Bret Johnson

Still Sings the Voice: A Portrait of Ned Rorem

I Well Remember hearing my first Rorem work—his Symphony No. 3 of 1959, with its wealth of melody and uninhibited joie de vivre . I determined to hear more and soon realized that there has been too little comment on him (not to mention performances!) on this side of the Atlantic. His reputation, earned in the 1950s and 1960s, as ‘Americas foremost composer of art songs’ has been consolidated whilst he has been venturing into many other areas of musical terrain. Indeed, he has been a busy man—with more than 30 major works to his credit since 1970: and since his reputation as a composer of large-scale orchestral and choral works is less clearly perceived in this country, I propose to concentrate on this aspect in a brief survey of how his art has developed in recent years.

London, St Pancras Parish Church: Philip Moore at 70

Philip Moore, Organist Emeritus of York Minster was one of the main featured composers at this years London Festival of Contemporary Church Music, now in its twelfth consecutive year. A week of concerts and services at St Pancras Church in London showcases a number of new works, and this year saw new choral pieces by Gordon Crosse, Diana Burrell and Ed Hughes (whose Chaconne for organ was composed in memory of Jonathan Harvey, who died on 4 December 2012 at the age of 73). The Festival also marked Robin Holloways 70th birthday, with a concert of his choral works on 17 May.