Francis Jackson: Sacred Choral Works

Francis Jackson Sacred Choral Works

The Exon Singers Matthew Owens

Sacred choral works Francis Jackson The Exon Singers

Matthew Owens conductor

David Bednall organ

Missa Matris Dei Opus 72*

1 Kyrie [2:26]

2 Gloria [5:07]

Ashley Turnell cantor

3 Sanctus [2:51]

4 Benedictus [2:51]

5 Agnus Dei [6:31]

Hannah Atherton soprano

6 O Salutaris Hostia Opus 115 [4:51]

7 Tantum Ergo (Second Setting) Opus 118 [4:53]

8 A Hymn to God the Father Opus 147/2 [5:32]

Three Carols for Advent Opus 73

9 Gabriel’s Message [2:45]

James Atherton tenor

10 I Know a Flower [3:29]

11 While the Careless World is Sleeping [3:47]

Evening Service in B flat, Homage to Thomas Weelkes Opus 149

12 Magnificat [5:59]

13 Nunc Dimittis [5:15]

14 O Most Merciful Opus 36 [3:57]

Ali Darragh soprano

15 The Prayer of Saint Francis Opus 61 [6:29]

16 Thanks be to the Lord Opus 133 [3:33]

Total Playing Time: [70:18]

Recorded on 2 & 3 January 2006, in Wells Cathedral by kind permission of the Chapter. Recorded in the presence of the composer. Generously supported by The Finzi Trust (please see www.geraldfinzi.org for further details of the trust’s work).

Producer: Paul Baxter

24-bit digital editing: Adam Binks

24-bit digital mastering: Paul Baxter

Design: John Christ

Cover photography: John & Rachel Christ

Session Photography: David Goodenough

With thanks to Dr Raymond

Parks & Alexandra Thompson

All first recordings in its original 1991 version *

In English cathedral music today, there is still extant a tradition that stems from the early nineteenth century. Within this tradition, there are few personalities that stand out above all the rest – notable for the longevity of their tenures, reputations as performers and their contributions to church music composition.

Samuel Sebastian Wesley (1810-1876), one of the most enduring figures in the cathedral music world, was also one of the most controversial; he was notorious for his poor relations with clergy as well as his colourful extra-professional activities. He doesn’t, however, meet the criterion of longevity of tenure: he held numerous posts, often for relatively brief periods. His choral and organ compositions remain staples of the repertoire.

In the decades after Wesley’s death, the cathedral music tradition continued to grow, helped by the then rising stars in its firmament – Sir Walter Parratt at St George’s Chapel, Windsor Castle, Sir John Stainer at St Paul’s Cathedral and the Rev. Sir Frederick Arthur Gore Ouseley at St Michael’s College, Tenbury to name but a few. These three alone left lasting legacies to church music in the disciplines of composition, organ playing and the development of choir-training.

In our own time, one figure above all is highly regarded as one of the finest and most versatile church musicians of his age.

Francis Jackson – very much now the elder statesman of English cathedral organists –was born in Malton, Yorkshire, in 1917, and was a chorister at York Minster from 1929 to 1933. He was later a pupil of, and assistant to, the Minster organist Sir Edward Bairstow. In 1946, Jackson succeeded Bairstow as Organist and Master of the Choristers at York, remaining there until his retirement in 1982. As an organist, Francis Jackson is recognised as one of the finest players of his generation, and has performed extensively throughout the United Kingdom and Europe, as well as having toured the United States and Canada seven times.

When Jackson succeeded Bairstow at York, he was following in formidable footsteps. A fellow north-Englander, born in Huddersfield in 1874, Bairstow had a reputation for being a strict disciplinarian and speaking his mind – traits that made a lasting impression on the young Francis. Bairstow’s standing as a composer was equally impressive, and his supremely well-crafted music is full of drama, colour and emotion.

To attempt to identify a creative link between the music of Bairstow and Jackson is tempting. Jackson’s compositions for the organ have all the colour, emotional depth and attention to structural detail as those of his mentor’s. Of particular note is the Toccata,

Chorale and Fugue, Opus 16, which dates from 1955: this became one of his most well-known works, and possibly one of the finest post-war pieces of English organ music. Also worthy of mention and furtherexemplifying Jackson’s regard for Bairstow is the Impromptu for Sir Edward Bairstow, composed for his seventieth birthday in 1944, which quotes Bairstow’s Communion Service in D. Jackson’s choral music is equally as diverse in style and content, reflecting his career as a practical church musician and a professional composer. His vast output comprises settings of the mass – in both Latin and the vernacular – and the morning and evening canticles, as well as shorter anthems and motets.

