Westminster Cathedral Choir: Commissions
With the recent premiere of a new commission from Jean-Baptiste Robin, Messe Solennelle pour Choeur et Deux Orgues , for the Choir of Westminster Cathedral, I was reminded of the great tradition of commissions by this great choral institution, and how influential it is in the wider musical, cultural fabric of the UK in the last century and a quarter. Masses commissioned from Ralph Vaughan Williams, Benjamin Britten, Sir Lennox Berkeley, Judith Bingham, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies (x2), Roxanna Panufnik and Sir James Macmillan all form part of this great tradition that Maestro Robin now joins. Other choral commissions, not Masses, have come from Wood, Howells and Holst, and from Masters of Music George Malcolm, Colin Mawby and Martin Baker, and David Bevan (a former chorister and later Assistant Master of Music at the Drome under Colin Mawby). Works by Sir Charles Villiers Stanford were also commissioned, but most have regrettably since been lost, includ...
