. 99: No. 1, Hymn to the Dawn
25. Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda, Op. 26, H. 99: No. 2, Hymn to the Waters
26. Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda, Op. 26, H. 99: No. 3, Hymn to Vena (The Sun Rising Through the Mist)
27. Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda, Op. 26, H. 99: No. 4, Hymn of the Travellers
28. Ushās – Goddess of Dawn
29. Priestess
30. Dirge and Hymeneal, H. 124

For their second album on Chandos, Freddie Crowley and his Corvus Consort – joined by the harpist Louise Thomson – turn their attention to a rich vein of choral music written for women’s voices and harp. Gustav Holst was a champion of women’s voices and taught in several girls’ schools, most famously at St Paul’s Girls’ School, Hammersmith, where he worked for almost thirty years. His contribution to this genre is represented by three works: Two Eastern Pictures, Dirge and Hymeneal, and more substantially his Choral Hymns from the Rig Veda. These works provide a frame for the bulk of the programme – mostly written by British women. Works by Imogen Holst and Elizabeth Poston lead us towards the more recent generations – Judith Weir, Gemma McGregor, and on to Olivia Sparkhall, and Hilary Campbell. The Indian composer Shruthi Rajasekar was invited to compose for this programme in response to the Third Group of Gustav Holst’s Choral Hymns. Both Ushās – Goddess of Dawn and Priestess not only add exciting new repertoire for these unusual forces, but explore directly Holst’s engagement with ancient Hindu texts.

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [flac]

DOWNLOAD ALBUM [Hi-Res]