The Missa Matris Dei dates from 1988, and is one of ten settings of the mass in Jackson’s oeuvre. It was written for the Choir of the Church of the Immaculate Conception, Farm Street in Mayfair, London, and its then director of music, the eminent organist Nicholas Danby. As with many other settings for liturgical use, there is no creed (although one was written to complement it, for another establishment), and so has the standard fivemovement plan that is found in the masses of composers from Byrd to Langlais. The overall character of the music is intensely lyrical, incorporating a sense of thematic unity amongst the five movements. The falling five-

note motif heard at the beginning of the Kyrie, informs not only the music of that movement, but returns as the main melodic element of the soprano solo in the Agnus Dei; and the unison descending and ascending scales at the opening of the Sanctus are also clearly derived from it – these scale patterns further permeate both organ and choral writing in the Benedictus. Jackson cites the music of Debussy and Ravel as having a profound influence on his musical style, and a comparison with the masses of the French Romantic school can be observed. The textures that open the Sanctus – dense whole-tone harmonies in the organ, and wide-ranging vocal lines – owes much to the sound-world of Vierne. Indeed, the Gloria has real Gallic punch and excitement –angular vocal lines propelled by brilliant organ figurations and unashamed homophonic writing at salient points in the text.

Music for the Latin rite continues with two motets most commonly associated with the Anglo-catholic service of Benediction of the Blessed Sacrament. O Salutaris Hostia was composed in 1998 for the Whitlock Festival at St Stephen’s Church, Bournemouth1. The main melody, first heard in the soprano line, is gently

1From 1930, Percy Whitlock was organist at Stephen’s, as well as fulfilling civic playing duties at Bournemouth Pavilion. Incidentally, Francis Jackson’s Fifth Organ Sonata of 2003 was composed ‘to the honour of Percy Whitlock’ and first performed by Francis at St Stephen’s.

passed among all four voice parts: a central, faster section at the words ‘Uni trinoque Domino’ uses the same music, but in a different metre. The opening lyrical textures return for the concluding ‘Amen’, although the music used here is the rising and expanding intervallic idea first heard in the organ introduction. The companion work is the setting of the Tantum Ergo (1999), this time for unaccompanied choir, and is a model of polyphonic part-writing, characterised by a recurring dotted figure first heard at the opening.

Francis Jackson’s recent association with the Exon Singers has resulted in two commissions for their annual Festival, both of which are included on this recording.The first of these, written in 2004, is a motet entitled A Hymn to God the Father, which sets words by the metaphysical poet John Donne. The work is scored for a five-part ensemble –incorporating two alto parts – which gives greater scope for depth of sonority and a richer harmonic texture. Together with a flexibility of metre, the result is a work of great fluidity, beauty and expansiveness. Here there are echoes, intended or not, of the choral music of Arnold Bax, in particular Mater, ora Filium or This worldës joie.

The second of Francis Jackson’s Exon commissions, the Evening Service in B flat, was written in 2005. The subtitle of this

setting of the Magnificat and Nunc Dimittis is ‘Homage to Thomas Weelkes’, and Jackson states that:

It was my intention to pay homage to the great sixteenth-century English composer not by pastiche, but to make a further addition to the canon of the five-part choral repertoire that had been exemplified by Weelkes.

If there is a stylistic ‘homage’ then it is to the Anglican canticle settings of composers such as Charles Villiers Stanford and Herbert Howells: note in particular the treatment of the words ‘he hath shewed strength with his arm’ in the Magnificat, as well as the characteristic musical and emotional crescendo throughout the course of the Nunc Dimittis, building up to the inexorable climax of the Gloria.

