The contemporary composer who writes music for use in churches faces the challenge of keeping the music simple enough for amateur choirs without sacrificing or compromising musical interest. (British composers have an advantage in this area because there are so many excellently trained British choirs.) James MacMillan is the most prominent Scottish composer working around the turn of the millennium, and as a devout Catholic, devotes a significant part of his creative output to church music. This CD, which includes music ...
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The contemporary composer who writes music for use in churches faces the challenge of keeping the music simple enough for amateur choirs without sacrificing or compromising musical interest. (British composers have an advantage in this area because there are so many excellently trained British choirs.) James MacMillan is the most prominent Scottish composer working around the turn of the millennium, and as a devout Catholic, devotes a significant part of his creative output to church music. This CD, which includes music written over a 30-year span, shows that MacMillan is capable of writing music of the highest quality for choirs of varying skill levels. Although none of these pieces would be considered easy, some are within the grasp of the disciplined church choir, and the most difficult aren't beyond the abilities of the very fine British choirs for which they were written. The most significant body of work recorded here is a selection of his Strathclyde Motets, written for the Strathclyde...
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