Sacred Songs

A Limited Edition, Original Jackets collection showcasing the artistry of the magnificent American soprano, Kathleen Battle. Kathleen Battle enraptured opera audiences of the 1980s and 1990s. Here was a lyric soprano combining unsurpassable beauty of tone with a keen musical intelligence, a way with words and a communicative warmth that drew listeners to Strauss and spirituals alike. She has the easy phrasing of a great jazz singer combined with the breath, breadth and precise projection of a trained voice.

As Alfred Schnittke and Arvo Pärt both adopted the Orthodox faith in the 1970s, Orthodox choral traditions became increasingly prominent in their work, but both composers also looked to the music of the Western church. Schnittke’s Three Sacred Hymns set three prayers, familiar in the West as Ave Maria, the Jesus Prayer and the Lord’s Prayer, and evoke Orthodox chant.

Memphis gospel singer Elder Jack Ward’s spirit took flight on April 11, 2023 after a remarkable life of spreading God’s word through example, message and most especially, song. His latest album, The Storm, had just been released by Bible and Tire Records at the time of his passing and has now become the final word and work of a life well lived. Like its 2021 predecessor, Already Made, The Storm captured an element of Ward that producer Bruce Watson found truly rare in the world of gospel music: song writing.

"Present Joys" is a studio album by trumpeter Dave Douglas and pianist Uri Caine which was released in July 2014 on the Greenleaf Music label. The album follows Douglas' 2012 exploration of hymns, Be Still, by including four songs from the Sacred Harp songbook. Writing for The Guardian, John Fordham called it "a 2014 jazz highlight". PopMatters' Will Layman stated "Dave Douglas and Uri Caine are good enough to stand up to making “pretty” music, even traditional music. They pass the test and come out still surprising us".

Tõnu Kõrvits (b. 1969) is together with Arvo Pärt and Erkki-Sven Tüür among the most interesting Estonian composers of our time. This album by the Estonian NSO and Risto Joost consists of orchestral works written between a period of ten years, from 2007 to 2018. These works have been inspired by a variety of themes and are rich with delicate atmosphere possessing a particularly Northern feel combined with a romantic and Impressionistic touch.

Brett Scott is Associate Professor of Ensembles and Conducting at the University of Cincinnati’s famed College-Conservatory of Music, where he conducts the CCM Chorale, teaches conducting and literature at the graduate and undergraduate level, and is Music Director of Opera d’arte. Under his direction, the CCM Chorale released its first commercial recording, Lux Dei—New Works for Choir by Douglas Knehans, through Ablaze Records, and has begun production of its second recording, focusing on sacred music for choir and electronics.

In September 2014, following my request for a meeting, Michael Nyman received me at his London home to discuss the project. He was immediately convinced by this adventure and even offered a few ideas. The outcome of this encounter was total when, after a half-hour’s discussion, he enthusiastically agreed to compose a work for my voice and the viols of the Céladon ensemble. On texts by the Elizabethan poet Robert Herrick, No Time in Eternity provides the title of the programme and became the cornerstone.

Over several summers Trio Mediaeval and trumpeter Arve Henriksen spent many days together by the beautiful Dalsfjorden on the Norwegian west coast, where most of the music on this recording was born. Fascinated and inspired by Icelandic sagas, beautiful chants, folk, religious hymns and fiddle tunes, the quartet has arranged a unique set of songs where improvisation, mediaeval and traditional music from Iceland, Norway and Sweden meet the present. The singers and trumpeter have often performed in live settings, a collaboration called "a richly musical and imaginative encounter" by The Guardian.

This album inspired by Sting’s forthcoming play of the same name and explores the central themes of homecoming and self-discovery, drawing upon his memories of growing up in the shadow of the Swan Hunters Shipyard in Wallsend. His personal reminiscences illuminate universal truths – the complexity of relationships, the passage of time and the importance of family and community - to form an affecting, complex parable for our modern times.