Gabriel’s Message, the first of the Three Advent Carols, is a simple hymn setting of the Piae Cantiones, and on this recording is given a full-blooded treatment, concluding with a unison verse with alternative organ harmonies. I Know a Flower is a setting

– in English – of the well-known words Es ist ein Ros’ entsprungen (Behold a rose is blooming) made famous by the German carol tune of the same name which is usually sung to the words ‘A Great and Mighty Wonder’. Francis Jackson provides a lyrical,

strophic framework for these words, but in keeping with the original German tune, maintains the uneven metre. The third of these carols is a setting of words by B. H. Kennedy While the Careless World is Sleeping, which were originally published in a volume entitled Songs of Syon, edited by G. R. Woodward2 The words of Kennedy’s carol amplify one of the main themes of Advent – to be watchful and expectant for the coming of the Messiah; Jackson’s music takes the form of a gentle nocturne, comprising elements of tension.

The final three works on the disc are also the results of specific commissions, but show, in microcosm, the variety of Jackson’s musical language. O Most Merciful was a response to a commission from the West Riding Cathedrals Festival in Bradford Cathedral in October 1970. Like many composers before and after him, Jackson exploits the despairing imploration of the text to great musical advantage, employing harmony saturated with suspensions and sudden shifts of tonality to produce a work of great expressivity; indeed, there are moments that remind one of the music of Jackson’s near contemporary, Kenneth Leighton.

The Prayer of St Francis is for treble voices alone with organ, and uses the well-known words of St Francis, ‘Lord, make me an

instrument of your peace’, but in an Italian translation by Gordon Pullin. Of all the music on this disc, this is the work in which a French influence is most apparent: the mellifluous melodic writing redolent of Fauré; the opaque, lush harmony rich in whole-tones and tritones that reminds one of Debussy; and the characteristic organ writing to be found in the works of Louis Vierne and Marcel Dupré. All are here, and transformed into a work of haunting beauty.

The final work on this recording is the uplifting Thanks be to the Lord. This was composed as an introit for a service at Manchester Cathedral in 2002, given on the eve of the Commonwealth Games, and attended by her Majesty the Queen in the year of her Golden Jubilee; the service also was an act of thanksgiving for the restoration of the city after the IRA bombing of 1996. The text is taken from Psalm 31, and is a paean of praise to the bountiful gifts bestowed on mankind by God the Father. Jackson responds to the text in an ebullient manner, and the organ introduction smacks of the bravura of William Walton in festive mood. The choral writing imitates the organ fanfares, and only subsides in the central section, ‘be strong and he shall establish your heart’, before returning for the triumphant ‘Alleluias’ in which choir and organ unite in a blaze of A major.

© 2006 Jeremy Cull

2Incidentally G R Woodward translated the Piae Cantiones of the first carol of this set.

Notes on the musicChoir list

Dr Jeremy Cull is Director of Music at the Reid Memorial Church, Edinburgh, and maintains a busy schedule as organist, accompanist, composer and arranger. He is a keen advocate of the art of organ transcription, and a number of his arrangements have been published by Animus. He writes regularly for Delphian Records.

Soprano

Hannah Atherton

Mary Chelu

Ali Darragh

Mary Dawson

Audrey Dean

Anna Dichmont

Sarah Griffiths

Susie Lamb

Kate Taylor

Amy Wood Alto

Kevin Beckett

Karl Gietzmann

Claire Goodenough

Matthew O’Malley

Ed Tolputt

Tenor

James Atherton

David Goodenough

William Edwards

Ashley Turnell Bass

Marcus Farnsworth

Henry Parkes

Julian Poppleton

John Robinson

Graham Wood

Texts and translations

Missa Matris Dei Opus 72

1 Kyrie Kyrie eleison. Christe eleison. Kyrie eleison. Lord have mercy. Christ have mercy. Lord have mercy.

2 Gloria Gloria in excelsis Deo, et in terra pax hominibus bonae voluntatis. Laudamus te. Benedicimus te. Adoramus te. Glorificamus te.

Gratias agimus tibi propter magnam gloriam tuam.

Domine Deus, Rex caelestis, Deus Pater omnipotens.

Domine Fili unigenite Jesu Christe.

Domine Deus, Agnus Dei, Filius Patris. Qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.

Qui tollis peccata mundi, suscipe deprecationem nostram. Qui sedes ad dexteram Patris, miserere nobis.

Quoniam tu solus sanctus, tu solus Dominus. Tu solus Altissimus, Jesu Christe. Cum Sancto Spiritu in gloria Dei Patris. Amen.

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace to men of good will. We praise you. We bless you. We adore you. We glorify you. We give you thanks for your great glory. Lord God, heavenly King, God the Father Almighty.

Lord, the only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ; Lord God, Lamb of God, Son of the Father, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us. Who takes away the sins of the world, receive our prayer. Who sits at the right hand of the Father, have mercy upon us.

For you only are Holy, you only are Lord, you only are Most High, Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit, in the glory of God the Father. Amen.

3 Sanctus

Sanctus, Sanctus, Sanctus, Dominus, Deus Sabaoth.

Pleni sunt caeli et terra gloria tua. Hosanna in excelsis.

Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God of hosts. Heaven and earth are full of your glory. Hosanna in the highest.

4 Benedictus

Benedictus qui venit in nomine Domini. Hosanna in excelsis.

Blessed is He that comes in the name of the Lord. Hosanna in the highest.

5 Agnus Dei

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: miserere nobis.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: miserere nobis.

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi: dona nobis pacem.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world: have mercy upon us.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world: have mercy upon us.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world: grant us peace.

6 O Salutaris Hostia Opus 115

O salutaris hostia, Quae caeli pandis ostium; Bella premunt hostilia; Da robur, fer auxilium. Uni trinoque Domino, Sit sempiterna gloria, Quae vitam sine termino, Nobis donet in patria. Amen.

O Saving Victim! opening wide The gate of heaven to man below; Our foes press hard from every side, Thine aid supply, thy strength bestow. All praise and thanks to thee ascend For evermore, blessed One in Three; Oh grant us life that shall not end In our true native land with Thee. Amen.

7 Tantum Ergo Opus 118

Tantum ergo Sacramentum Veneremur cernui; Et antiquum documentum Novo cedat ritui; Praestet fides supplementum Sensuum defectui. Genitori, genitoque, Laus et jubilatio, Salus, honor, virtus quoque Sit et benedictio; Procedenti ab utroque Sit et benedictio; Comparsit laudatio. Amen.

Therefore we, before him bending, this great sacrament revere: Types and shadows have their ending, for the newer rite is here; faith, our outward sense befriending: makes the inward vision clear. Glory let us give and blessing, to the Father and the Son, honour, might and praise addressing, while eternal ages run; ever to his love confessing. who, from both, with both is one. Amen.

But swear by thyself, that at my death thy Son shall shine as he shines now, and heretofore; Both now and heretofore. And having done that, thou hast done; I fear no more.

Text by John Donne

Three Advent Carols Opus 73

8 A Hymn to God the Father Opus 147/2

Wilt thou forgive that sin where I begun, Which was my sin, though it were done before?

Wilt thou forgive that sin through which I run, And do run still, tho’ still I do deplore? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more.

Wilt thou forgive that sin which I have won Others to sin, and made my sin their door?

Wilt thou forgive that sin which I did shun a year or two: But wallowed in a score? When thou hast done, thou hast not done, For I have more.

I have a sin of fear, that when I’ve spun my last thread, I shall perish on the shore;

9 Gabriel’s Message Opus 73/1 Gabriel’s message does away, Satan’s curse and Satan’s sway, Out of darkness brings our day. Igitur, igitur porta coeli panditur.

He that comes despised to reign, He that cannot die be slain, Death by death its death shall gain. Igitur, igitur porta coeli panditur.

Weakness shall the strong confound, By the hands in grave-clothes wound, Adam’s chains shall be unbound. Igitur, igitur porta coeli panditur.

By the sword that was his own, By that sword, and that alone, Shall Goliath be overthrown. Igitur, igitur porta coeli panditur.

Art by art shall be assailed, To the cross shall Life be nailed, From the grave shall hope be hailed. Igitur, igitur porta coeli panditur.

Text from Piae Cantiones (1582)

10 I Know a Flower Opus 73/2

I know a flow’r it springeth From earth a tender shoot: As olden prophet singeth, From Jesse came the root That bore a blossom bright, In depth of chilly winter About the dead of night.

This plant, with blossom laden, As spake Esay of yore, Is Mary, spotless maiden, For us this flow’ret bore; By God’s eternal will A seemly babe she childeth, Yet maid remaineth still.

Praise, honour to the Father, The Son, the Spirit blest; And Mary, God’s own Mother, For help we make request; Beseech thy dearest Son

That He would be our Refuge And shrive us, ev’ry one.

Text Es ist ein ‘Ros’ entsprungen

11 While the Careless World is sleeping Opus 73/3

While the careless world is sleeping, Blest the servants who are keeping Watch, according to His word, For the coming of the Lord. Heard ye not your master’s warning, He will come before the morning, Unexpected, undescried, Watch ye for Him open eyed. Teach us so to watch, Lord Jesus, From the sleep of sin release us: Swift to hear Thee let us be, Meet to enter in with Thee. God who with all good provides us, God who made, who saved, who guides us, Praise we with the heavenly host, Father, Son and Holy Ghost.

Text

by

B H Kennedy

Evening Service in B flat, Homage to Thomas Weelkes Opus

12 Magnificat

149

And His mercy is on them that fear Him: throughout all generations. He hath shewed strength with His arm: He hath scattered the proud in the imagination of their hearts. He hath put down the mighty from their seat: and hath exalted the humble and meek. He hath filled the hungry with good things: and the rich He hath sent empty away. He remembering His mercy hath holpen His servant Israel: as He promised to our forefathers, Abraham and his seed, for ever. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

13 Nunc Dimittis

14 O Most Merciful Opus 36

O most merciful! O most bountiful! God the Father Almighty, By the Redeemer’s sweet intercession, Hear us, help us when we cry.

15 The Prayer of Saint Francis Opus 61

O Signore, fa di me un instrumento della tua pace:

Dove è odio fa chio porti l’amore

Dove è ofesa fa chio porti il Perdono

Dove è discordia chio porti l’unione.

Dove è dubbio Ch’io porte la Fede.

Dove è erore Ch’io porte la verita.

Dove è disperazione ch’io porti la speranza

Dove la tristessa ch’io porti la Gioia.

My soul doth magnify the Lord: and my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. For He hath regarded: the lowliness of His hand-maiden. For behold, from henceforth: all generations shall call me blessed. For He that is mighty hath magnified me: and holy is His name.

Lord, now lettest thou Thy servant depart in peace: according to Thy word. For mine eyes have seen: Thy salvation. Which Thou hast prepared: before the face of all people. To be a light to lighten the gentiles: and to be the glory of Thy people Israel. Glory be to the Father, and to the Son: and to the Holy Ghost; As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be: world without end. Amen.

Dove sono la tenebre Ch’io porte la luce.

O Maestro fache io non cerchi tanto ad esse consolato quanto a consolare ad esse compresso quanto a comprendere ad esse amato quanto ad amare poichè Si e Dando che si riceve Perdonando che si e perdonati, Morendo, che si resuscita, A Vita Eterna.

Lord, make me an instrument of your peace. Where there is hatred, let me show love; where there is injury, pardon; where there is doubt, faith; where there is despair, hope; where there is darkness, light; and where there is sadness, joy.

O Divine Master, grant that I may not so much seek to be consoled as to console; to be understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we are born to eternal life.

16 Thanks be to the Lord Opus 133

Thanks be to the Lord, for he hath shewed me marvellous great kindness in a strong city. Be strong and he shall establish your heart, all ye that put your trust in the Lord. Alleluia.

Thanks be to the Lord, alleluia.

The Exon Singers, founded in 1966, is recognised as one of the UK’s leading chamber choirs. Recent reviews hail the choir as ‘wonderfully full-bodied, youthful […] exciting and beautiful’ (Early Music America), with a ‘brilliant soprano sound’ (The Daily Telegraph) where ‘one is just swept along by the unabashed exuberance of the singing’ (International Record Review).

The choir can often be heard on BBC Radios 3 and 4 and on CD, including a first recording of a reconstruction of Vespers by Tomás Luis de Victoria (Delphian Records DCD34025), launched to critical acclaim during 2004. Under the direction of Matthew Owens, since 1997, the choir has also received recognition through commissioning new works from some of the UK’s most exciting composers, including Richard Allain, David Briggs, Grayston Ives, Francis Jackson, Gabriel Jackson and George Lloyd.

Since 1973, the annual Exon Singers’ Festival has been based in the market town of Tavistock on the edge of Dartmoor, and now includes the venues of Tavistock Parish Church, Buckfast Abbey, Exeter Cathedral and St David’s Church, Exeter. A composerin-residence is now a regular feature of the annual festival; Francis Jackson was in residence during the 2005 Festival.

This is the choir’s second recording for Delphian Records.

Matthew Owens became Conductor of The Exon Singers in 1997. He is also Organist and Master of the Choristers of Wells Cathedral, a post which he took up at the age of 33 in January 2005 having previously been Organist and Master of the Music at St Mary’s Cathedral, Edinburgh (from 1999-2004) and Sub Organist of Manchester Cathedral.

Born in Manchester, he studied at Chetham’s School of Music and was subsequently Organ Scholar at The Queen’s College, Oxford. As a postgraduate he received the highest award for performance, the Professional Performance Diploma, with distinction, and the college Bach prize at the Royal Northern College of Music; gained a Master’s Degree from the University of Manchester; won thirteen prizes in the diplomas of the Royal College of Organists; and was awarded the Silver Medal of the Worshipful Company of Musicians. He then studied at the Sweelinck Conservatorium in Amsterdam. His major organ studies were with Gordon Stewart, David Sanger, Margaret Phillips and Jacques van Oortmerssen. From 1994-99, he was Tutor in Organ Studies at the Royal Northern College of Music and Chetham’s and worked for BBC Religious Broadcasting.

Matthew Owens conductor

Matthew worked extensively with Michael Brewer as Assistant Conductor of the National Youth Choir of Great Britain from 1993-1999; he has also conducted the BT Scottish Ensemble, the Hungarian National Philharmonic Orchestra, Ludus Baroque Chamber Orchestra, the Orchestra of St Mary’s Music School, Wells Cathedral School Chamber Orchestra and the Sarum Orchestra. He has made nineteen CDs as a conductor or solo organist with Albany, ASV, Blackbox, Delphian, Herald, Hyperion, Lammas and Regent record labels.

Matthew has given recitals in France, Ireland, Switzerland and throughout the UK, including festival appearances at Carlisle, Lichfield, Newbury, Oxford and Peterborough and at venues such as St Paul’s Cathedral, Westminster Cathedral and St John’s Smith Square. As a conductor and solo organist he has premiered many works by leading composers including Richard Allain, Gavin Bryars, Dave Heath, Francis Jackson, Gabriel Jackson, Naji Hakim, George Lloyd, James MacMillan, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, Arvo Pärt, Howard Skempton and Giles Swayne. He is increasingly active as a composer and some of his works have been recorded for commercial release and broadcast on BBC Radio 3.

David Bednall organ

David Bednall is a student of Dr. Naji Hakim and David Briggs, and is currently Assistant Organist at Wells Cathedral.

He was born in 1979 and studied in Sherborne and subsequently at The Queen’s College, Oxford where he was Organ Scholar. In 2000, David was appointed Organ Scholar at Gloucester Cathedral under David Briggs and Ian Ball. While there he spent periods as Acting Director of Music and Acting Assistant Organist, and was closely involved in the Three Choirs Festival as well as a number of recordings. In 2002, he became Sub Organist at Wells Cathedral under Malcolm Archer, before being appointed Assistant Organist, also at Wells, in 2005.

David was a prize-winner in improvisation and performance at the examination for Fellow of The Royal College of Organists in 2002, and has given recitals at L’Église de La Trinité, Paris, Westminster Cathedral, St Paul’s Cathedral, among many other churches and cathedrals. Other recent engagements have included recitals at Westminster Abbey and at the Edinburgh Fringe festival, as well as performances of the music of James MacMillan in the Bath Festival with the Bath Festival Chorus, conducted by the composer. Also, he has performed all the major works of Olivier Messiaen as part of the Liturgical

Year, including the cycles Méditations sur le mystère de la Sainte Trinité and Livre du Saint Sacrament.

Recently, David completed his debut solo recording of the music of Hakim, Messiaen and Vierne at Blackburn Cathedral for Lammas, as well as a CD of liturgical improvisations with Malcolm Archer, both of which have been received with critical acclaim.

David is increasingly active as a composer, particularly of songs and choral music. Recent works have included commissions for the youth choirs of Blackburn and Carlisle Cathedrals, a Gregorian alternatim Mass for Douai Abbey, and a number of works for Wells Cathedral Choir. In 2006 the Choir of Wells Cathedral conducted by Matthew Owens recorded a selection of his choral music for Regent Records.